Reputation Management Is Good Business for Truckers

“A good reputation is more valuable than money.” – Publilius Syrus, 1st Century Maxim-Maker

With the massive threat of freight fraud and growing sense of fear among shippers, owner-operators’, carriers’ and freight brokers’ livelihoods depend on their ability to portray themselves as reputable, vigilant, and transparent partners.

Freight buyers—whether they be shippers or brokers—need to quickly and confidently vet you. Otherwise, they’ll move onto the next option without giving you a second thought.

It may seem like things like comments, ratings and even safety and credit scores are out of your hands. However there is much that owner operators and carriers can and must do to protect their reputation.

Like tractors and trailers, carriers’ reputations are important tools of the trade requiring care and repair to stay working. Attend to yours and it will help keep you working.


Control Your Reputation or It Can Control You

A poor safety score, negative review or bad rating from a carrier vetting platform can knock you out of the running for loads. In a down market, that can be devastating when you’re competing with legions of carriers with high safety ratings and glowing customer reviews.
In an article for Overdrive, Sean Mathews, the founder of carrier reputation management company Carrier Defender, says bad reviews reduce the range of available loads a carrier has access to. He estimates a carrier loses 5%-30% of the load board capacity from a bad review online.


Understand How Shippers and Freight Brokers Vet Carriers

The key resource for verifying carriers’ legitimacy and safety record is the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) website. FMCSA’s Safety and Fitness Electronic Records (SAFER) System is freight buyers’ go to for a company snapshot. That’s why it’s crucial for carriers to ensure their profile remains up to date and make sure they correct any inaccuracies.

Shippers and brokers also rely on carrier reviews that appear on platforms like Trucker Path, Clutch, DAT and Carrier 411. It’s important to monitor these so that any negative reviews can be addressed in a timely fashion. The same for reviews left on carriers’ listings on Google, Yelp, and other sites.

Carrier vetting platforms like Carrier Assure and Highway primarily base their carrier ratings on FMCSA and Department of Transportation (DOT) data. They also consider other criteria that they think indicate higher risk levels, particularly for cargo theft and fraud. These additional criteria may include changes to IP addresses, VIN and DOT number discrepancies, phone number changes, or business addresses that don’t match.

For this reason it’s important to have accurate and consistent information on your website and wherever your company is listed.

Carriers’ reputations with existing customers require care and maintenance, too. Reputations can be based on key performance indicators (KPIs) like on-time, tender acceptance and tracking compliance. They are also based on customer satisfaction. Dockworkers’ and your customers’ customers’ opinions matter.



10 Tips for Defending, Growing and Maintaining Reputation

1.Be good – Reputations are first and foremost earned through reliable service, responsiveness, on-time performance, service, and upright business practices. Strong reputations have strong foundations.

2.Be compliant – FMCSA’s Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) scores are key. Carriers must make it their mission to comply with everything from inspections and medical exams to record keeping and drug testing. Enacting policies that keep you ahead of FMCSA requirements are good investments that help support favorable CSA scores.

3.Be vigilant – FMCSA’s Company Snapshot, which displays carriers’ CSA scores and other information, is a key resource for potential customers who are verifying carriers’ legitimacy. Carriers should monitor their snapshot regularly to ensure information is accurate and learn of any negative changes.

4.Rectify FMCSA Company Snapshot inaccuracies – Use DataQs, FCMSA’s channel for disputing inaccurate or incomplete data on their snapshot. It is crucial to contest mistakes regarding crashes, DOT status, or proof of insurance coverage.

5.Monitor comments and social posts – Make it a habit to visit sites where you are listed so you can review and respond to ratings and comments promptly. Claiming your company profile on some sites enables you to receive alerts whenever you have been mentioned.

6.Respond to negative and positive reviews – 89% of consumers expect businesses to respond to reviews, per brightlocal. Address negative reviews by thanking respondents and apologizing when appropriate. Include details of how you’ve addressed the problem or invite the respondent to speak offline. And always thank positive reviews—it encourages others to engage with you.

7.Ask for positive reviews – Follow up with happy customers immediately and ask them to post a review. It’s important to be consistent, especially if you have received bad ratings. A way to counter negative reviews is by ensuring you have positive ones at the top of the list.

8.Be transparent – Don’t delete negative reviews. 45% of consumers say they’re more likely to choose a business if it responds to negative reviews, according to reviewtrackers. No company is perfect all of the time. Being transparent about shortcomings builds trust.

9.Keep improving – FMCSA offers tips for carriers who want to improve their all-important CSA scores. They include measures for improving policies and procedures, hiring, communication, training, and tracking performance.

10.Keep good company – Avoid guilt by association by vetting shippers and brokers you work with. Check background information, require paperwork and approvals, call out inconsistencies, and say no to suspicious loads.


You Worked Hard to Earn Your Reputation—Own It
In today’s world it’s not enough to be an outstanding and upright trucker. You have to be able to prove it. Make reputation management part of your regular inspection