DrayNow is more than a Load Board for Intermodal Freight

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IMCs, BCOs, and Freight Forwarders who need help moving Intermodal Containers.

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It’s easy to refer to DrayNow as a “load board,” but the platform is truly so much more than that.

Load boards have been around for 40 years and actual online freight matching started in 1995 with Internet Truckstop (now Truckstop.com). From then until now, load boards have provided brokers with a fast, efficient way to source well-priced freight capacity.

DrayNow does the same for freight moves to and from rail yards in domestic intermodal drayage markets across the country, but the similarities pretty much end there.

Capacity is just one part of the overall freight management process. Brokers obviously need to follow the freight through to delivery and manage all paperwork and billing. Unlike load boards, DrayNow facilitates this entire process. So, it is less of a load board for intermodal freight and more of a management platform for intermodal freight.

When you think load board, think Match.com: It facilitates connections, but that’s where the service ends. Match.com is not providing a platform to manage the relationship as it moves forward. The parties are on their own.

When you think DrayNow, think Airbnb: It brings homeowners and guests together, but facilitates the entire transaction, from start to finish – booking, payment, owner/guest communication, post-stay reviews and ratings. Owners can dictate the terms of the stay (limit on number of guests, no dogs). Guests can negotiate different terms (lower price, later check-out time). It all happens quickly and efficiently on the platform, with little involvement from Airbnb personnel.

For intermodal marketing companies (IMCs), efficient sourcing of reliable dray capacity can be a huge time-saver, and DrayNow definitely ticks that box with thousands of carriers signed up for the app. But why stop there?

The DrayNow Difference

Here are other ways that the DrayNow platform makes IMCs more efficient, adding value far beyond what IMCs would get from a simple load board for intermodal freight.

Load Boards		DrayNow
Simply connect broker with carrier. Brokers must still chase carriers for updates to keep shippers informed.	Report status updates	Participating drivers use a phone app that automatically uploads their exact locations in real time to the platform. Brokers access this to provide shippers with immediate status and precise ETAs, freeing up hours of time every week.
More static approach to pricing. Larger load boards might provide average rates per lane to assist brokers in assigning a price.	Obtain the right price	More dynamic approach to pricing. Rates fluctuate because DrayNow is a true marketplace that reflects real-time supply and demand. IMCs can play with pricing to see what a carrier will accept for a particular lane.
No load board involvement after the initial booking. Brokers still spend hours of time per week chasing carriers for BOLs needed for billing, often waiting days and even weeks to get necessary paperwork.	Source shipping documents	Drivers use the DrayNow app to scan and upload paperwork to the platform. This happens at the exact time of the transaction. No need for broker to contact the carrier. Broker invoices can be sent out faster, improving agency cash flow.
Load boards are often referred to as the “spot market” – a place for brokers to find capacity for last-minute or transactional freight. They are not typically the best place to find reliable carriers for steady, repeat runs on the same lane.	Find a solution for steady freight	DrayNow can be a great solution for consistent intermodal freight. Using sophisticated freight-matching technology, DrayNow can find the best carriers and solutions for higher-volume, contracted lanes. And it’s all done within the marketplace model, with freight tendered only to the carrier/s who has agreed to handle loads in a specific lane at the offered price.
Load boards are not concerned with the performance of carriers once the match is made. Typically, dray carriers self-report on-time performance and this data is often inaccurate.	Report carrier performance	Weekly DrayNow report cards to brokers detail the performance of carriers for loads tendered on the platform – and the numbers are 100% accurate based on geolocation tracking. There is no self-reporting. Technology makes performance reporting a totally transparent process.
There are no load boards that cater exclusively to brokers/IMCs moving goods to and from rail yards.	Provide insights to IMCs and their intermodal customers	As a marketplace focused on intermodal freight, DrayNow is able to analyze aggregate data across thousands of intermodal shipments and share insights with platform users, like price variances by lane and average load/unload times at certain facilities. Today’s data-hungry shippers increasingly expect such insights from transportation partners.

It’s safe to say that these added capabilities are way outside the definition of a traditional load board.

Load boards have their place, but today’s technology allows for so much more. By giving IMCs and drayage carriers a platform to meet and collaborate, DrayNow bring new levels of efficiency not just to freight matching, but the entire freight management process.

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