Finding freight, submitting bids, and working with the brokers, forwarders and 3PLs posting it.
How carriers win more freight2:16 · the full explainer
Four habits separate the carriers who win freight on Cargado from the ones who watch it go by. Each one is a chapter below, and none of them takes a minute.
Before you can bid
Get approved
Cargado is picky about who gets in. Every carrier is checked before it can bid, and that is exactly what the brokers here are paying for.
What to do
- Apply through the carrier application. US carriers enter a USDOT number; Mexico and Canada carriers also upload documents.
- Accept your invitation, then complete your profile: equipment and service areas.
- Add three commercial references. We check them before you can bid.
How approval works in your countryIf your invite says "user already exists" and you have no working account, that is a known failure. Contact support rather than trying again.
Chapter 1 · 0:32
Post your trucks
Do not only look for freight. Tell brokers where your equipment is and when it is free.
What to do
- Post the truck with its origin, its dates and its equipment.
- Brokers see posted capacity when they are choosing who to message first.
- Keep it current. A stale truck is worse than no truck.
Chapter 2 · 0:32
Save your searches
Set up the searches that match what you actually run, so the right freight finds you.
What to do
- Build a search for the lanes and equipment you run.
- Save it, and turn on the notification channel you actually read.
- Freight matching a saved search reaches you without you going looking.
Chapter 3 · 0:17
What "TMS synced" means
A posting tagged TMS synced came straight out of the broker's own system. It is real freight they are actively covering, not a placeholder.
Chapter 4 · 0:36
Bid, and answer the chat
Speed is most of it. Brokers remember who answers.
What to do
- Bid the number you would actually run it for.
- Answer the chat. It translates both ways, so you can write in Spanish.
- If your bid is above market you will be told, and you choose: lower it, send it through for the broker to decide, or let it go.
An instant rejection is not the end of the road. You can re-submit a bid after one.
