Welcome back to the ninth edition of The LogTech Letter, a weekly look at a particular aspect of the impact technology is having on the world of global and domestic logistics. Last week, I analyzed whether domestic TMSs can ever effectively cater to all sides of a freight relationship. Today, I’m looking at the nuances between the range of international freight rate marketplaces available to shippers.
I'd actually advocate that the biggest shift is from a rate marketplace, which is really just a pricing tool, to a vertically integrated freight marketplace, which includes not just pricing but also full shipment management (and, more importantly, the shipper advantages that ensues from centrally managed and controlled shipment management).
More simply, if a rate marketplace provides transparency for shippers and accountability on providers, a marketplace with management capabilities builds further by adding in management transparency for buyers and accountability on actual performance, not just price. It's the difference between Amazon only being a pricing marketplace vs being a marketplace that actually makes your consumer experience better.
I'd actually advocate that the biggest shift is from a rate marketplace, which is really just a pricing tool, to a vertically integrated freight marketplace, which includes not just pricing but also full shipment management (and, more importantly, the shipper advantages that ensues from centrally managed and controlled shipment management).
More simply, if a rate marketplace provides transparency for shippers and accountability on providers, a marketplace with management capabilities builds further by adding in management transparency for buyers and accountability on actual performance, not just price. It's the difference between Amazon only being a pricing marketplace vs being a marketplace that actually makes your consumer experience better.