Freight brokers and logistics teams are constantly looking for ways to improve performance, optimize margins, and get ahead of potential issues. While freight analytics can feel overwhelming, the Axiom-Apps suite make it easier than ever for entry-level users to gain valuable insights without sinking hours into data work.
By regularly completing just a few high-impact, low-effort tasks each week, you can stay informed, adjust strategies quickly, and boost your bottom line.
Here’s a quick checklist of five easy actions you can take in Axiom-Apps each week. Think of it as a foundation for getting the most out of your data, even if you're new to the tool or the world of freight analytics.
1. Check In on Your Missing Customers
A Missing Customers Watch Card is an easy way to track customers who haven't booked with you in a while. Adding one to your dashboard helps you stay proactive in customer retention by identifying shippers who may need a nudge or additional attention.
👉 Why Check It Weekly
Tracking missing customers regularly helps ensure that no one falls through the cracks. If a high-value customer hasn’t booked recently, your team can reach out to them to check in, offer incentives, or discuss any potential issues. By keeping these customers engaged, you can prevent revenue loss and maintain consistent business.
🧱 How To Set It Up
To add a Missing Customers Watch Card, go to the “Change Analysis” section of your Customers app. From the list of available cards, select volume analysis then “Missing Customer Names,” which automatically filters for customers who haven’t yet booked with you this month.
2. Set Volume Thresholds
This takes tracking your missing customers a step further. Creating volume thresholds help you monitor decline before a customer goes totally missing. We recommend setting thresholds for lanes, too, so you can easily monitor volumes on your most critical lanes.
👉 Why Check It Weekly
Keeping tabs on volumes for both customers and lanes helps you understand shipping patterns, so you're aware early on if they start to slip. Conversely, if volume for one of your lanes or customers starts to creep up, it could signal an opportunity.
🧱 How To Set It Up
To set volume thresholds, go to the “Change Analysis” section of your Lanes Analysis and your Customer Analysis. From the list of available cards, select volume analysis then Volume < X (Last Month), where X is your preferred shipment threshold.
3. Get Really Good at Spotting Change
The Treemap Analysis in each app allows you to spot change quickly. We recommend you pay particular attention to the treemaps in your Lane Analysis and Customer Analysis, as these highlight your busiest and most profitable routes and customers.
👉 Why Check It Weekly
Each week, check for any new hotspots or declines that stand out. Reviewing this information regularly not only allows you to identify lanes or customers that need your attention, but it also helps you spot emerging trends that may present new opportunities.
If certain lanes or customers are consistently low-profit, consider reviewing carrier costs or rerouting options. For high-traffic lanes, explore bulk shipping options to improve margins further. Weekly reviews of lane and customer performance can uncover quick adjustments that maximize profit, providing insights that are otherwise easy to overlook. Over time, small improvements add up, contributing significantly to your overall margin.
🧱 How To Set It Up
While there is no configuration needed, it’s important to understand how treemap visualizations work. Let’s start with the treemap for your Lane Analysis. Each box represents a single lane with size indicating importance of that lane and color indicating positive (green) or negative (red) change. From there, you can dive into various metrics such as volume, margin, and more.
4. Examine Carrier Scorecards
In Axiom-Apps, you have scorecards for Lanes, Customers, and Carriers, but for beginners, we suggest just honing in on the carrier scorecards until you get a handle on it. These give you a holistic view of each carrier’s performance, typically showing metrics like on-time delivery rate, average shipment cost, tender rejects, and more. You can adjust columns based on what you want to see and also configure the scoring model to meet your specific requirements.
👉 Why Check It Weekly
Carrier performance directly impacts your service quality and costs, and regularly checking carrier performance ensures that you’re working with reliable partners who help you meet customer expectations. Weekly reviews of carrier scorecards allow you to quickly spot underperformers and make adjustments before they affect your business. If a carrier’s on-time performance starts to dip, you can address the issue early, possibly negotiating better rates or even finding alternative carriers to avoid disruptions.
🧱 How To Set It Up
Navigate to the Carrier Analysis app, and go to scorecards. From here, you can select the columns you want to see – like margin, carrier costs, fuel costs, claims, etc. You can also use our default scoring model or adjust it to meet your needs. Here’s an overview of carrier scorecards.
5. Monitor & Forecast Profitability
Monitoring and forecasting your per-shipment margin is essential for maintaining healthy profitability. In Axiom-Apps, you can easily track fluctuations in profitability caused by factors like shipment volume, regional variations, carrier mix, and shifts in your selling rate to customers. Setting up profitability monitoring and forecasting will help you stay ahead of changes that could impact your bottom line.
👉 Why Check It Weekly
Regularly monitoring and forecasting your profitability will provide you with key insights as to the reasons behind significant changes in profitability while still filtering out expected common week-to-week fluctuations. Short-term forecasts are also a powerful tool allowing you to react to financial changes in advance.
🧱 How To Set It Up
Go to the “Change Analysis” section of each of your apps. Add Margin Analysis Watch Cards, where X is your desired threshold. You have many options here, including the ability to forecast margin for the following month. At the very least, we recommend monitoring for margin drops for your lanes, customers, and carriers.
Small Acts of Analytics Lead to Big Payoffs for Freight Brokers
A consistent weekly checklist in Axiom-Apps keeps you aware, proactive, and ready to make minor adjustments that lead to significant results. In a fast-paced industry like freight, this approach will empower you to make better, data-driven decisions with minimal time investment. As you become more comfortable with these insights, you’ll naturally become more strategic in using analytics to drive efficiency and margins.
Just a few minutes each week can make a world of difference, helping you stay competitive while continuously improving performance. Dive in, explore, and see how small actions in Axiom-Apps can lead to big payoffs in your freight brokerage operations.
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