Freight Broker/Agent Training Course | NorthWest Arkansas Community College
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Freight Broker/Agent Training Course

Learn the skills you need to be a successful freight broker or a freight agent in this fast-growing industry. This online freight broker training course offers detailed information about the freight broker sector of the transportation industry and about the brokerage process from start to finish.

Overview: 

This freight broker/agent training course provides you with the comprehensive skills needed for building a successful freight brokerage or agency. You will learn laws and terminology, how to set up your business, how to utilize valuable tools, software, contracts and forms, how to find shippers and do ratings, and much more.

You will also learn the differences between a freight broker and a freight agent, their various duties and responsibilities, and the laws and legal requirements for both. You will develop important qualities and skills such as how to set your goals and market yourself, set up and organize your office, recordkeeping and back-office procedures, and how to choose brokerage and operating software.

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Front of Semi Truck

What You'll Learn

  • Freight Broker/Agent
  • The basics of freight brokering, and qualifications needed for freight brokers and freight broker agents
  • How to set up an office, goals, and a corporate identity for a freight brokering business
  • How to set up a shipper and carrier packet for a freight brokering business
  • Software used for accounting and operations and how the transportation law affects a freight brokering business
  • The terms, insurance requirements, liabilities, policies, and recordkeeping best practices involved in contracts between the broker, carrier, and shipper
  • Ways to determine rate quotes between your freight brokerage, the shipper, and the carrier using negotiation and sales techniques

How You Will Benefit

  • Insight into the industry to determine which avenue fits you best and will give you guidance to obtain the highest ratios for success
  • Why great software, quality contracts, and correct documentation are the backbone of your business
  • Understand transportation laws and how they affect your business
  • Learn the workings of the industry and how to translate that into your relations with your shippers and carriers
  • Fine-tune your ability to find a fair but profitable balance in rate quotes to keep your clients satisfied and coming back

Syllabus

  • The Basics of Freight Brokering
  • Setting Up Your Business
  • Setting Goals for Your Business
  • Setting Up Your Shipper Packet and Your Carrier Packet
  • Operations and Using Operations Software
  • Types of Freight and Exploring Niche Markets
  • Transportation Law
  • Broker-Carrier Contracts
  • Broker-Shipper Contracts
  • Insurance for Carriers and Brokers
  • Recordkeeping, Accounting, and Financial Management
  • Determining Your Rate Quotes
  • Carrier Relations and Solutions for Success
  • Sales and Profitability
  • Advanced Marketing
  • Develop Your Negotiation Skills

Requirements

Hardware Requirements:

  • This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook.

Software Requirements:

  • PC: Windows 10 or later.
  • Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
  • Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox is preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
  • Microsoft Word Online
  • Adobe Acrobat Reader
  • Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

  • Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

  • The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Prerequisites

There are no prerequisites to take this course. However, since this course focuses solely on U.S. domestic freight brokering, it is recommended you are interested in doing business in the United States.

Instructor

Jan Roach

Jan Roach entered the transportation field and became a partner in a freight brokerage operation in 1995. For over 10 years, she ran a brokerage/freight agency, overseeing sales, marketing, accounting and claims, and day-to-day operations. Roach holds a Bachelor of Science from Baylor University and has provided training for the freight industry since 2001.

Jeff Roach

Jeff Roach has been in the transportation and freight brokerage industry since 1986. He founded operating his own freight brokerage in 1995, after working as the vice president of national accounts for a major truckload carrier with an air freight division. He grew his brokerage into a multimillion-dollar business and began developing freight broker courses in 2001. Roach is a graduate of Abilene Christian University, holding a Bachelor of Science.