Technology has always been at the forefront of trucking innovation, from GPS navigation to electronic billing. There was a time when advancements in technology needed to have a provable track record before they were adopted by truckers and fleet owners. However, start-ups are now making products and designing services specifically with freight drivers in mind, leading the way to trucking innovation.
Trucking Innovation Opens Up New Markets
Start-ups used to be focused solely on the tech industry, or creating products with limited life cycles to capture the disposable income of audiences aged 25 to 35 years. Recently, start-ups are getting smarter. They have realized the trucking industry moves roughly $700 billion in deliveries every year, with annual revenues nearing $300 billion for fleets and owner operation combined. By shifting their focus to a more “grown up” industry, and offering new advances in trucking innovation, start-ups are not only increasing the lifespan of their products, but giving them to truckers directly without testing them out on the general population first.
Lowering Costs
Instead of buying physical products and needing to overhaul entire fleets, start-ups have been dabbling in digital freight brokers and telematics. This drastically cuts overhead and upkeep of dedicated sales and marketing teams, when the next transaction is but a few finger taps away on a smartphone. This also benefits independent drivers, who no longer need to call around for their next assignments. These services are subscription-based and scaled to handle single drivers and large fleets.
Growing Fleets
On the other end, start-ups are introducing technology to allow trucks to communicate between each other while on the road. This form of trucking innovation is bringing the industry closer to automation, whereby one “lead” truck will be able to manage multiple vehicles on a single trip, instead of relying on multiple drivers. This will give fleet owners the ability to grow their businesses exponentially.
Faster Revenue
Trucking innovation has even provided the industry with fast turnaround on BOLs. Express Freight Finance is the leader in freight bill factoring to ensure drivers and fleet owners get the revenue they are owed within 24 hours. Our factoring program offers a number of options, which we will tailor to fit your business. The trucking industry is huge, but everyone needs a healthy cash flow and fast turnaround on invoices to keep things moving. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you.