To find shippers for your trucking company, ask for a referral — from your current customers, from local businesses near your home base, and from the people who already know which companies in your area need freight hauled. Direct shippers are not hidden behind a trick; they are found through relationships. Don’t you just hate those headlines? We do too. Finding new trucking customers doesn’t need a weird trick, but the simple approach below is one you might not have considered yet.
How to Find Shippers Without a Load Board
Ask for a referral.
Allen Campbell, one of our founders and our veteran truck driver, told this story
I reached out to a local brick company to see if they needed a trucking company to handle freight. The company said they don’t arrange truckers, their customers handle that. But the brick company offered to put out my trucking company info on blast to his customers. Within weeks, I had multiple new customers looking for shippers to bring bricks from the brickyard to their locations. Three companies – including the largest brick vendor in Chicago and northeastern Illinois – hired my trucking company to haul bricks. That’s when I got my brokerage authority – I had too many loads for my fleet to handle.
Hauling for Wholesalers: Where Direct Shippers Are
Allen started by reaching out to local industries rather than relying solely on load boards. Every community has some need for truckers. Even rural areas need truckers to haul the food they grow. It’s just a matter of discovering what companies exist near your home base.
How do you find local shippers? Start with these five sources:
- Talk to your current customers. Would they recommend you to their customers? Customers who are wholesalers – they sell to other businesses which will sell the products to other customers – may be ideal customers to refer you. Like Allen’s situation above, the power of a personal referral makes a huge difference.
- Talk to the local government and agencies. Mayors and chambers of commerce might be a good place to start. They’ll know local industries and may even be able to arrange an introduction to a company owner, if you don’t meet them yourself at an event.
- Read the local paper. Your neighbors may work for a company that needs truckers to haul their goods. The business section – or LinkedIn – may have connections that will introduce your trucking company to their shipping manager. New trucking customers aren’t hiding – they’re where they’ve always been. Finding someone to open the door
- Look further away than your immediate neighborhood. If an hour’s drive from home provides more potential customers, why not reach out to them? In Allen’s story, the brickyard he hauled for was an hour away from his home. By expanding his range, he was able to find an unexpected and profitable lane that led to the expansion of his trucking company.
- Specialized trailers for special customers. Knowing the area industries might affect rig decisions like buying a reefer rather than a flatbed.
Reputations Matter With New Trucking Customers
After the introduction, starting a long-term relationship with new trucking customers depends on the trucker. Make the good first impression by being on time, showing up with a clean and ready rig, and handling the details of the load as you agreed in the rate con. Over time, a solid partnership can develop as the shipper learns to know, like, and trust your trucking company.
Instead of depending on a load board, find the customers who will work with you time after time instead of bidding for a broker online. It’s more profitable for a trucking company to retain a customer than find a new one — the same principle behind developing customers for your brokerage.
One weird trick? Nope, not at all.
Making connections that build business relationships isn’t new, and it isn’t weird, but it does work. And if the direct freight starts coming in faster than your trucks can haul it, that’s the moment to look at moving from motor carrier authority to brokerage authority.
Frequently Asked Questions About Finding Shippers
How do you find shippers for a trucking company?
Ask for referrals and work your local area. Talk to your current customers — especially wholesalers who sell to other businesses — and ask whether they would recommend you to their customers. Talk to local government, mayors, and chambers of commerce, who know the area industries and can arrange introductions. Read the local paper and check LinkedIn for shipping managers at nearby companies.
Is it better to use a load board or find direct shippers?
Direct shippers build a more durable business. Instead of depending on a load board and bidding for a broker online, find the customers who will work with you time after time. It is more profitable for a trucking company to retain a customer than to find a new one.
How far from home should I look for new trucking customers?
Look further than your immediate neighborhood. If an hour’s drive from home puts you in front of more potential customers, reach out to them. In Allen Campbell’s story, the brickyard he hauled for was an hour from his home, and expanding his range opened an unexpected and profitable lane that grew his trucking company.
Does asking for a referral really bring in new trucking customers?
Yes. A local brick company told Allen Campbell it did not arrange its own trucking, but offered to share his trucking company’s information with its customers. Within weeks, three companies — including the largest brick vendor in Chicago and northeastern Illinois — hired his trucking company to haul bricks. The load volume was more than his fleet could handle, which is why he got his brokerage authority.
How do you keep a new shipper as a long-term customer?
Deliver on the basics every time: be on time, show up with a clean and ready rig, and handle the details of the load exactly as agreed in the rate con. Over time, a solid partnership develops as the shipper learns to know, like, and trust your trucking company.
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