4 Innovative Ways to Secure More Haulage Contracts

Contracts come in many shapes, sizes and terminologies. They can be informal or formal, quickly made or laborious, stock-standard or carefully drawn out point by point. In transportation, the capacity to secure solid and consistent agreements across a broad range of clientele is an essential foundation to growth.

For many smaller operators, this is simply a matter of making the most of opportunities. While you may not have hundreds of jobs awaiting your signature, it is vital to distinguish the wheat from the chaff and secure the best opportunities in innovative ways.

Use an online exchange

One of the most innovative and useful ways to gain an advantage in securing haulage contracts is the use of an online exchange. Most smaller operators struggle to capture an exponentially growing market share of clients that can then be managed with reliable services. An online exchange provides the tools necessary to both reach clients and maintain services. The simple accessibility to a database of prospective clients, and the ability to track and manage routes and services means smaller operators should not pass up this means of securing further business agreements.

Insist on repeat business

The quality of haulage contracts and the nature of the clients with whom you sign them is all important. While there are many routine agreements, it is more than helpful to sign in such a way to secure repeat business. If you know the routes, connect with the client, and have a reliable means of providing an ongoing service, it is without doubt wiser to sign a long-term agreement rather than a singular one. Of course, this means putting in the effort to build a relationship with a client with whom you can reliably perform an ongoing service.

Choose the most profitable and reliable

The value of a job can be inherent to that job, but it can also go beyond the immediate. It can link you to a reliable client or group of clients. It is therefore useful to think of haulage contracts as means to look ahead to further business opportunities. Forging agreements with connected and reliable clients can lead to solid relationships and therefore have more value than just the individual job. This way of thinking can give you a competitive edge.

Remove inefficiency

In endeavouring to secure haulage contracts it is important to consider the potential hindrances that might impede the most efficient means of finding and signing agreements. Time-wastage, excessive paperwork, a lack of communication skills and technological inefficiency are all reasons why it might take longer than necessary to sign. Innovation means looking for the latest way to settle agreements easily and quickly. This can be the difference between losing a client because you were too slow or because you were occupied with the wrong thing at the wrong time.

Norman Dulwich is a correspondent for Haulage Exchange, the world's largest neutral trading hub for haulage contracts 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.