2022 Year in Review: What’s most important to shippers?

2022 has been an exceptional year here at TA Services. Thank you for coming on this journey with us. Before we get into the final installment of our 2022 Year in Review series, be sure to check out any of the articles you may have missed. So far, we’ve covered our year of growth, industry awards and recognition, our expanded service offering, and our carriers’ experience. Today, we’re diving into the topics that are most important to shippers.

We surveyed our customers to understand how they are feeling about 2022 and understand what is most important to them. Let’s take a look at the four topics that are most important to our customers and what TA Services does to ensure a great experience for them. Here’s what they told us.

1. Easy Quoting

Freight shippers deal with complexity all day long, so simple, easy quoting is a must! We make it as easy as possible for shippers to request a quote for their shipments. We collect basic information — like origin and destination, service type, and commodity — and then our dedicated pricing team gets to work creating an accurate and data-informed quote. We look at three things when creating a quote: historical data from the massive volumes of freight we’ve moved in the past, market data based on supply and demand, and the information we are hearing firsthand from our carrier network.

We’re so confident in our ability to accurately and fairly quote rates that we make a commitment to honor every quote. If a quote is off, we stand by it, so shippers can rest assured we will honor our word.

2. Strategic Planning

Shippers look for strategic insight when working with a logistics partner. TA Services aims to be an extension of our customers’ teams — here to help through every stage of the process. When shippers sign up with TA Services, they are assigned a dedicated customer team based on their specific needs (i.e., refrigerated, LTL, etc.).

We use EDI (electronic data interchange) to input data from our customers for our scheduling and operations team to ensure accurate planning. We think it’s important to take a personal approach to logistics planning — getting to know what is most important to our customers and their customers so we can create a strategy to answer their needs.

3. Real-Time Tracking

Customers want to know where their shipments are so they can be sure their freight is arriving where it needs to be when it needs to be there. Across the board, TA Services achieves 98% on-time delivery, but we’re constantly striving to get to 100%. We use third-party tracking systems, including MacroPoint, to track loads in real time. This allows us to get automatic updates without needing to contact the driver or dispatcher — benefitting both our customers and carriers.

We take a proactive approach to tracking shipments, which is made possible because each load is the responsibility of a single person on our team. This means there is always someone there to identify potential issues, communicate those issues to the customer, and most importantly, provide a solution. When it comes to logistics, there is a lot that can be out of our control — but we can always control how we communicate. Our customers can customize how they receive communications, including automatic alerts through an EDI, so they always know where their shipments are.

“Our team appreciates the constant communication and support from [the people] on our accounts. They are always willing to help and see if they can find solutions for our transportation needs.”

– TA Services Customer

4. Exceptional Customer Service

Shippers know they have a choice when it comes to partnering with a 3PL provider. We’re told experience matters! Freight never stops, and neither do we. TA Services is dedicated to providing the best customer service possible. Our team has experience working with all different types of shippers and receivers, so there’s not a logistics challenge we can’t solve. We offer a single point of contact for every customer and we’re available even after hours and on weekends. We prioritize the people behind the scenes — including our customers, carriers, and employees — so we can build long-lasting relationships and provide the best experience to everyone involved.

Partnering with TA Services

100% of our customers who took part in our survey said they would recommend TA Services to their friends and colleagues — that means the world to us. 2022 was a great year for our team and our customers, and we will continue to do everything we can to make 2023 even better.

Are you a shipper ready to start moving freight with TA Services? Reach out to speak with a member of the TA Services team.

Are you a carrier interested in working with TA Services? Join our network today.