The stickiness of an application is determined by its ability to recruit, retain and engage a user, actions that are easier said than done as freight heavy hitters like UberFreight, Flock Freight, Convoy and Loadsmart enter the logistics industry as digital players on day one.

With over two decades in logistics, BlueGrace COO Mark Ford simplifies the problem he has experienced firsthand.

“You can build it in-house; the issue is getting people to use it,” he explained. “If you can’t get the driver to use the app, then your platform is not going to be worth anything.”

This is what motivated the long-standing relationship between BlueGrace Logistics and its tracking and freight matching partner, Trucker Tools, which has excelled in building a carrier-centric tool that services 1.4 million truckers on its platform.

“Outside of tracking and booking features, they went after the driver’s needs first,” Ford said of the platform that offers a full suite of tools for drivers to find the best fuel prices, available parking locations, weigh stations and quotes for extra cargo insurance.

Ford explained that the relationship began with a focus on optimizing employees’ time through Trucker Tools’ tracking capabilities.

Announced on Tuesday, BlueGrace has expanded its partnership to now enable users to use Trucker Tools’ Book-It-Now feature to secure truckload shipments from the third-party logistics company.

View the full article by Grace Sharkey | FreightWaves