Part 3 · Post it right

By the end: a posting carriers actually bid on, and the three habits worth building from day one.

1. Four ways to post, and two questions

Two questions get you to the right one: is it one shipment, or recurring volume? And do you own the freight, or are you still quoting it?

• Load: you own it, one shipment. Comes down when you accept a carrier.
• Lane: you own it, recurring volume. Stays live after a match, so you can book more than one carrier.
• Potential Load: one shipment you are still quoting.
• Potential Lane: recurring volume you are still quoting. The RFP case.

Win the quote, and you convert the Potential. Steady volume belongs in a Lane, not a stack of Loads.

2. What a posting actually does

When you post, every carrier that fits the lane, the equipment and the crossing gets notified.

You do not have to wait for them. Cargado shows you carriers to message first, and reads how much carrier supply meets your requirements. We notify every carrier that fits. Their capacity, and how fast they answer, is their own.

3. Put the details in the posting

The fastest way to waste an afternoon is a posting with the details left out. Name:

• The commodity, the weight and the packaging. “Brake pads · 44,000 lb · palletized”, not “general freight”.
• Hazmat class and UN number, if it applies.
• The certifications the shipper actually requires. CTPAT, for instance, but only if it is genuinely required.
• Real pickup windows. Not “Thursday”. “Thursday 08:00–12:00”.

Every detail lets a carrier rule themselves in or out before anyone picks up the phone. A twenty-minute call that ends in “we're not CTPAT” is a call neither of you needed.

Use the custom message

It is the first thing carriers read. Sell what you bring: volume, how fast you pay, whether it repeats.

4 loads a week, quick pay, we run this lane year-round.

4. Requirements and Instant Responses

Check only what the load truly needs

Requirements are where postings die. Most boxes you check narrow the carriers Cargado notifies. Check what the shipper requires, and nothing else.

Set your rate

Turn on Instant Responses and enter the highest rate you would pay. Carriers never see it. They see a Book Now rate a little below it.

• A bid at or under your number is accepted on the spot.
• Somewhat above your number, Cargado sends the carrier a counteroffer automatically, or the bid comes to you.
• Far above it, the bid is turned down automatically, or sent to you to decide.

So a high first bid is not the end of it. You will often see a second, lower bid from the same carrier. After an automatic counteroffer, that carrier's later bids come to you to review, even at or under your number; only a bid far above it can still be turned down automatically. Every carrier gets an answer in seconds, unless the bid comes to you to decide. Answer those fast too, because answers are what keep carriers bidding on your freight.

The market rate band sits right under the field, so set your number inside it. You stay in control. Turn it off any time, or accept a bid above your number yourself. See What happens when I set a target rate?

5. Do not wait for bids: message suggested carriers

Message three to five suggested carriers as soon as you post. It is the habit that separates accounts that cover freight from accounts that watch a posting sit.

The list comes from what carriers tell Cargado and do on it: a truck already posted for your origin and your dates, a saved search that matches your lane, a service area your lane sits inside. See Who are my suggested carriers, and how do I work the Coverage tab?

You do not need a bilingual rep for routine coverage

Chat translates both ways. Type in English, the carrier reads Spanish, and their reply comes back to you in English with “Translated from Spanish · Show original” so you can always check the original.

6. No bids? Five fixes

When a posting gets no bids, it is almost always the posting, not the market.

• Target rate below the band: price inside it.
• Requirements the load does not need: uncheck them.
• Recurring freight posted as one Load: make it a Lane.
• Old bids left unanswered: answer every bid the same day. Carriers notice, and they stop bidding.
• A Friday posting that closes Monday: give carriers time before you leave.

Still stuck on a lane? See Why isn't my posting getting bids?, or send it to your success manager and we will review the posting with you. A posting that is not getting bids is the fastest thing for us to fix.

Common mistakes in part 3

• “General freight” as a commodity. It tells a carrier nothing, so they call to find out, or they skip it.
• Checking every requirement box “to be safe”. Most of them narrow the carriers Cargado notifies.
• Posting and waiting. Suggested carriers are there so you do not have to.
• A stack of Loads for freight that repeats. That is a Lane.
• Leaving bids unanswered. It is the quietest way to train carriers to ignore your postings.

Next: Part 4 · Work your bids