Trucking Agent Jobs: What Skills Are Needed To Become A Successful Freight Broker Agent?
There are many logistics involved in shipping freight. In order to make a safe and expeditious journey on the road, many shipments are organized by trucking agents. If you are looking to enter into the field of trucking and earn a substantial income in the logistics industry, a trucking agent job may be a great choice for you. Before you apply for a job, you may need to have a few key questions answered. Read on to learn what a trucking agent does, the average salary of a trucking agent, 10 skills needed to be a successful trucking agent, and how to get a trucking agent job.
What does a trucking agent do?
A trucking agent connects carriers and shippers to haul freight by road. A trucking agent works in a trucking company to connect available truck drivers with shippers who need to move freight. A freight broker agent carries out sales tasks such as client recruitment, schedules shipment routes, and dispatches truckers across their network.
What is the average salary of a trucking agent?
According to ZipRecruiter, the national average salary for an entry level trucking agent without prior experience is $55,325. With commissions, the earning potential in trucking agent jobs is unlimited. Even trucking agents who are new to the role can earn upwards of six figures with commissions and many opportunities for advancement.
10 Skills Needed To Be A Successful Trucking Agent
Strategy Development Skills
Trucking agents must be able to develop creative and effective strategies to successfully navigate many different links along the supply chain. Strategy development skills are necessary for trucking agents to be able to handle any event that arises in the logistics process.
Organization Skills
Many trucking agents work independently and handle a multitude of executive tasks. As a trucking agent, you are likely your own assistant, booker, strategist, scheduler, and financial planner in addition to managing the constant flow of requests and orders. Organization skills are required to successfully handle all of these responsibilities in a way that satisfies customers and drives business growth.
Management Skill
In order to be successful, trucking agents need to be able to manage their individual workload and any employees on their team. Management skills apply to time and resource management, as well as the management of personnel.
Compliance Skills
States and cities have their own regulations for transporting freight. Trucking agents need to have compliance skills in order to have a working knowledge of the ins and outs of regulatory policies. If you want to be a successful trucking agent, your compliance skills need to be top notch so that your loads are stopped because you missed an important detail.
Financial Planning Skills
Financial planning skills are critical to the success of any trucking agent. Trucking agents need to plan finances over the long term in order to make the most of the opportunities for profits and fuel business growth.
Marketing Skills
A significant portion of a trucking agent’s job is to recruit clients, and this is where marketing skills come in handy. Trucking agents need marketing skills to build the reputation of their services and build a strong client base.
Negotiation Skills
The work of a trucking agent involves contract negotiations on multiple levels. Trucking agents need to negotiate contracts with national carriers, determine proper pay rates for drivers, and maximize their own profits. Negotiation skills help trucking agents build thriving businesses.
Interpersonal Communication Skills
Trucking agents need to be able to communicate respectfully and effectively with their employees, clients, carriers, and drivers. Strong interpersonal communication skills will make every aspect of the job easier, more productive, and more enjoyable.
Networking Skill
Building a loyal customer base and a reputable list of carriers requires strong networking skills. Trucking agents need networking skills to develop the strong working relationships that get the job done and make their business successful.
Technology Skills
The future of logistics technology is rapidly developing. In order to make the most of the technologies on the market today and stay ahead of the game, trucking agents need to be skilled in using technology and open to building new skills as technologies advance.
Trucking Agent Jobs at QFS Transportation
We pride ourselves in being one of the best intermodal trucking companies, and our clients benefit from our global intermodal trucking services. Our corporate headquarters is based in Indiana, but most of our trucking agents operate in other areas throughout the United States. It doesn’t matter where you are located; QFS Transportation is looking for agents in all cities. To learn more about trucking agents jobs at QFS Transportation, visit our trucking agents opportunities page.