Digital freight forwarding platforms offer businesses an opportunity to deliver goods to consumers around the world and expand their revenue. By 2032, studies show that the digital freight forwarding market will be worth an incredible $33.7 billion, thanks to the rise of ecommerce and global shopping.
While this has led to a rapid increase in freight forwarding platforms, not all the offerings are alike. Digital freight forwarding platforms have emerged in recent years as an appropriate solution for our tech-current times, creating user-friendly dashboards for business owners to easily navigate online and track shipments in real time. Traditional freight forwarders, which pride themselves on years of successful track records and partnerships, remain a surefire option to get your goods from point A to point B internationally.
What both freight forwarders have in common, however, is that they tend to heavily favor larger companies and cater their business models around them, creating disparities for smaller brands, who are too often left searching for a shipping partner.
That’s why we created this list, introducing you to some of the top freight forwarding platforms that deliver specialist solutions to SMBs.
The 10 Best Freight Forwarding Platforms for SMBs
Freight forwarding platforms focusing on smaller companies usually include a few unique features and benefits, such as access to a range of shipping modalities (to help reduce costs), a greater focus on user-friendly functionality, and end-to-end customer service.
Ship4wd: The Best Overall Solution for SMBs
While there are plenty of freight forwarding platforms out there that offer support to SMBs, Ship4wd focuses specifically on the needs of small to mid-sized businesses. The digital freight forwarder fights to ensure that smaller businesses get the same treatment, support, and deals as larger businesses when it comes to freight forwarding, and even guarantees container allocation for SMBs.
The company, established by ZIM, one of the top 20 shipping carriers in the world, leverages a massive network of partners to represent SMBs in the international freight space, enabling them to secure affordable prices and access a wide range of delivery solutions, including FCL and LCL shipping and air freight.
Ship4wd’s digital freight forwarding platform includes access to crucial features like instant quotes, real-time order tracking, and 24/7 human support. They even offer solutions for accessing cargo insurance, customs brokerage, pre-shipment inspections, and financial options to ease cash flow burdens on SMBs. If you’re a small business, it’ll be hard to find a freight forwarder more knowledgeable on the needs and pain points of SMBs, making Ship4wd the number one option on our list.
Flexport: Combined Logistics and Freight
Flexport is an end-to-end supply chain platform that supports companies of all sizes with navigating the global logistics landscape. For smaller businesses, Flexport focuses on making the logistics journey easier to understand and manage. The company offers an end-to-end AI-fuelled platform that can help you coordinate various parts of your business and access crucial analytics.
With Flexport, SMBs can coordinate shipments with confidence, gaining visibility into every order at each stage of the logistics journey. You’ll even access analytical tools that can help you cut waste across your supply chain, which is ideal for budget-conscious companies.
The only downside is that the comprehensive selection of features offered by Flexport means the system comes with a slightly higher learning curve for beginners.
Saloodo: Ideal for DHL Customers
Saloodo is a digital freight forwarding and logistics company specialising in both part-load and full-load shipping, which makes it a great option for SMBs. The company’s platform operates as both an online solution for tracking and managing shipments, and a freight exchange.
Designed to be the go-to carrier management portal for DHL customers, Saloodo is ideal for companies who want to use DHL for transport orders across Europe, MEA, and Argentina. For smaller ecommerce companies, it also includes access to a free company account and digital tools for invoice creation, browser alerts, tracking, and tracing.
Companies will also gain access to a single point of contact for all of their shipping needs, live transport tracking, and paperless documentation.
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Freightview: Easy Booking and Management
Freightview is less comprehensive than some of the other freight forwarding platforms on this list, but it still offers valuable tools to a range of small businesses. With this platform, companies can easily compare “truckload rates” for domestic shipping requirements.
You can also access insights into less-than container load (LCL) rates, a freight class calculator, hazardous shipment guidance, and automated tracking tools. Plus, there are resources for automated tracking, label generation, custom packaging management, and more.
One great thing about Freightview is that it includes an open API, which means you can create your own automated workflows and connect your day-to-day small business activities.
Cargowise: Flexible Supply Chain Management
Cargowise offers a wide range of flexible solutions for logistics and supply chain management to companies of every size and industry. As well as supporting larger companies, it also has specialist solutions available for smaller, international ecommerce brands.
With the freight forwarding tools built into Cargowise, smaller companies can access automated and AI-enhanced tools that help to boost productivity and reduce costs. Cargowise supports ocean, air, road, and rail freight options, and stores all of your shipment data in a central platform, to help you mitigate common regulatory risks.
It also gives organisations a simple environment where they can manage all of their communications with suppliers in one place, reducing the complexity of logistics management.
Beacon Freight: Best for Local Deliveries
Beacon is a freight forwarding and logistics company that offers five central services, including freight forwarding, supply chain consultancy, and logistics services. It can also assist small businesses with some of the more complex parts of the logistics journey, such as managing customs.
One area this company specialises in is local transport and delivery services, ideal for smaller organisations. It can offer access to transportation routes via sea, road, air, and rail, through a comprehensive partner network. Plus, it supports both less-than container load and full container load (FCL) shipping, giving SMBs plenty of versatility.
The company mainly focuses on organisations in the SADC region, so it might not be ideal for global companies, or smaller organisations based in locations such as the United States.
Sendder: Ideal for European Freight Forwarding
If you’re an SMB based in Europe, Sendder is likely to be one of the best freight forwarding platforms for you. Like the other leading SMB freight forwarding solutions on this list, the company helps organisations save money, reduce risks, automate tasks, and more.
Plus, unlike some alternatives, Sendder provides tools companies can use to track their carbon emissions, helping them reduce their footprint on the environment. With Sendder, SMBs can access innovative tracking tools, quality assurance solutions, and dedicated customer service from an account manager. There’s even a mobile app for tracking insights on the move.
Sendder also offers access to freight rate procurement and shipment management, and leverages both AI and machine learning to deliver valuable insights to business leaders.
Zencargo: Bespoke Solutions
Versatile logistics software company Zencargo offers companies access to a comprehensive toolkit for freight management and forwarding. One great thing about the company is its commitment to working with organisations, offering direct guidance and consulting throughout the logistics process. Zencargo offers a comprehensive platform where you can manage routes, orders and partners.
You’ll be able to choose from a range of air, sea, and road freight options, based on your needs. Plus, small business leaders can keep costs low, as they’ll only pay for the volume they ship, thanks to a dedicated LCL service.
Zencargo’s platform also includes access to in-depth analytical tools you can use to plan cargo movements in advance and determine the best routes for shipments.
MyCeva: Best Sustainable Option
Another popular company for small businesses focusing on freight forwarding and logistics automation, MyCeva is a leader in the software landscape. It gives companies a platform where they can manage their shipment strategy from anywhere and experiment with a range of ocean, sea, and air freight options, based on your needs.
For scaling small businesses, there’s also the opportunity to request “premium” shipping services, if you need to accelerate delivery times. MyCeva covers more than 600 shipping routes worldwide, and it’s one of the few companies fully committed to improving sustainability in logistics.
The company uses eco-friendly shipping options and provides access to a carbon footprint calculator for insights into your potential emissions and how you can reduce them.
Nowports: Excellent Customer Support
Spanish freight forwarding company Nowports specialises in centralising international trade operations for small businesses and growing companies in Mexico, Columbia, Brazil, Peru, and a handful of other regions. The organisation promises to manage cargo transportation with a comprehensive logistics solution that can adapt to your needs.
Companies can choose between a range of transportation options, opt for containers, boxes, and palettes, and even use multimodal shipment strategies. Plus, Nowports offers access to real-time tracking, so you can see the status of your orders in an instant.
On top of that, the company offers access to a range of technology, logistics, and finance experts who can work with your business on a one-to-one basis. That’s ideal for SMBs with limited access to logistics expertise.
Choosing the Right SMB Freight Forwarder
Ultimately, all of the freight forwarding companies and platforms above have something unique to offer small businesses in search of logistics support. They all offer access to a range of freight forwarding modalities and tools for tracking shipments.
If you’re struggling to choose between your options, make sure you focus on:
- Experience: Prioritise a freight forwarding company with genuine experience working with smaller companies on a range of freight forwarding and logistics strategies. Look for companies that offer access to support with confusing processes, such as managing customs, accessing freight insurance, and monitoring shipments
- Partners: The best freight forwarding companies will work hand-in-hand with a range of partners to ensure they can deliver the best rates to smaller businesses. Look for a company that can guarantee shipment allocation with your chosen shipping company
- Service range: Some freight forwarding companies offer more services than others. Some offer full door-to-door shipping solutions, which is ideal if you want to avoid working with a wide range of different third-parties. Others can also offer access to insurance solutions
- Ease of use: For a small business, ease of use is crucial. The more intuitive and straightforward a platform is, the less time you’ll need to spend learning how to use all of the features. This means you can derive benefits from your software a lot faster
- Customer support: Exceptional customer support will often be crucial for smaller companies who need access to rapid assistance to navigate complex logistics processes. Ideally, it’s best to choose a provider who can offer 24/7 human support, from genuine experts
Choose your Ideal SMB Freight Forwarder
Managing freight and logistics processes can be complex for a small business owner, but it’s often the key to enabling international expansion and growth. The best freight forwarding platforms will ensure you can access the tools and support you need to reach customers with products wherever they are.
Just remember, not every freight forwarding company makes SMBs a priority. Ensure you choose a partner that understands the unique challenges you face as a smaller business owner and gives you the resources you need to streamline processes and reduce costs.
