Being consistent and relevant in logistics is more necessary than ever. Speed and reliability are top priorities for freight forwarders, but flexibility is essential to compete in a fast-changing market. Rate management is one of the most crucial parts of the freight forwarding business, but it’s also time-consuming and labor-intensive.
Technology nowadays allows freight forwarders to use a cloud-based centralized rate management system that will enable them to control the whole process. The benefits that arise from this new approach to rate management are highly significant.
These SaaS platforms have an extensive network to offer better prices in less time since they collaborate with large carriers such as Maersk, CMA CGM, and Evergreen to find the best rates in real-time.
The following graph shows an increase in the activity of a freight forwarder after the adoption of a rate management system by Freightify.
The urge to reduce manual interactions
Old-school supply chain management faces three main challenges:
- leveraging increasingly limited transportation capacity,
- reducing time spent on repetitive administrative processes
- implementing data-driven innovations
However, time efficiency becomes the most significant of those challenges. Relying on manual systems for quote management is highly time-consuming, increases the possibility of errors, and hinders a consistent rate policy.
Clients perceive the company as professional and efficient if an estimate comes in a few seconds instead of hours or days.
A rate management system solves the management of transportation quotes, no matter how many data sets and contracts you have to manage worldwide.
Rate management allows:
- easy access to information,
- centralized data processing
- transparency
It is used to process complex pricing plans, surcharges, and alternative shipping options quickly and easily. It doesn't matter if it's the sales, logistics, or billing department; they all access the same data.
By implementing a rate management system, companies mainly seek to have a single information system that integrates all the functions carried out by the different parts of the business.
Automation and digitization are essential to:
Optimize management processes by avoiding volatile supplier pricing in various formats, which is costly and complex
It is possible to keep up to date even in a market with prices as volatile as the maritime one since the rate management SaaS updates your information in real-time by receiving constant data from the carriers. This also allows you to minimize unnecessary operations such as quote turnaround, which is time-consuming and cumbersome.
Reduce management times and costs of these processes
Some examples show that the average time to generate an inquiry is 15 minutes and about 4 hours to quote the customer with the traditional method. Usually, this information is in different formats and hosted on various media. A rate management system like that provided by Freightify, allows you to carry out this task in just a few seconds with the security of handling the most recent data.
Have accurate information to share with the organization’s components
Visibility is one of the essential metrics in logistics, and freight forwarders are no exception. SaaS-based systems allow obtaining information on the different operations carried out so that it is possible to evaluate any aspect related to these processes and share that information within the organization.
Optimize resource management and training of new employees
Using a rate management system also shortens the training times required for each new employee. New team members will learn much faster to do a process that takes just a few clicks, rather than dealing with endless spreadsheets, emails, or typing long, tedious documents. This automated process is carried out through software and computers also allows its integration with other platforms and pieces of helpful software for the company.
Work smarter, not harder
The automation and digitization of the quote process would allow salespeople to deal with customers and offer them the most appropriate services instead of working for hours on spreadsheets repetitively and ineffectively.
The quote process can get very complicated when you need to take into account many details and add-ons. Some services include different concepts and elements, making the quote take too long to prepare and deliver. A rate management system like Freightify is the perfect solution for a quick, easy, and streamlined quotation process.
An automated quote system can also allow freight forwarders to make changes to the quotes and deliver them to the client quickly and directly.
Automating and digitizing the quotation process has many advantages, both for companies and customers.
Digital change is already inevitable. The sooner a company changes and embraces digital processes, the sooner it can differentiate itself from its competitors and become a leader in its industry.
A cloud-based SaaS rate management system will considerably reduce time and effort in generating and managing quotes. Other benefits are greater visibility of the entire process and improved consistency and validity of the rates offered.
