So, how to be a freight broker? How much profits do they earn? Several questions would have triggered in your mind sooner or later about whether to choose freight brokerage as a business. Now, you know that the main objective of a freight broker is to work upon a negotiated rate between the shippers and the transporters. So, you must be able to build strong relationships between both the parties. So, if you have strong interpersonal and convincing skills, this is the right business for you. There are plenty of reasons why you should start your freight brokerage business as it is an industry that is safe and growing at the same time. Starting your own freight business is not so complicated, all you need is patience, persistence, and a good direction to make it in the freight industry and right tools like Etrucks Reporting App. The following are some of the steps that will guide you in thorough planning and launching your own freight brokerage business.

1) Industry Overview and In-Depth Research:

Taking a good overview of the current industrial practices will help you know the working of the business more aptly. You must be able to make the best out of the existing opportunities with strong critical and people skills. You can also enroll in a freight brokerage software training program to get a hold on the work of the broker, which will open many new doors for your business. Understand the type of audience you will be catering to and what kind of load you will be moving. Make sure to obtain a freight brokerage license and freight broker bond.

2) Choose the best legal entity for your business:

To make your freight business legal, you need to select the kind of legal entity best suited for your business. Most of the small business owners start their business as sole proprietorship or in partnerships. If you are thinking of working on a large scale, you can incorporate as a company. A company has many privileges, including tax benefits, corporate identity, raising share capital, and perpetual concession.

3) Select a Company name and register your business:

In order to register your business, you need to select a unique business name. Ensure whether the chosen name is already taken or not as no two companies can have similar names. The name should be unique and easily identifiable.

4) Develop a Business Plan:

Before starting any business, you need to develop an effective business plan. A business plan is necessary to meet the challenges that will come in your way. Moreover, it consists of future sales and profit projections that help you easily take the bank loans as a business plan improves your credit score. And further you can take help of Axon Accounting programs to manage your business financial tasks.

5) Find the right carriers:

Finding the right carriers is essential because you will have to deal with them regularly. Make sure they are professional, reliable, and trustworthy. You can find the carriers through various sources such as online directories, references, and market search.

6) Get your Broker Authority and a Freight Broker Bond:

Before you start operating your business, you need to get a freight broker software license by filling out an application form. There is usually an application processing fee, and the whole process can take up to 4 to 6 weeks. Apart from this, a freight broker needs to have a surety bond to guarantee that he will diligently follow all the rules and regulations. And, in case if he fails to do so, the bond covers the compensation and losses.

7) Comply with state requirements and set up your registered office:

You also need to make sure that you follow all the guidelines for establishing and building your business in the state where your registered office is located. The next thing is to have an office which could be at your home or some office space. Make sure you have some essential equipment ready for regular operations of your business, such as computers, printers, fax machines, and other such operational assets. Also, make a budget for recurring expenses such as rent, payroll, electricity, and internet fees.

8) Find shippers and set prices:

Look for the shippers that need your services. The best way to do it is by marketing your business. You need to invest some money in marketing and promotional activities so that they can easily find you. Provide some promotional offers to market your startup business at an initial stage. You can do it by using social media channels, building a website, or simply using traditional advertising methods like newspaper and radio advertisements, banners, and kiosks. Also, set up a price that is neither too high that people hesitate to avail your services and neither too low that you don’t get a profit margin.

9) Pool some startup capital, and you are ready to go

In order to run a business, you need an adequate amount of capital in hand. There are several sources of raising capital, such as your own reserves, bank loans or raising share capital. Understand the pros and cons of each source to find the best source of raising money for your business.

Once you are done with the above steps, you have successfully become a freight broker and ready to start your business.

Here, a Miles by State Calculator can help you to manage your IFTA Tax Reporting. You will find countless packages and plans in terms of the software. But, always try reading the details as well as the features and functions the software will be providing you with. It will help you identify the right software according to your business needs. Additionally, try to find software according to your business size or based on the number of trucks you own.

There are many benefits of getting a Mile by State calculator for your current truck or fleet.  Read on to know more:

Automatic calculation of Fuel Tax by State and Province:

A shipping company must keep them updated with the maintenance and fuel consumption along with the IFTA State Mileage logs. Initially, it used to take a lot of time to calculate IFTA due to the paperwork involved, but now the Miles by State Calculator makes the process quite simpler, faster and is known to generate the desired outcomes in just a fraction of seconds. The software instantly generates various reviews and reports without making mistakes.  

Real-time Travel Monitoring:

Talking about the traditional methods of IFTA calculation, it is important for a company to maintain documents based on the vehicle’s mileage, distances the truck traveled, and the fuel consumed. In addition to this, information like- gap miles, fuel receipts, and other invoices. Therefore, maintaining this data and bills can be a challenging task. But, a mileage calculator helps you to securely save all the information and data on the cloud or any device. It also helps to monitor the real-time ongoing movements of the shipping carriers and fleet.

Saving Your Expenses:

Saving is said to be the primary goal of every business. Also, every trucking company is known to provide a huge share of its profit to its employees. Here, a mileage calculator tends to help you lower down your expenses effective calculations of IFTA. However, the automatic method can also save your time hiring an extra workforce and can effectively perform the required tasks according to the jurisdictions. This tool also prevents the odds of miscalculations and you can happily save yourself from unnecessary penalties.

Effortlessly gets connected with the existing system:

The right Mile by State calculator is designed so as to easily get connected with your existing business solution. It works in sync and does not interrupt any kind of performance or cause any technical issues with the existing method. You can also operate other systems with the software due to its user-friendly interface. The calculator also offers a better workflow between the dispatcher and the drivers.

Video credit: KFO

Summary- This is what you will get!

• You can pay all your taxes on time quarterly without worrying about anything else accurately. 
• The calculator effectively keeps your International Fuel Tax Agreement related documents well-organized.
• The right solution will help to keep your information securely stored online. You can access and upload the information on the cloud to save from your hard drive crashes, data, thefts, and other issues. 
• You can keep a track of your IFTA tax reporting and related records easily. 

 Lastly, if you are the owner of a small or medium-sized business, knowing how IFTA can help you to file in the given timeframe. Mile by state calculator helps in filling as well as reporting the International Fuel Tax Agreement. Therefore, get the one that meets all your business-related requirements. 

Axon Software

It helps you cut all the stress while running your business as Axon Software is one of the most efficient trucking company softwares that provides integrated real-time information. It means that information entered anywhere in the system automatically and instantly updates other departments. You can easily control all your activities using a single entry such as dispatching, billing, driver payment, fuel management, driver management, fleet maintenance, and accounting management. All the information needs to be entered only once, and it gets instantly updated in all the other parts of the trucking management software.

Bolt system

It is the one software based upon the cloud-based fleet management systems. It is an integrated trucking software that has been specially developed for the freight and the trucking industry. As it is cloud-based, it does freight tracking at the most advanced level. Bolt system enables you to reduce costs while maximizing efficiencies at the same time. It is a kind of software that looks at your freight first, and then assigns the best routes for your trucks, trailers, and drivers. With such a system, you can quickly meet your customers’ requirements. It also provides you with the necessary flexibility that you wish in a fleet management program. Bolt helps you to handle all the complicated moves and also keep your operations unique.

There is nothing more beautiful than someone who goes out of their way to make life beautiful for others. – Mandy Hale

Project 44

It is a web service platform that provides transit-time data and rates in real-time. The customer base they have includes third-party logistics, carriers, shippers, and fleet management software providers. It is one of the softwares that take raw data, processes it, and then presents it to the user in a consolidated and graphical form. The strength of Project 44 is its viability and reliability. This gives the user the chance to make decisions based on reliable data and predictive business intelligence.

Video credit: GSA (General Services Administration)

Transmetrics

It is a kind of software that has been designed for freight forwarders. It forecasts geographical area, customer demand, asset requirements in advance. This excellent function helps in timely planning and procuring the right capacities at the right location efficiently by the forwarding companies. The companies can easily maintain high service levels and minimize procurement costs by booking everything in advance. It also offers predictive optimization software for the transport industry. 

Fourkites

This software has been designed after recognizing the pain points of the logistics industry by its founder. This software aims to disrupt the traditional organizational culture where everything was done manually. The logistics industry can now share critical load information with the help of this highly advanced technology. They also get access to the shipment data once they get signed up for the Fourkites software. The information about the truck gets displayed on the software after tracking it on a real-time basis. The data is shared among all its members. Another great thing about Fourkites is that they also have a weather forecasting tracking feature. 

Advent eModal

This amazing software has a vast number of features. Some of them include creating visibility for containers, predicting cargo availability, order management, facilitating payments, fleet management system, and scheduling the deliveries. Their data services have accelerated the speed of transporting the cargo. Now the truckers can quickly deliver load without having to look at a countless number of websites. They also have the option to automate their payments and receipts. This software has been successful in providing help to the carriers and shippers as well. Now they can submit reports, repair estimates, and review maintenance.

“There is more credit and satisfaction in being a first-rate truck driver than a tenth-rate executive” — B.C. Forbes

Recognizing and Understanding the Need for a Fleet Management Software

Whether you are implementing a digital fleet management system for the first time or planning to replace your old one with the latest tech-based tool, you are here to elevate as well as revolutionise your complete flee-related operations.

Video Source: A1 Telekom Austria Group

The fleet management tools are not just developed for the large businesses having a huge range of fleet vehicles, but are also developed for the small businesses having the pool of 4-5 vehicles, and more. Here, regardless of what is the size of your business or your fleet-related operations, the advantages offered by introducing your business to a fleet management system are still the same and these include as follow:

1.  Lowering down the vehicle’s downtime with proactive scheduled maintenance.
2.  Basic features like accounting.
3.  It initiates fewer maintenance costs.
4.  Responsible for reduced running costs such as fuel.
5.  Tracking the entire fleet-related process efficiently.
6.  Enhanced safety of your drivers and fleets.

How Displays Boards Give Access of Important Information Related To Fleet Management

Provide Power Audience Analytics.

Digital Signage is a versatile platform that effectively can perform various tasks. For instance, when paired with small form- factor cameras or the onboard NFC- Near Field Communications, digital signage can count people buying and leaving the store along with the ones with or without the masks. In addition to this, retailers can use screens to remind customers related to social distancing and the ones who are waiting in checkout lines.

Automated Workflow

As we know, automation plays a major role when it comes to limiting a person to person contact. You can automate any specific tasks of your choice. From assigning various tasks to your employees, to the cashless payment processes for the customers as well as everything that comes in between. Here, identifying and replacing the products can also be done using an automated system. Not only that, but automation also saves a lot of your time, increases your productivity, reduces error- this all can be done easily if you have access to a digital signage software.

Displaying the Recommended Safety Guidelines

When the clients enter your business or store, they are aware of two main things- what they can do and what they can’t follow your implemented safety policy. This is the best way to make sure that there is no ambiguity about how your store is contributing in order to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

An outdoor display screen is a way your customers are informed about your social distancing policy along with any other measure you have taken before reopening your business. Also, customers will also feel safer knowing that your staff is working hard to ensure the safest shopping experience for them via digital signage.

Establishing Effective Communication with customers

Delivering the right information to the client is much easier with the help of digital signage. These effectively grab the attention of the customers in a concise manner that suits them and their needs. It can also reduce physical contact, providing detailed information through digital signage all across the premises.

The digital menu boards along with the bulletin boards can easily assist the customers during their decision-making process. You can even use them through an easy to use downloadable application.

Also, things like managing the queues as well as directing customers when they arrive using the digital way finding signage can also be added. Outdoor digital display will help your shoppers to make their own way through the same. This will reduce the amount of unnecessary wandering in the departments your customers are not interested in.

Lastly, establishing effective communication or altered services is one of the easiest ways when we talk about retail digital signage at the entrance or front of your store. So, just make sure that you do not communicate any services related to the services you are not offering currently.