The demand for freight brokerages has never been greater as shippers face increasing pressure to lower costs while offering faster delivery.
A recent report by Allied Market Research supports this claim, valuing the global freight brokerage market at $48.1 billion in 2021 and estimating revenues will reach $90.7 billion by 2031 at a compound annual growth rate of 6.3% from 2022 to 2031. The report attributes this significant growth to a variety of factors, including a rise in demand for cost-effective ways to ship goods faster and safer and an increased demand for tech-driven logistics services. However, rather than making the necessary investments themselves, shippers are looking for partners that can meet their needs.
Freight brokers today must invest in technology moving forward to remain competitive in a growing but tight market. Technology adoption and the data that comes with it has the opportunity to completely change the way freight brokers operate. As a result, more and more companies are implementing technology to transform their businesses. A Deloitte and MHI study of 1,000 manufacturing and supply-chain industry leaders found that in the next five years, 82% of supply-chain companies plan to adopt predictive and prescriptive analytics, while 22% are already using the technology.
It has become clear for many in the industry that the path to success means investment in better business management tools. But, regardless of what those tools look like, how brokers collect and use the data associated will be key to maintaining a competitive edge. However, with so much freight data coming in, it can be challenging to decipher what is of actual value.
In this article, we will explore why you should care about business analytics as a freight broker, what metrics you should consider, and how to use those data points to improve your business operations.
Measuring the right key performance indicators (KPIs) based on your business analytics is an important practice across all industries. As a freight broker, choosing the most valuable metrics and applying that information to optimize your business can provide a major competitive advantage. However, this process can be challenging since the list of KPIs is often long and varies from broker to broker.
A report by Mordor Intelligence found that any delays or issues with a shipment are hard to analyze with a traditional brokerage. For example, while you might know there’s a problem, if you’re not tracking and measuring your business operations, you may be unable to find out what’s causing it and how to prevent it from happening again. However, with insight into the right metrics and tracking tools, you can better plan future moves and increase visibility and control across your supply chain.
Selecting the right freight software platforms with sophisticated analytics and data streams allows you to optimize shippers’ routes, save time and money, and more efficiently make use of your assets.
While you may understand the value of business analytics, identifying the metrics you want to focus on can be overwhelming for your back-office team. It’s important to remember that you don’t have to use every transportation metric available. Instead, focus on the KPIs that will help you grow your freight brokerage.
Here are three key areas freight brokers should consider measuring.
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Keeping a close eye on load metrics should be an important step in your load-planning process. The following KPIs can help you become a more reliable partner and ensure shipments arrive quickly, on time, and for a reasonable cost:
Rate Changes
Rates can fluctuate throughout the year based on various factors, including the time of year, the economy, the weather, and even location. It is important to monitor these changes to ensure your rates reflect the industry and current market trends.
DAT Rate Analytics
DAT shows the most current truckload rates paid by freight brokers and shippers on 68,000 lanes. These analytics use a real-time database of historical trends to stay on top of market conditions. DAT also provides:
DAT Hot Market Index
This tool is an easy way to check load-to-truck ratios at a glance. Hot Market Maps provide:
Cass Freight Index
The Cass shipments index is a measure of the number of intracontinental freight shipments across North America. The expenditures index measures total dollars spent on freight transportation, including both contract and spot market rates. The index is typically released within two weeks of month-end and, using January 1990 as its base month, is updated with monthly freight expenditures and shipment volumes from the entire Cass client base.
Lane History
This metric helps brokers identify which markets to target and can make competitive bids based on sound historical data.
Measuring KPIs around transportation management systems (TMS) helps freight brokers make better, more informed decisions about their business. Here are a few you should consider taking a closer look at:
On-time Deliveries
This KPI measures the performance of the carriers worked with by tracking the number of orders delivered at the time they were scheduled. It is a great indication of an operation’s overall performance and helps quickly identify problems. It is also key to customer retention as a customer-centric metric in which many shippers measure the success of their supply chain.
Blacklisted Carriers
This metric helps brokers keep track of carriers that have proved unreliable and should not be used. By tracking this information, brokers can ensure every carrier they partner with is dependable and can keep their operation moving smoothly.
Fall-Out Percentage
This number identifies how often a carrier backs out on a shipment, leaving the broker with a hot load. Monitoring the fall-out load percentage can help brokers create better and more reliable shipper and carrier relationships.
At the end of the day, the goal is to grow your freight brokerage. Measuring the right business metrics gives you insights into your financials to ensure your business is on track and where it needs to be.
With a platform like Denim, the following metrics are at your fingertips whenever you need them:
Jobs Over Time
This metric shows payables, receivables, and profit for all jobs and indicates the success and health of the business over time by plotting historical trends. It estimates a month-end target based on current performance and offers an adjustable timeframe (MTD, YTD, rolling 30 days, or rolling 90 days).
Average Days Sales Outstanding (DSO)
Average DSO shows the average amount of time it takes your customers to pay invoices. The total DSO for a customer can be averaged over the last four or six months.
Total Factored Amount
This metric provides the lifetime or total amount factored in the platform over the past six months. The breakdown by month helps you create a profit-and-loss statement.
Fastest- and Slowest-Paying Customers
This list ranks customers by how long it takes them to pay and the number of invoices they’ve paid in the past 30 days, 60 days, MTD or YTD. This metric helps identify which customers to prioritize and which to avoid working with in the future based on their payment performance.
Most Frequently Used Contractors
Knowing the total number of loads hauled by your go-to contractors makes it easy to find a carrier to pick up a load based on whom they work with frequently.
Most Profitable Customers
By ranking customers based on the total amount of their paid invoices, it’s much simpler to prioritize or avoid customers for future jobs based on how much money they bring in.
Metrics alone won’t solve all of your problems. Once you have nailed down the metrics you need to track, you’ll want to determine how to use those data points to grow your freight brokerage.
Here are four best practices to get you started:
Finding value in data is not always the top priority for freight brokers whose main objective is to keep operations moving. The good news is you don’t have to do it alone. The right set of tools should not only help brokers collect the right data but also help them to analyze and put it to good use.
Denim’s Business Performance Dashboard speeds up the process of making requests, providing more visibility into top carriers and customers, total factored amounts and overall business health projections.
Ready to learn more about Denim’s new Business Performance Dashboard? Schedule a demo today!
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Since the start of the pandemic, the market turmoil impacting the logistics industry, including freight brokers, has made one thing abundantly clear: it’s always prudent to buttress your business against present and future disruptions in your revenue streams.
This means looking beyond working with just a few big customers, no matter how well your current relationships may be, continuously expanding your market reach, and exploring new ways to generate income.
Sometimes it only takes one unforeseen hiccup to turn your best customer into a former one. Plus, getting underbid and losing a lucrative business opportunity to a competitor is very common. These instances, along with many more, could cripple your operation if you don’t have a robust customer base.
That’s why now is the time to diversify.
With a strategic plan, you can ensure your brokerage weathers any turbulence and comes out stronger and ready to scale in both good times and bad.
To help you get started, here are six effective strategies you can use to gain a wider audience and reduce business risk.
Be it pharmaceuticals, construction, or FMCG, most brokers have an industry that they know inside out. What better way to expand your business than by leveraging this specialized knowledge to grow your freight brokerage?
Call up your industry contacts, get referrals from them, or start an email campaign targeting your favorite niche. Your expertise, experience, and enthusiasm will make a difference, elevate your pitch, and set yourself above your competition.
Guard yourself against future challenges by building a diverse client portfolio around your strongest sector.
Many freight brokers often fail to recognize just how much headroom there is to be gained by simply broadening the list of services they provide.
How about adding additional lanes by building a larger carrier base, and then targeting shippers running freight in those lanes? For example, grab a piece of the multi-billion dollar seasonal shipping market by opening up an intra-Midwest corridor to move agricultural products and equipment.
Another quick way to increase the value of your services is by offering free and convenient online payment options such as ACH QuickPay, which makes your carriers happy with quicker payments while freeing up your backend accounting operations so you can dedicate more resources to customer acquisition and service expansion.
It’s vital to ramp up your networking efforts when the times are tough. From making calls, sending emails, attending conferences, hosting local events, and promoting on social networks such as LinkedIn and Facebook, make it a priority to reach out to new prospects regularly and keep building your contact list.
To start, set specific weekly or monthly goals for the number of new contacts you get in touch with, and steadily follow up on those leads. Remember, a healthy sales pipeline starts with a consistent process of identifying and connecting with potential customers in order to support your business development.
In an ultra-competitive market, every advantage counts in your favor, no matter how small. Keep highlighting your strengths to set yourself apart and enlarge your client base.
When thinking about how to start a freight brokerage business and grow it successfully, make sure you meet & exceed customer expectations by adopting the latest digital tools to improve transparency and deliver a flawless customer experience.
Luckily, financial partners like Denim allow you to do just that with an array of cutting-edge features such as a business performance dashboard, a fast payment system, and full visibility with advanced reporting. Plus, we also help you pay your carriers faster and boost operational efficiency with ACH QuickPay sent daily, 90%+ advances, real-time TMS integrations, interest-free factoring, collections services, and many more.
Check out our plans for freight brokers and stand out from the crowd with the most advanced, all-in-one platform in the industry.
The foundation of any freight broker’s business is based on relationships with their carriers and shippers.
Therefore, it’s vital to maintain the highest level of service for your customers - by learning their particular business processes and tailoring your solutions to meet their needs.
Often, this entails making things easier for your carriers. As mentioned earlier, everyone loves to get paid as quickly as possible without delay. Therefore, offering quick, guaranteed payments online via ACH QuickPay is a big plus in any carrier’s book and goes a long way to securing an ever-growing partnership.
Another excellent way to build stronger ties is ensuring seamless integration with your customer’s preferred TMS platform, such as Ascend or EZ Loader, to enable fast load booking, digital documentation, etc.
You can gain even more trust by improving your credit rating on Ansonia, which opens up the door to doing business with a more diverse list of carriers and shippers.
The pandemic has taught all of us that anything can and will happen, especially in the often turbulent shipping industry. And it’s up to each freight broker to assess their risks and prepare a contingency plan to ensure their business will continue to function in such emergencies.
The good news is that it’s not as complicated as you might think.
Start by identifying your key risk scenarios (ie. inclement weather, technical glitches, loss of a big client, etc) and then outline the specific steps you will take to address each one.
Next, determine anything you can do in advance to get prepared (i.e. having a backup internet connection in case the primary one goes down).
Finally, always aim to run your brokerage operation as efficiently as possible for more flexibility in times of need. A great way to do this is by utilizing a financial platform to cut accounting and back office costs, which affords you the leeway to invest in what actually grows the bottom line - the expansion and diversification of your customers.
The old adage of not putting all your eggs in one basket has once again proven to be sage advice in these trying times. Whether you are just starting a freight brokerage, or are a seasoned firm looking to scale, it pays to take concrete steps right now to diversify and mitigate your risk by applying some tips outlined above.
To learn more about how to set up your brokerage to succeed in any market condition, contactthe experts at Denim to help you run a more efficient operation, attract top carriers and shippers, and bulletproof your business.
We are in a trucking recession and its impacting the whole industry.
Consumer demand is lower and profits are thin. And unfortunately, the freight industry outlook for 2024 does not look ideal.
Shippers remain in control with more market power than they did in 2022 causing carriers and brokers to negotiate contracts to maintain volume.
With the right strategies in place, you can weather the down market and come out even stronger on the other side.
In this blog post, we'll cover 10 things that you should keep in mind during the trucking recession. From staying up-to-date on market rates to embracing technology, these tips can help you navigate the challenges of a loose market and come out on top. So if you're a freight broker looking to stay afloat, read on for some things to keep top of mind.
Economic conditions can have a significant impact on demand for shipping and transportation services. This can affect the rates that you are able to negotiate with carriers, as well as the availability of capacity.
By staying informed about market conditions, you can make more informed decisions about which carriers to work with, lanes to prioritize, and how to price services.
There are several ways to stay up-to-date and keep a pulse on the market.
Diversifying your customer base is not only good business advice, but critical in today’s market.
Relying heavily on a single customer or a small group of customers can put your freight brokerage at risk. If that customer goes out of business or significantly reduces their shipping volume, it could have a major impact on your revenue and cash flow.
A diverse customer base provides your freight brokerage with a more stable source of revenue and you are less reliant on any one customer or even industry. This can help to ensure the long-term viability of your business.
During economic downturns, demand for shipping and transportation services decline, which can lead to excess capacity in the market. This can put downward pressure on rates and hurt your bottom line.
Contracts and rates put in place during different freight conditions should be re-evaluated during a freight recession. Are there new terms that could be favorable to both parties in today’s economy? By renegotiating rates with carriers, clients, and partners, you may be able to secure more favorable terms and improve margins.
However, it's important to maintain good relationships with your carriers and to be fair and reasonable in negotiations. When the freight market picks up and you need to move freight, you’ll be thankful for those strong relationships.
Three quarters of freight brokers use accounting software like QuickBooks, Freshbooks, or NetSuite according to our recent report. This year, you will likely be getting more familiar with those platforms.
In this environment, it is especially important to control expenses and keep them as low as possible. Regularly checking on expenses and revenue help mitigate any surprises and help you make the best decisions in terms of expense cutting.
This may involve negotiating higher rates with shippers, lower rates with carriers, or streamlining operations to dedicate more employee time to revenue-generating activities. By taking a proactive approach to cost management, you can increase your chances of weathering the economic storm and emerging on the other side.
A recession can also bring about new opportunities otherwise not considered.
In a downturn, some segments of the market are less affected than others. For example, rising inflation is shifting consumer spending from consumer technology, clothing, and cosmetics spending to necessities like groceries and household goods. The shift in demand could mean new business for your freight brokerage.
Similar to change in demand, more manufacturers and companies are reshoring or nearshoring in 2023. Production is moving away from Asian countries to the Mexico/U.S. border or within the U.S and 62% of manufacturers have already begun the process, according to Deloitte's Future of Freight Research. Respondents of the survey expect agriculture, apparel, and consumer electronics to see supply lines being reconfigured the most.
This trend will redraw the transportation map generating new lanes and opportunities for your brokerage.
By identifying high-demand markets and new production regions, your brokerage can create new opportunities for your brokerage.
Not utilizing technology in today’s market is a grave mistake.
Software and online platforms support almost all facets of a business from streamlining operations to improving customer support.
Transportation management systems, digital freight matching, accounting software, and financial enablement platforms (like Denim) can help your freight brokerage run smoothly. But to get the most out of them, evaluate your tech stack for integration opportunities. When systems work cohesively, your freight brokerage can reduce hours of manual entry.
For example, Denim integrates with TMS systems like TAI, EZ Loader, and Ascend enabling freight brokers to book loads and submit for invoicing and collections with a single click.
Developing the right tech stack for your freight brokerage can not only support your business but optimize it for success this year.
Good communication is key during a loose market. Providing a white glove service can be the difference between winning a new lane or being cut.
Regular communication with clients helps build trust and establish long-term partnerships. This includes sending progress updates on a shipments pickup, transit status, delays, and delivery. An open line of communication makes asking for additional business or referrals easier on both sides.
A client relationship does not end when a shipment is delivered. Your freight brokerage should promptly invoice clients with a professional and clear document detailing the shipment. This can be handled by automation and should not be done sloppily. Post-shipment is also a great opportunity to ask clients for feedback or leave a review for your business.
By staying in touch with clients, you build a rapport and have the opportunity to identify opportunities to improve your service.
Competition is going to be high this year. And the truth is, not everyone will make it. Those that put in the effort will not only survive the downturn and emerge resilient for years to come.
By being proactive, you can identify new opportunities to grow your business, such as by expanding into new segments or markets, offering new types of services, or embracing new technologies. Proactiveness will likely put your brokerage ahead of the competition and improve responsiveness to changes in the market.
Ultimately, being proactive is an important part of building a successful and sustainable business in the long term.
It's easy to get discouraged during a loose market, but try to stay positive and focus on the long-term. Remember that economic downturns are usually temporary and the market will eventually bounce back.
In fact, positivity can be a business advantage.
A positive attitude can also help you build strong relationships with clients, carriers, and other industry partners. By remaining positive and optimistic, you can inspire confidence and build trust, which can be critical to your success.
Positivity breeds creativity. By approaching challenges with a can-do attitude, you can be more open to new ideas and more likely to find innovative ways to overcome obstacles.
Good news: this isn’t the first-ever freight recession.
Many freight brokerages survived the 2019 recession, and are willing to help new and growing brokers. So don’t be afraid to reach out to industry groups or seek the advice of a mentor or colleague.
Industry organizations can provide valuable resources and support, such as industry news and analysis, access to networking events, and professional development opportunities.
The freight and logistics community is eager to help one another. Remember, you are not alone and have a range of options available to you to help navigate the challenges of an economic downturn.
Whether you are a 100-person freight brokerage or a new broker, we are all feeling the effects of the freight recession and this year will not be easy. However, with challenges come new opportunities to diversify and try new strategies. Through this loose market, your freight brokerage will emerge stronger and more resilient than in 2023. Remember to seek new opportunities, keep expenses low, and maintain a positive outlook.
Access to working capital is not the only benefit of freight brokerage factoring. 71% of brokerages making $2 million or more in monthly revenue use invoice factoring, according to our recent report. Even enterprise brokerages, who likely don’t need working capital, choose to factor.
Why?
Because factoring for freight brokerages provides protection against partnering with risky shippers and improves carrier reputation.
Protecting your brokerage relies heavily on operating with a solid reputation. It only takes one customer that can’t pay their invoices to dry up your network.
The better your reputation, the better partnerships you'll obtain. The freight market is soft right now. You can't afford to work with the wrong shippers or lose trust with carriers.
You need to grow a big network of qualified shippers and carriers so that you're ready for anything. Denim can
help you do that faster and more effectively.
Unfortunately, freight brokerages are not immune to scams (like double brokering), fraud, and deception. You want to make sure you’ll receive payment before booking a load or contracting a new lane.
When your network consists of shippers with bad credit, your entire business becomes vulnerable. Payment recovery issues can hinder your growth and ultimately hurt your image.
It only takes one non-payment from a shipper to undo a strong carrier network.
While due diligence helps, it can only mitigate some risk for your freight brokerage. Factoring with Denim protects brokerages with unlimited shipper credit checks.
“Denim’s underwriting helped SCALE Logistics take the risk out of her business by credit checking her customers. Shay Lynn Dixon said ‘it’s like having your own CFO.’”
High diesel prices and inflation costs are straining carriers profits and business.
Carriers are going to prefer brokerages that pay the fastest, regardless of your shippers terms. No one likes chasing down receivables, and slow payments will inevitably cause your carriers to lose trust. The net-30 days of the standard of the past is obsolete in today’s digitized environment.
Factoring for freight brokerages can lower their days to pay carriers without impacting cash flow. Carriers will learn that you’re an honest and reliable broker and be more willing to work with you.
Not only does lower days to pay strengthen carrier relationships, it improves your credit. Staying as up-to-date as possible makes life easier for you and your carrier network. The logistics industry is big, but your corner of it is likely small enough that everyone talks, so prioritize performance that boosts reputation over anything else.
Nobody should have to waste time getting paid for a job well done. That's why Denim helps you lower your days to pay to as little as 24 hours.
Denim offers all clients free QuickPay, which means carriers are funded within 24-48 hours. There's no cost to you for the use of Denim's QuickPay service. Brokerages can choose to offer this service for a fee to carriers or not.
“Since working with Denim, Direct Expedite has become known as ‘the guys who pay their carriers within 48 hours of delivery.”
Shippers want to work with freight brokerages with a strong and reliable carrier network. So in order to obtain new business, you need to grow and maintain a qualified carrier network.
Growing a carrier network doesn’t happen overnight. But how do you do that optimally?
There are thousands of brokers that carriers can decide to work with, so it’s important to emphasize your value.
As a growing freight brokerage, getting carriers to work with you over the competition is a huge obstacle in building your business. But, by setting yourself apart, you can begin to build your carrier network and stand out.
We provide a two-pronged approach to growing your network of qualified carriers.
While factoring for freight brokerage is largely associated with maintaining working capital, there are other great benefits factoring with Denim has to offer.
Put up a strong logistics defense with factoring from Denim.
Carriers may add accessorial charges to invoices for services above and beyond transporting freight from point A to B.
Freight brokers must account for these charges when connecting shippers and carriers. Otherwise, shippers may experience unexpectedly high bills.
While you can’t always avoid accessorial charges, you can prepare for them by understanding these fees ahead of time and why carriers levy them. This preparation lets you set appropriate expectations with shippers. We previously covered six of the most common accessorial charges, but plenty of other events can trigger extra charges from carriers. The following list outlines six more accessorial charges every freight broker should plan for:
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Founded in July 2020 by logistics pro Anthony Curreri, Roadly Logistics LLC is a freight brokerage working to disrupt the industry by providing more transparency and superior customer service.
Curreri knows the meal kit business well, so that’s the company’s early specialty. He understands that these time-critical shipments need extra attention to ensure clean containers, proper container temperature, and on-time delivery.
“A late delivery for dry goods is different from a late delivery of refrigerated produce with an expiration date,” he says.
When the business took off quickly, Curreri soon saw that long time frames for shipper payments – typically 30 to 60 days – created cash flow problems. He needed to get paid sooner; factoring was the logical solution.
“I should have set up the business for factoring in the first place,” he notes.
A dependable factoring company can help streamline payments and keep cash flow consistent, giving a brokerage like Roadly more stability and time to focus on business-critical tasks rather than chasing down payments. For Curreri, that meant finally cutting back on the 18-hour days required by a growing brokerage.
He wanted a broker-specific factoring company that leveraged technology, had a user-friendly portal and dashboard, and responsive customer service. He also looked for QuickBooks integration.
Curreri found Denim by searching online for freight factoring companies. He got a long list of options, but only a handful were broker-specific. And because he was especially interested in automating the factoring process as much as possible, Denim’s state-of-the-art portal stood out.
“A lot of the other companies I spoke to were using email to send invoices and communicate instead,” Curreri says.
Although QuickBooks integration wasn’t immediately available, Curreri knew it was coming. Denim’s impressive team of technology pros and experts, along with its rapid growth, gave him confidence that the company would deliver the new feature as promised.
Still, because he’s not a QuickBooks power-user, Curreri was a bit apprehensive about that integration when Denim introduced it. “My biggest fear was that we weren’t going to be able to set up the two systems seamlessly. However, the Denim team made it happen and everything’s working great,” he says.
Curreri especially appreciates how Denim helps Roadly get paid quicker and with less effort. This capability is especially important considering the brokerage’s volume—Roadly is processing more than 750 jobs a month through the system. That, in turn, supports the company’s continued growth. In addition to adding staff, the freight brokerage is marketing sizing and exploring other niches that require extra oversight and attention to detail, such as paper.
The Denim portal reporting function also makes it easy for him to stay on top of cash flow by providing a high-level view of payment status – whether the pay is outgoing to a carrier or incoming to Roadly. In addition, prompt customer service —whether by phone, email, or online chat—helps Curreri and his staff get the answers they need when they need them.
“If I was working with another company, I’d probably be on the phone for 10 or 15 minutes waiting on hold. With Denim, I can email my account manager or jump on the website and do a quick instant message chat,” Curreri says.
Working with Denim has been a huge timesaver, too. The QuickBooks integration has cut Roadly’s manual accounting activities in half.
Denim has also helped the brokerage maintain a perfect DTP rating, with a consistent 30-day payment schedule. These metrics are particularly important for a growing freight broker that’s bringing on new shippers and carriers regularly.
Curreri is also convinced that Denim’s knowledgeable customer service team is a boon to freight business owners.
“When I first started, I didn’t know how factoring worked, but the Denim team taught me everything I needed to know. They got me going,” he adds.
From streamlining payments to integrating your accounting, the Denim Payments platform helps freight brokers make their operations more efficient so they can spend more time growing their business. Want to learn more? Contact our sales team or schedule a demo today to see how we can help.
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We have always had a special and meaningful relationship with Shay Lynn Dixon, CEO and co-owner of SCALE Logistics, a premier 3PL based in Atlanta. In fact, SCALE Logistics was one of our earliest customers and has watched Denim grow from 5 employees to 70+.
But what was the catalyst that sparked this amazing relationship, and why does Shay continue to recommend Denim to freight brokers who are looking for a factoring company? Let’s look at her success and why she continues to be a brand advocate for Denim.
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It may come as a surprise to those of us that have seen SCALE Logistics’ success, but Shay didn’t plan a career or education path in supply chain logistics, and no one she knew was in the industry.
After high school, Shay had an opportunity to work for a small, family-owned manufacturer, which she attributes for much of her hands-on training. She had a chance to later work at a cold chain brokerage and fell in love with the work and what she was doing. She went on to manage millions of dollars of freight and after having success at a different brokerage, decided to go off on her own and start SCALE Logistics.
SCALE Logistics is a unique freight brokerage because they focus on high-value and specialty freight, including aerospace and avionics. Part of this niche happened by chance, but part of it is due to the fact that Shay loves airplanes. She even had a miniature airplane model on her desk during her conversation with Denim!
There’s no denying that Shay and her team have seen tremendous growth and we have been so happy to help with that growth.
Shay initially came to Denim as she was researching over 30 different factoring companies and doing her due diligence to find one that fit with her needs. She wanted a deeper relationship with her factoring partner and was looking for someone to help her brokerage stand apart. She quickly found out that not all factoring companies were created equal.
She ultimately decided to partner with Denim because our platform was easy to use and she knew that the “old-school” way of factoring wouldn’t work for her as a tech-savvy business owner. She was also happy to support Denim because we were a start-up company and so was SCALE Logistics so she appreciated the innovative way we are approaching the industry.
It didn’t take long for our work together to get off the ground. She signed up for Denim on a Thursday, got her first customer on a Monday, and got her first load the Thursday of that week. She was so excited and even though it was only her first load, Denim “treated her like a $1 million business.”
Fast forward a few years and SCALE Logistics has grown a ton since then, but Shay still relies on Denim for her operations and payments. Here are some highlights of our time working together:
It has been amazing watching Shay and the SCALE Logistics team grow and we’re honored to have been part of that journey. If you want to see how Denim can help you scale your brokerage, schedule a demo. We’d love to show you how we can help support your payment processes and back-office operations.
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VSH Logistics, LLC, is a veteran-owned freight brokerage founded by Ed Crosby in 2019. Primarily serving companies in the signage space, VSH boasts a team of professionals with a combined 50+ years of experience in logistics, freight brokering, and truck driving.
Since working with Denim, VSH has experienced:
Maintaining consistent cash flow is tough for any brokerage. Shippers tend to pay brokers on 30-60 day terms, while carriers expect payments from brokers almost immediately. This uneven cash flow makes it hard for a freight brokerage to maintain steady operations, let alone grow the business to bring in more revenue.
Most brokerages solve their cash flow problem by working with a factoring company. However, Crosby and VSH didn't want to work with just any factoring provider. They wanted "a reliable partner that would not only stabilize cash flow but also help streamline back-office operations."
Crosby didn't want to jump through hoops to get the money his brokerage had earned. "Other factoring companies are really particular about your paperwork," Crosby said. "It has to be perfect, or else you're not getting paid."
Additionally, his people were already swamped with administrative tasks, such as chasing down payments and fielding constant calls from carriers. Crosby needed a factoring partner that would make life easier for everyone at VSH. That way, the team could focus on what really mattered: delivering a full-service approach to freight brokerage that helps every customer streamline operations and cut freight costs.
Crosby learned about the Denim financial platform through EZ Loader, which VSH was already using as a transportation management system (TMS). Because Denim integrates with EZ Loader, it was an intuitive choice for VSH.
Almost immediately, Crosby noticed how user-friendly Denim's platform was. Rather than requiring VSH to file complicated paperwork for every invoice they want to factor, Denim takes advantage of its EZ Loader integration to automate much of the process.
"You have a lot of other companies that want you complete a spreadsheet and submit it to them," Crosby said. "But with Denim, it’s so easy. All I do is hit 'Submit to Factoring', and it sends information from the TMS to Denim."
Denim didn't just make it easier to get money from shippers — it has also made it easier for VSH to pay carriers. Denim automatically invites carriers to their own portal to track payments and view remittances. VSH personnel no longer receive multiple calls from carriers every day asking about payment status. And thanks to Denim's QuickPay feature, carriers are always paid on time.
"Denim takes the burden off you when it comes to paying the carrier by doing it for you," Crosby said.
With a newly streamlined back office and more consistent cash flow, VSH can focus on more mission-critical tasks, like ensuring every shipper gets the service they need.
And with a more transparent and faster way to pay carriers, VSH has had an easier time maintaining strong relationships with the best carriers. After all, the most powerful way to keep carriers happy is to pay them on time. Plus, better relationships with carriers mean VSH is able to connect every shipper with the right carrier, which has helped drive tremendous growth for VSH overall.
In fact, revenue has increased by 300 percent since VSH started working with Denim.
"Denim has made my accounting really easy," Crosby said. "Less stress, more streamlined, and getting business done quicker—that's what Denim provides for me."
If you’re interested in learning more about how Denim can help grow your credit and help build your business, schedule a meeting with our sales team today.
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Reiss Bright founded Running Ox Logistics, a startup logistics freight brokerage, in 2021 and within the first two months of business, drove over $1 million in revenue. After seven months of growing his freight brokerage, he has now driven almost $4 million in revenue. This growth is admirable in any market, but especially in the freight broker industry amidst rising interest rates, truck shortages, and increasing competition.
Running Ox is dedicated to getting their shippers’ goods where they need to go in the easiest, safest, most efficient and economical way possible. They are a nationwide, multimodal logistics company that serves businesses of all sizes, using industry-leading technology to match shippers’ needs with the right carrier partner.
Their customer service capabilities, coupled with Denim's Quick Pay technology, sets them apart from their competition. The ease of quick paying their partners has helped to further drive carrier relationships with the features they use at Denim.
When Running Ox began factoring, they had another company in mind. However, when they found out their TMS, EZ Loader, was already integrated with Denim, it was an easy call to make. They wanted to keep their partners under the same umbrella and the integration between EZ Loader and Denim made this a breeze.
In addition to the seamless TMS integration, they use QuickPay to further their carrier relationships. As a customer and carrier-centered freight brokerage, they strive to build strong and lasting relationships with their partners in order to deliver the best service possible.
Reiss’ favorite Denim feature, QuickPay, enables them to further cement their carrier relationships by providing fast and reliable payments to them. Without Denim’s QuickPay feature, they risk not being able to “facilitate freight pay and bill audit at an efficient rate.”
Running Ox Logistics prides itself on its vast carrier network, speed-to-market efficiencies, and unmatched commitment to service. By taking advantage of Denim’s broker-specific features, Reiss and his company are able to do just that.
Reiss sees Running Ox growing to an office of 20 employees over the next few years with a handful of employees handling collections and ensuring their carriers are paid timely. His goal is to create a true brokerage logistics hub, and the team at Denim can’t wait to be part of his journey.
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