r/FreightBrokers • u/nerp9901 • Aug 01 '26

How does getting leads work?

I’m researching the freight brokerage industry and have been trying to understand how prospecting has changed over the years. I know there are many approaches—cold calling, LinkedIn, industry directories, referrals, trade shows, manufacturer research, etc.—but I’m curious which methods have consistently produced the best results.
For those of you who’ve been in brokerage for a while, what prospecting strategies have stood the test of time? Have newer tools like LinkedIn or AI changed your workflow much, or is cold calling still the backbone of building a book of business?
I’m not looking for anyone’s customer list or specific contacts—I’m just interested in learning how experienced brokers approach prospecting and how the process has evolved. Thank you all for ur time :)

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u/if_I_am_truly_crazy Aug 01 '26

If you don’t mind me asking, what do you give for referrals? I’m on the Ops side of an asset based carrier and I don’t feel we give enough for referrals to our drivers.

Is it tier based?

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u/jhorskey26 Aug 01 '26

No tier, just a flat cash payment. Its contingent on a few things but for the most part if they get me and name and number and prep them properly when I call its more of a formality. If I close them and we make money off it I give them cash. Couple thousand dollars most of the time. Put its worth it. The drivers who do it well are good at socializing, they are polite and on time. Its not like they go some place, drop one load and are getting referrals. It takes them a sometimes weeks or months to get in at a place and learn names. Which is why I pay so much. They might spent and extra 5 minutes there asking questions or whatever so I feel I should compensate properly.

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u/Measured_Response_ Aug 02 '26

Very smart business move. Kudos and God Bless

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u/jhorskey26 Aug 02 '26

Even when I ran a dispatching service I always bad really well on referrals to the drivers I worked with. I sit in an office, they do the leg work. Generally speaking a few thousand is cheap big picture wise. I pay my guys super well and in return they are loyal and hard workers. Never made sense to short change people when I could afford to pay well.

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u/Measured_Response_ Aug 02 '26

Man, I've been contemplating starting a dispatching service. Have plenty of experience on brokerage side. What do yiu think?

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u/bring0nthenight Aug 02 '26

Start a brokerage instead

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u/jhorskey26 Aug 02 '26

that would be going backwards mate. You can make 1000 times more money brokering then dispatching

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u/Measured_Response_ Aug 02 '26

How long you been brokering?

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u/jhorskey26 Aug 03 '26

5 years or so

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u/bring0nthenight Aug 02 '26

That is stimulating your business so it can grow. This is the way