New App Focuses on Carriers and Links Them with Shippers

NEXT Trucking, a national transportation technologies company, has announced the launch of an online marketplace and mobile app that is designed to make it easier for truckers to find desirable jobs.

NEXT Trucking’s proprietary algorithms seek to match carriers with appropriate shippers based on the trucker’s preferences and location. The company claims that it is “the first marketplace that focuses on the carrier’s route and rate requirements instead of the shipper’s.”

The stakes are high: The freight shipping industry is facing a shortage of carriers due to inconvenient routes, low pay and other issues.

Old and slow communication channels, like the telephone, compound the problem. Currently, truckers must wait for a shipper to contact a broker who then makes phone calls to find an appropriate carrier.

NEXT Trucking plans to eliminate this inefficient process and gives truckers more choice and transparency.

NEXT Trucking is the creation of of co-founder Elton Chung, who also owns iDC Logistics (idcintl.com). It specializes in electronics and delivers approximately 18,000 loads per year, totaling up to $2 billion dollars of merchandise annually. The company ships to big box retailers including Walmart, Target, Kmart, Sears, Costco, Best Buy, JCPenney, and Kohl’s. Chung designed NEXT Trucking to connect shippers directly with vetted truckers who are willing and able to carry the freight.

“The old ways of shipping freight aren’t working,” said Chung. “It’s no wonder there aren’t enough truckers to do the job. Like everyone else, they have their job preferences. It doesn’t make sense to approach them with routes and rates they don’t want. Of course they’re going to turn down the job.”

Carriers submit their route and rate preferences on the NEXT mobile app, and shippers post their jobs on the marketplace. Shippers can then see nearby truckers whose preferences match their posted job. Once the shipper selects a carrier, the mobile app notifies the trucker to pick up the freight, and the shipping process begins as usual.

The entire process, including paperwork and payments, is handled by the NEXT marketplace and app. Shipments can be tracked in real-time via GPS. After the shipment is delivered, shippers can rate carriers, ensuring quality standards.

“Our marketplace is one-of-a-kind, and the period of economic growth is the perfect time to launch this technology,” said Chung, who has a background as an investment banker for Citi Group and JPMorgan Chase. “The NEXT marketplace and mobile app will have a tremendous impact on how the freight shipping industry does business. Anything else will seem antiquated.”

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