With every new year comes an opportunity to foretell what lies ahead in the marketplace, and the supply chain breakdown 2022 is no different. The past several years has proven environmentally unprecedented across many fronts, including logistics and supply chains overall.
This article was written by Hubtek, a tech-enabled talent solutions provider for transportation companies.
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Observations by Brian Everett, CEO, Transportation Marketing & Sales Association
During our recent TMSA Logistics Marketing & Sales Conference in Nashville, I had the chance to reconnect with Ken Guest, Chief Revenue Officer of Sandler Training by The Ruby Group. His company provides sales force development and management training to businesses using Sandler training methods and has significant experience working with companies in transportation and logistics. Sandler Training by The Ruby Group is one of our TMSA Affiliate members. Ken is author of the book, Digital Prospecting, and we chatted briefly about the question I’ve heard a lot from members recently: What's the best way to approach cold-calling?
By Joe Pulizzi, an entrepreneur, speaker, author and podcaster who founded the Content Marketing Institute (CMI). Joe has spoke at the TMSA Logistics Marketing & Sales Conference.
I’m writing this on Wednesday morning, the 19 of May. In three hours, I have a virtual presentation with a local chamber of commerce about my entrepreneurial journey.
I don’t give presentations like this often. Almost all my speeches are about content marketing or Content Inc. But it’s a good change of pace.
The presentation has over 100 slides (I like to keep things moving), but here are three life hacks I pulled out that I either think you’d appreciate or that you may find helpful.
The Board of Directors of the Transportation Marketing & Sales Association (TMSA) is pleased to announce Jennifer Karpus-Romain as the new Executive Director of TMSA.
Jennifer has been active in the association for several years, serving on the education committee and the Board of Directors, as well as leading the marketing committee. Her energy, leadership, and passion for both the association and the logistics industry, will serve TMSA well as she ushers in a new chapter for the association.
"It's all about the company you keep."
This is a phrase used by many - and it holds relevant meaning for TMSA members, given the fact that 22 member companies have been named to the "Top 100 3PL List" by Inbound Logistics magazine, which is an Affiliate TMSA member.
TMSA went back to school a little early this year. The organization’s July 29 Strategic Interest Group, moderated by Founder and CEO of CX University, Mohamed Latib, PhD featured a mix of insights from research findings and first-hand experiences from participants. A special thanks goes out to TMSA Corporate Member, Courtney Keenan at RLS Logistics for sharing CX trend data and insights in the B2B sector to support the discussion.
Transportation and logistics marketing leaders have relied on the power of outsourcing for years to scale, grow and optimize their efforts. Ideal for small in-house marketing teams and organizations that don’t have the infrastructure to target growing audiences, outsourcing has always been an invaluable tool to logistics firms.
In today’s market where truck capacity is tight and rates are volatile, never before has it been so critical for sales professionals in transportation to build and maintain strong, trusted relationships with your carrier partners. But as most of us know, relationships between brokers and carriers have a history of being strained. Some carriers maintain a belief that margins are much higher than they are, while brokers are working to fill a load as quickly as possible at the highest profit margin.
Are you a Hunter or Farmer? If you are in sales, this question is often asked when referring to your sales personality profile. When it comes to sales strategy and your most effective approach, it’s good to instantly know which one you are.
One of the top insights to come out of TMSA’s May 27 Strategic Interest Group, comprised of an even split of sales professionals, marketers and consultants, was the demise of sales travel due to the efficiencies of virtual sales meetings.
When it comes to the business mix of your company, there’s truth to the old adage: “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” It can be important to diversify your customer base to successfully increase revenue and growth, particularly if you’re a smaller but fast-growing enterprise in transportation and logistics. But diversifying your customer portfolio also is important because if you’re concentrated too heavily on a single industry or commodity that you transport, you risk volatility in revenue and resources as demand rises and falls.
TMSA held its latest Strategic Interest Group featuring President and Publisher of SupplyChainBrain, Brad Berger on April 28th.
In the transportation and supply chain industries, trade publications are still widely read and respected. Their readers are a high-value audience who subscribe because of their interest in the published topics.
Getting into the right mindset for selling is crucial for business success, especially in current times. Even at Landstar, the best way for independent agents to gain business during a global pandemic is to maintain a positive attitude, to get in the right mindset and to understand the psychology that goes behind selling.
Even before the pandemic gave transportation companies hero status, the industry was on a roll. In July 2019, transportation jobs rose 49%, officially making it the fastest growing industry in America.
If I were to ask you to think of a memorable customer experience, what comes to mind? I’m willing to bet a bad experience or two pops into your head, along with maybe a really excellent one. There are many theories why, but in general, most of us tend to remember the bad experiences more than the good experiences, unless they were particularly astounding.
While working with a customer recently, we introduced the concept of Make-or-Break Moments. Those critical points with any customer that, depending on how you approach them, can help you accelerate your relationship, or really tank it. When things go wrong is certainly on that list, but it might surprise you that it’s also critical to consider what to do when things go right.
It’s no surprise that technology is the major driver of industry transformation today. Its many manifestations from driverless trucks to AI keep it firmly at the top of oncoming transportation trends. However, demographic swings and lasting changes in consumer preferences will also determine the opportunities and challenges on the road ahead.
Many in transportation and logistics call it “consultative selling.” This means a sales approach that prioritizes relationships with shippers and other qualified buyers, and opens dialogue to identify and provide solutions to a prospect’s needs. It’s hyper-focused on the customer, rather than the product or service being sold. Ultimately, it guides the salesperson to better understand the challenges faced by the prospect so they can position their solutions in a more compelling, relevant, effective way.
