LoadSurfer is a relatively new Canadian freight matching board. We are talking to LoadSurfer’s President Roy Thacker in his office in Milton, Ontario.
DorogaRoad: Roy, please tell me about your company Load Surfer. What kind of services do you offer to the trucking industry?
Roy Thacker: We are a new freight matching board. We actually started out in April 2009. We are trying to offer an alternative on the Canadian market. Customers are able to post freight and equipment and match them up on our site.
DorogaRoad: Assuming, a trucking company uses your competitor’s service in a search for loads. Does it make sense for this company to subscribe to your service as well? Does it increase their chances of finding more freight? Or they have to choose either your service or the service of your competitor?
Roy Thacker: It’s not a case of choosing one over the other. Obviously, we are not trying to stop people from using the products they are used to. We are trying to provide them with an alternative. It’s a little less expensive. It’s based on newer technology. We are hoping that a lot of people will come with us. As far as the types of leads they are going to get, we are getting more and more feedback from users telling us that they are finding good quality leads on our system. Not only are they seeing a lot of the carriers and brokers from the other load boards, but there are also a lot of new ones that are exclusive to Load Surfer. All in all, there is probably room for one or two load boards. There are probably 40 of them in the US and only few of us here in Canada.
DorogaRoad: You mentioned that Load Surfer is based on new technology. Could you please tell me a bit more about it?
Roy Thacker: Load Surfer is 100% web based. There is absolutely no software to download. As long as the customer has an internet connection, they can access Load Surfer. This is great for people who are on the road a lot or for somebody who works in the office during the day but needs to log in at night from home if they need to search for a load or to find a truck really quickly. This makes it easier for our customers in the trucking community.
DorogaRoad: How is the current environment affecting your business in particular? There are still more trucks out there than freight for them to move.
Roy Thacker: We are hoping that is going to change. I’ve been in the transportation business for over 20 years, and I’ve seen the freight situation flip back and forth several times. I think that the carriers who can ride out the rest of the recession are going to be very happy in six to eight months. As freight volumes start to pick up, we are going to see that the rates are going up as well because so many truckers as well as the actual trucks have left the market. The driver shortage that we witnessed just a few years ago is hiding just beneath the surface and it is going to be much worse this time. The carriers will be the biggest winners this time around!
DorogaRoad: What is the biggest obstacle you have to overcome in your day-to-day operations?
Roy Thacker: I think our biggest obstacle is to try and make people aware of our product. You know we have a sales team that is out there calling and getting the word out. We have only got to only maybe half a market, so there are still more people and companies we need to talk to and to hear from.
DorogaRoad: Who has contributed the most to your company’s success?
Roy Thacker: There are a lot of people who have helped us get to where we are today. The key to our success so far has been our partners. Two of our key partners are Infosite Technologies www.infositetech.com and Axon Development Corp. www.axonsoft.com. With close to 1,000 clients combined, these are two of the top dispatch software providers in North America. We also recently added JD Factors www.jdfactors.com as partner. This new partnership will result in some great new features including the J D Guarantee which is a brand new feature that is exclusive to the Load Surfer Community. More details about this new feature and others are available at www.loadsurfer.com.
DorogaRoad: Where do you think the trucking business and economy in general will turn around?
Roy Thacker: That’s a twenty thousand dollar question. I think that when the recession started, the media were saying that it would be well into the fourth quarter of 2009 before things start to improve. I think we’ll probably start to see some pick up this fall, although it seems to be kind of slow in coming. We seem to get some good news followed by some bad news followed by some good news again, so it’s kind of mixed. This probably a good indication that we are getting to the end.
DorogaRoad: Is there anything else you would like to share with the newspaper’s audience?
Roy Thacker: We really want to thank the people who have supported us so far. We have had a great response and I truly believe that this is because people are definitely looking for alternatives these days. As we emerge from recession, the playing field is going to be much different than people are used to and we are positioned well to take advantage. We are grateful for the overwhelming response to date and we urge people to stay tuned for even more exciting news as we continue to add even more features and functionality to Load Surfer in the coming months!
DorogaRoad: Then let’s just remind your potential customers that they can contact LoadSurfer by phone 416 848 7792, via e-mail [email protected] or just visit your website www.loadsurfer.com.
