Here’s a great trick to help you find trucks — or to help carriers find loads, for that matter — when the usual sources don’t pay off.
During a capacity crunch, many brokers and 3PLs seriously consider leasing or buying trucks and getting carrier authority, just to ensure that they will always have capacity available for important customers. But even if you don’t own a single truck, you can find capacity to meet your customers’ needs quickly and efficiently.
Let’s say you already checked and re-checked your core carriers and posted all your loads, but you still haven’t found a truck. If you are using DAT Load Boards, you’re in luck. DAT’s Power Load Board includes a great networking tool that can help you connect with carriers in your lanes. The feature, called LaneMakers, can also be used to check out your competition – but I’m sure you can figure that out for yourself.
Use LaneMakers to search in your lanes, and you’ll get a list of the carriers who have posted the most trucks there recently. Reach out to them, and you are likely to find capacity right away. You’ll also build your carrier contact list, to support longer-term business needs. If you’re a carrier, you can use LaneMakers to find brokers who focus on your lanes.
Here’s a quick overview of LaneMakers, so you can see how this tool offers:
• Up-to-date, relevant information on carriers who run in your lanes
• Customizable views, so you can tailor your results to suit your needs
• Print option, which is especially helpful for viewing a long list of carriers in high-volume lanes
Step 1: Choose LaneMakers from the pull-down menu, under “Research”
Figure 1: Access LaneMakers through the Research menu in DAT 3sixty Power.
Step 2: Identify whether you are looking for loads or trucks, choose the trailer type and lane. You can also filter results through a Transportation Management System (TMS) to identify carriers you’ve used before.
Figure 2: List of results with the truck type and lane identified, within a radius of 100 miles from the origin and desination.
Step 3: View or print the results, prioritize the list, and start calling.
Figure 3: LaneMakers results, including the top brokers and carriers that are active in your lane.
