Introduction
The Recommended Price tool and Pricing Insights are valuable features within Super Dispatch that simplify pricing decisions and streamline your workflow. This tool provides actionable insights to help you set competitive rates effortlessly. Explore the details below to learn how to make the most of this resource.
Understanding Recommended Pricing and the Quoting Process
Navigating the complexities of transportation costs and broker fees is crucial in the logistics industry. This section explains how carrier pay is determined, the customer quoting process, and strategies for responding to carrier bids.
What is Carrier Pay?
Carrier Pay refers to the amount a carrier will receive upon successfully delivering a vehicle. This figure is crucial from a shipper's perspective as it represents the cost of transportation. It's important to note that Carrier Pay is not a fixed amount — it varies and is often negotiated between the shipper and the carrier. Shippers use historical and predictive data to estimate fair rates to ensure loads move quickly and efficiently.
The Customer Quoting Process Explained
The transportation brokerage industry aims to maximize profits through the Broker Fee, which typically starts around $100 per order. The process begins when customers contact shippers (usually brokers) to request a quote for transporting a vehicle. The total cost quoted to the customer is known as the Total Tariff.
After determining Carrier Pay, the shipper adds the Broker Fee to reach the Total Tariff, which is then quoted to the customer.
Determining Recommended Pricing Before Posting
When preparing to post an order, it's important to balance carrier pay appropriately. Posting with an excessively high Carrier Pay might attract many requests but reduce profits. Setting it too low could leave the load unclaimed on the Loadboard, delaying delivery.
The goal is to post at a rate close to the most recent accepted or delivered orders to attract carriers without overpaying.
How to Respond to Carrier Bids
Carriers may request higher Carrier Pay than posted, either by phone or through digital channels. The shipper must decide whether to accept, decline, or counteroffer based on current market data.
- Accept if the bid aligns with market averages.
- Decline if it's significantly above fair market value.
- Counteroffer to negotiate a balanced price.
Strategic negotiation, supported by Pricing Insights, helps maintain profitability while ensuring loads move efficiently.
Pricing Insights
The Pricing Insights engine enhances your understanding of pricing dynamics in the auto-hauling industry. By setting competitive rates for loads, you can increase the speed of carrier acceptance and reduce rebroadcasting. When setting a load price in Shipper TMS, you'll see pricing recommendations if your rate appears too low.
You can also review recent moves to compare similar routes, helping you determine realistic carrier pay expectations.
Additionally, Pricing Insights supports counteroffers to carriers directly within the Offers tab of Shipper TMS.
Pricing Insights Pro
Pricing Insights Pro is an advanced upgrade that gives shippers complete market visibility and control over their pricing strategy. Built on Super Dispatch's marketplace data from millions of recent vehicle moves, it helps you set competitive, data-backed rates that attract carriers faster — while protecting your profit margins.
Pro-Only Features (Lane Insights)
- Price Range: Shows the middle 60% of actual settled prices (excluding outliers) to help you avoid under- or overpricing loads.
- Lane Volume: Displays carrier activity and demand across specific lanes, helping you understand competition before posting.
- Price Trend: Visualizes 90 days of market movement across 6 two-week periods, highlighting seasonality, spikes, or rate declines.
Tiered Pricing for Pro Users
| Tier | Insights/Month | Monthly Cost | Cost Per Insight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 | 20 | $50 | $2.50 |
| Tier 2 | 200 | $100 | $0.50 |
| Tier 3 | 400 | $200 | $0.50 |
| Tier 4 | 750 | $350 | $0.47 |
| Tier 5 | 3,000 | $1,000 | $0.33 |
| Tier 6 | 5,000 | $1,400 | $0.28 |
| Tier 7 | 10,000 | $2,000 | $0.20 |
Recap: Why Upgrade to Pricing Insights Pro?
- Get access to detailed Lane Insights for smarter quoting and lane analysis.
- View accurate Price Ranges and Trends to protect profit margins.
- Make faster, data-driven pricing decisions based on real marketplace activity.
- Gain confidence when quoting unfamiliar lanes with Lane Volume and historical data.
- Maintain a competitive edge by staying aligned with real-time market trends.
Next Steps
Ready to unlock full market visibility?