Social Media Come to the Trucking Industry

<p>While social media have been around for several years, 2010 was a landmark period in their evolution. The popularity of the movie “The Social Network” and the designation of Facebook’s founder Mark Zuckerberg as Time magazine’s man of the year propelled this emerging phenomenon to widespread attention. The news this week that Goldman Sachs plans to invest $500 million in Facebook further cements the increasing value being placed on this movement and Facebook in particular.</p>

<p>I would like to thank the readers of this blog for their positive feedback on last week’s posting and for their suggestions on other items to consider in selecting a freight broker. Here are some items that should be added to the list that was included in that blog.</p>

<p>With the soaring cost of fuel, freight transportation costs are increasing at an alarming rate. Shippers are searching for ways to mitigate the high cost of freight. A freight bid is an excellent tool to achieve cost reductions in shipping costs. Over the years I have seen many shippers secure significant cost reductions through the successful execution of a freight bid. However, as I speak with shippers, I find that in some cases their experience with freight FRQ’s has been disappointing. Here are a few questions to ask yourself to ensure your company derives the maximum benefit from a freight bid.</p>

<p>As many of you know, the National Motor Freight Classification has been the foundation of the LTL pricing structure for domestic U.S. and Canada - U.S. LTL shipments for many years. Here is a proposal to create a density/cube based LTL tariff that has been developed by Hank Mullen of Mullen Associates and Peter Moore of Capgemini. Please take a few minutes to read the proposal and offer your comments.</p>