Find a niche!…The riches are in niches…Focus on one…
These are 3 of the most dangerous phrases in the freight brokerage industry. I am probably the only one bold enough to say that if you niche yourself down in your freight brokerage journey you are severely limiting yourself and ability to grow and be more profitable in the long run.
And now this isn’t just coming from some random broker. I have built and structured my brokerage to handle every niche, mode, commodity of freight out there, so not only do I know what it takes to diversify yourself, I know what the most profitable niches are for moving freight, and that is what we are covering in this video.
So, if you are tired of hearing to “stick to lumber and produce” this article and video are going to open your eyes to different freight niches that nobody is talking about, and show you how to strategically pick freight niches that will allow you to diversify your service and make more money as a freight broker.
Should you pick a Freight Broker Niche?
This is a confusing question to answer because there are infinite possibilities of niches in the freight industry.
Are you niching by commodity/product?
Are you niching by industry?
Are you niching by geography?
Are you niching by speed? (overnight deliveries etc.)
Are you niching by freight mode?
All of these are possible niches for freight brokers. The problem with these that I teach my students is that finding shipper’s is hard enough. Could you imagine if you are narrowing down an already TINY pool of potential customers by being picky about the freight you move.
At the same time, it is very easy to overwhelm yourself in freight brokering so, a balance must be struck between niching down but remaining open to be diversified. For this reason my advice is to choose a niche of freight mode rather than commodity (like other’s may teach you)
Niching by freight mode for example (dryvan truckload or reefer truckload) will allow you to focus on the ins and outs of the industry and won’t limit yourself too much that you will be at a disadvantage.
Pro tip: When picking a freight brokering niche, always choose a broad niche that will allow you to diversify and grow your services. Rather than niching down the products you ship, niche down on the type of trucks you move so that you can learn the market and move on to more.
Why Niching Down is Not a Good Idea For Freight Brokers
We are in a convenience economy. We as consumers expect things to be done fast, and done right, and our shippers are no different.
With this in mind, put yourself in the shoes of one of your customers. Consider the pressure on them to move all of their loads for their company and let me pose a question to you. Do you think a shipper, want’s to call more freight brokers, or less freight brokers for their moves in any given day?
If you answered less…you are right.
Shippers are in search of efficiency and peace of mind and the way we deliver this to our customers is by learning their business inside and out.
If a shipper has the choice between calling the guy who “niched down in bananas” or the broker who moves “bananas, mangos, pears, meat and fertilizer chemicals”, who do you think that shipper is going to call?
Shippers have loads of different types of freight, and the closer you can come to a one stop, one call solution, the easier it will be to sell your services in the long run.
Pro tip: Customers want a one stop shop to handle their logistics. The easier you can make it for your customers to move their freight, the more likely they will be to call you and the higher they will be willing to pay for you to do it.
What are the best freight broker niches?
Now I can’t go through this whole article without giving you some insight into some of my favorite freight broker niches. Keep in mind, the more complex a freight mode, the less competitive they are, but the harder it is to master.
That is why I developed the freight skills academy where I can go in depth on all of these freight niches so that you can run circles around your competition that is focusing on moving lumber and steel.
So, without further ado, here are
The Most Profitable Freight Broker Niches
- Container Drayage– Drayage is simply the movement of ocean containers from a port to the end destination or a distribution warehouse to the port. There are a few different types of drayage moves, and the reason I love this niche is because there is never a shortage of container freight coming into and going out of the country. Every truckload started in a container, so mastering this freight mode will put you ahead of many broker’s who are unaware of this profitable niche.
- Heavy haul flatbeds– this is an intensive freight mode as it incorporates different legislation and regulations along with multiple service providers to execute a job. These jobs must be coordinated with proper planning and precision so the competition of heavy haul freight brokers is very little. Be careful with this freight mode as you will have to familiarize yourself with all of the different weight restrictions, load securement requirements and other laws that govern heavy haul freight brokering.
- Hazmat Freight- Hazardous freight is freight that is governed by the PHMSA, OSHA and the DOT. It is the movement of freight that is classified as dangerous by various different degrees. Learning how to move hazardous freight can make you an incredible asset for your customers because there is large demand for brokers who can facilitate the safe transportation of their hazardous goods. These loads often carry a premium because of the limited capacity available to take these loads.
Final thoughts on choosing your niche.
I hope this article gives you some insight into choosing a niche (or not choosing your niche) depending on which route you take, I will leave you with a few points you should consider in your process.
- Choose something that excites you – one of the worst things you can do is to get yourself involved in a business that doesn’t excite you. The beauty of a freight brokerage is that you have the ability to work in countless industries and learn something new every day. Make sure you choose work that fulfills you and you can be proud of.
- Go where there is opportunity – Never consrtain yourself to a niche where there is no demand. Sure you may love moving freight for the department of defense because you are ex military, but if those loads don’t have a great profit margin, you can not make those moves a large part of your portfolio. The same is to be said about low budget commodities. Just make sure you find a niche with demand where customers are willing to pay for your services.
- Don’t stress – the last thing you should do is stress about picking a niche. Picking a niche does not have to be a stressful event, and you never have to feel like you are locked into one decision for the rest of your career. If you can not pick one, just decide on a random one and commit. If you need help, that’s why I’m here.
After reading this I would love to know…what are your thoughts on choosing a niche, and which niches have you had success with in your brokerage?
