Author: jonrosswrites@gmail.com

LTL and truckload shippers need TMS technology tailored to their business. Why? Think about the biggest pain points when shipping freight. The Top 3 on your list are probably something like: 

 

💰 Inefficient Quoting: Relying on one carrier for fixed rates or combing through quotes from multiple environments is costly and time consuming

😵‍💫 Manual Management: Large, siloed teams manage operations inefficiently, wasting time and potentially creating errors 

☎️ Sporadic Communication: Poor visibility and a lack of active carrier communication makes transportation disruptions worse

 

To help untangle the knots of logistics and streamline shipping, manufacturers, retailers and other logistics users look to transportation management system technology. The promise of TMS applications is pretty broad: manage freight for carriers, brokers and every other supply chain stakeholder. However, that mandate encompasses a lot of technology that shippers don’t want. 

 

But most shippers just need targeted software that empowers them to: 

✅ Procure logistics services at competitive rates
✅ Communicate with providers

✅ Pay for transportation easily and seamlessly
✅ Automate repetitive shipping tasks

✅ Analyze KPIs and other metrics 

 

What shippers need is a single source of truth for real time market rates, ensuring they’re always paying a fair price for transportation, and the software that enables them to book those rates. 

 

They need a shipper transportation management system (STMS). 

 

How should an STMS for shippers streamline freight management?

 

Shippers need a single source of truth for transportation, a streamlined platform that empowers them to send and pay for freight. This shipper transportation management system should do nothing less than transform end-to-end shipper operations. How? In a proper shipper-focused platform, smart technology could revitalize everything from optimizing bidding and procurement to automating freight audit and bill payment.

 

The reality is that even the best TMS applications, ones that are pitched specifically at shippers, fall short. One reason is because in the rush to adapt TMS technology to shippers, many logistics technology companies forgot about the vital aspect of communication. Supply chain technology can only take shippers so far. They need an active chat-like connection to all parties involved in a shipment to make sure LTL, contracted truckload services and even spot loads don’t run into any issues. And if logistics pain points crop up? Active communication is the only way to keep the load on the road and ensure delivery.     

 

Shippers need automation with communication 

 

The Freightro platform is technology every shipper hoping to book freight with the best carrier, or at the lowest cost, needs. Freightro is  an active connection to dozens of carriers with capacity – these carriers need freight, and Freightro connects shippers to them. 

 

The platform’s real power is its ability to strengthen relationships between freight providers and their shippers. At Freightro, we’re providing truckload and LTL rates in an easy-to-use dashboard, but we’re also creating lasting partnerships. We’re strengthening the freight community. 

 

Freightro’s web-based platform can easily help truckload and LTL shippers find over-the-road capacity in even the tightest trucking markets, covering loads while maintaining the same service levels. Get started with Freightro by securing a sample quote for truckload or LTL services from a wide variety of carriers.

Paul Marks has a seemingly simple motto when it comes to competitive fishing: “You’ve got to keep an open mind; every day is completely different.”

 

Across his 11 Bassmaster Elite Series tournaments in 2025, he’s sometimes seen plans go out the window. Improvising is key.

 

“I mean, you might think you found the best spot on the lake in practice. Then in the tournament, there’s not a bass within a mile of there,” he told Freightro.

 

That’s why attitude, and perseverance, is so important.

 

“It’s definitely frustrating, but it’s just part of fishing,” he said. “There’s thousands of variables that go into every different day of fishing. You just get to be able to handle those variables through years of practice.”

 

To cap off his rookie season in the Bassmaster Elite Series, Marks has qualified for the 2026 Bassmaster Classic, known as the Super Bowl of Fishing. He’ll bring his deep love for the sport, and his experience handling the mental side of fishing, to Knoxville in March 2026.

Disruption and improvisation is the norm

 

It hasn’t been an easy path. Marks had to get used to competing against seasoned veterans at every stop on the series.

 

“It was kind of intimidating, the first few tournaments of the year, seeing all the people I’ve watched growing up,” the angler said. “But after a few of them, the nerves settled, and it was just like any other tournament.”

 

Marks’s top finish at Lake Hartwell didn’t make the next tournaments any easier. This year, he’s been in the money for only about half of his tournaments, finishing among the top competitors in three of them.

 

This adversity comes with the sport, he said:

 

“It just happens. Sometimes you just don’t land ‘em or you’re on the wrong part of the lake when all of them are biting in another spot. You just got to keep your head down and keep a positive mental attitude.

 

“It’s a tough sport. … It doesn’t seem like it, outside looking in, but it’s not easy. If I have a bad tournament, I just look forward to the next one, try to forget about it.

 

Despite the mental toughness that fishing demands, and the frustration that accompanies a bad day on the lake, the sport of fishing is trending up. The Covid shutdowns, he said, helped the sport: People wanted to be outside more and with the elimination of long commutes to work, folks had more hours to spend getting into fishing. New high school and college fishing programs are also creating a pipeline of anglers toward the top tiers of the sport.

 

That means even more anglers than ever before are experiencing the highs and lows of competitive fishing.

 

“It isn’t for everyone, but if you love it, you love  it,” he said. “There’s not really any way to explain it.”

 

Is freight shipping like competitive fishing?

 

While it’s a stretch to compare freight to fishing, shippers certainly have to learn how to deal with disruption. Freightro created the STMS to take the pressure off manufacturers and other shippers, giving them the space to improvise when logistics challenges arise. Instead of taking half the day negotiating rates and booking loads, Freightro streamlines the rating and booking process, so shipper can use that time to grow their business.

 

Freightro’s STMS blends  procurement, tracking, smart communication, and centralized billing into an easy-to-use platform. Suddenly, shipping is no longer a cost center but a strategic advantage and a tool for business growth. With Freightro, shippers can optimize bidding and procurement, automate freight audit and bill payment … and everything in between.