How to make a wiser choice when changing your logistics provider or freight forwarder

We know that it must be quite a dilemma when you’re unhappy with your logistics provider for whatever reason, be that cost, service, communication, or just that you have that nagging concern that this really needs reviewing or changing.

These days however, many companies have pretty flat structures, don’t have the luxury of a full time logistics manager and so the person who procures logistics may have a wealth of other responsibilities - and certainly won’t have specialist knowledge of freight markets, industry regulations and Customs procedures etc.

So, you’ve decided that you need to make a change, and there have been a few logistics providers that have been in contact in the past whose cards you’ve kept and a few others you think might be worth contacting so you set up meetings with them to explore what they have to offer. This is often a good start as you can then select a number of them to quote on your air freight / ocean freight traffic.

The freight forwarder will then arrange an appointment with you so they can introduce themselves and tell you about their organisation, what makes it tick and what they can do for you. Thing is, most of the people you meet will have a sales remit and will tell you a similar story - they have really competitive rates, overseas offices in all the right places, their staff are well trained and customer-focused and their service is excellent (after all they are in sales).

So, you now have a list of maybe 5 or 6 companies, all of whom seem very keen, and all of whom seem qualified to handle your traffic.

You may not be looking forward to placing your traffic out to bid but you put something together and send it to the freight forwarders so you can assess their merits like for like and then make a balanced and prudent business decision.

But there’s a few things you can’t really know before you make your choice and appoint a new logistics provider and these are:-

“How will they actually perform once I have made my decision and awarded them the traffic?”

“Will their rates remain competitive once the quoted rates have expired?!

“Who will manage my account and if things go wrong, will anyone take prompt action without me having to chase them?”

“Will they declare my goods to Customs accurately?”

Of course this is a big decision and of course, a bad one can have significant implications on your supply chain and the company overall so you really need to be careful here.

In the spirit of due diligence, you may have even awarded what are known as “trial shipments” to see how a preferred company performs. The problem is this – the trial shipment is usually given huge focus by the logistics provider to ensure they create a great impression and then go on to win all your business, so it isn’t really a fair representation of the service you’ll get day-to-day once you transition from “new customer” to “existing customer”...

But hey, you’re just trying to risk assess and ensure you don’t make a big mistake, and who could blame you for that?

There is actually a very wise and important thing you can do. Speak with someone who already works (or has worked with) the forwarder you’re thinking of using and find out what they’re like to work with, not just in the honeymoon period (first 1-3 months) but long term. 

We’ve been trading since 2009 and have worked with many forwarders, and we’ve now distilled our core number of providers for our whole portfolio to around 7. In 2010/11, we tried some providers who seemed to tick all the right boxes and even convinced me but they turned out to be poor, and so of course we would never work with them again. 

So, if you’re in that position where you need to make a change but are concerned about making things worse, talk to someone neutral who is working with (or has worked with) those companies before. They may even tell you that you haven’t included a provider which would be an even better fit for your business based on your needs, their geographical footprint or their particular strength in a certain market. Or they may be able to negotiate far better rates and terms for your traffic than you could yourself - and manage it long term so you have peace of mind and can move on to bigger and better things with a feather in your cap for a project well done.

Please do contact me if you require any guidance or clarification.

 Please follow me on Twitter @AndyCliffSCL, visit our website www.straightforwardconsultancy.co.uk  and our blog http://straightforwardconsultancy.blogspot.co.uk/

Andy Cliff is an industry professional who launched his own logistics consultancy, Straightforward Consultancy Ltd (SCL) after a 30 year career in international logistics, working for companies such as DB Schenker, Kuehne & Nagel and DHL Global Forwarding in operational, sales and management roles. 

Andy felt that in an increasingly complex and confusing world of logistics, UK importers and exporters needed a company alongside them which could help them to reduce costs, lessen their workload and provide expert advice and support day-to-day. Andy was part of the  judging panel for the 2015 Global Freight Awards, which recognize quality, innovation and performance in the field of international logistics.