Simple Strategies To Grow Your Haulage Customer Base

Many new haulage companies dive into the embrace of a freight exchange system hoping it will be the ‘magic bullet’ for all their business growth concerns. It is, indeed, the most valuable tool you can use – however there are other considerations that run alongside. You must at least implement the following vital strategies to take your business from fledgling to full-fledged.

Cultivate a Long-term Relationship With Past Clients

Of course, by ‘relationship’ we don’t mean you engage in an illicit affair with your clients. What this simply means is that you should always keep in touch with all of those you have served or provided your services to in the past. While you can always find new customers on a freight exchange program, you should not let your past customers become water under the bridge. There are many legitimate ways you can establish a working, mutually beneficial relationship with your customers—foremost is by a mailing list, either online (via email) or snail mail. Just let your customers know what they may benefit from, such as the occasional promos or discounts. Moreover, you don’t have to compose a long-winded message just to stay on the minds of your customers: often, all you need is to announce new routes or just say hello.

Understand the Balance Between Marketing and Pushing Too Hard

When marketing your services (and this is true even if you use one of the freight exchange programmes), it is important to know your limits when dealing with clients. You cannot be too pushy or too appear desperate. As in other aspects of life, being desperate makes you unattractive—the same applies to potential clients. If they sense your desperation, they can easily manoeuvre to renegotiate the terms of your haulage contracts, which might further push your back against the wall. Take it easy. Always be professional and courteous and, most importantly, make it appear as if it’s the customer’s own idea to hire your haulage service. Lay your cards on the table and leave it to the customer to make the decision—but not without making sure you’ve clearly presented the advantages of using your services over those of your competitors.

Network with Others

As in other forms of business, you need a lot of other people—from suppliers, potential customers, even competitors—to ensure the growth of your business. You must continue to network with them and keep them in your sights. Thankfully, with the availability of online freight exchange programmes, this is much easier to do now than ever. Traditionally, you’ll have to attend a lot of industry conferences, seminars and whatnot, but you can go the easier route by signing up for membership of such organisations. An online service allows you to easily find or identify your target customers while getting acquainted with the most active and dynamic players in the field.

Norman Dulwich is a correspondent for Haulage Exchange, the world's largest neutral trading hub for haulage work in the express freight exchange industry. Over 2,500 transport exchange businesses are networked together through their website, trading jobs and capacity in a safe 'wholesale' environment.

Writer and Online Marketing Manager in London.