If you work in the logistics business, you are probably constantly searching for the top freight forwarders to represent your shipments in the countries your business is not established yet. And we know how finding the right agent can be very difficult. Closing a deal and exchanging business with another professional requires much trust, however, it is hard to find a company in which you trust overseas and without even knowing them personally.

This is what the logistics networks are for: providing agents with a global list of top freight forwarders, so it becomes easier for them to create partnerships and find good agents wherever they need. However, most networks accept a lot of companies, making it complicated for their members to detect which are the most reliable ones. 

Aiming to come up with a solution for this problem, which is very common between freight forwarders worldwide, Twig was created as a more select network, with a strict member selection process. Our purpose is providing freight forwarders with a new concept of network, which values the logistics companies’ experience and reliability above all other things, making our group a safer and positive environment for members to establish lasting partnerships and exchange business opportunities.

In other words, our goal is not to become the biggest network, but the one with the most reputable agents in it. To achieve that, we have several ways of detecting if a company is reliable before welcoming them as part of our group. This post intends to explain how we do this selection and accept only the top freight forwarders worldwide. Check it out!

How does Twig select the top freight forwarders?

Background and Infrastructure Check

One of our strategies for analyzing a freight forwarder’s reputation in the logistics market is cheking their facilities and financial situation. To do so, we ask the company to send us some pictures showing its infrastructure, so we can make sure that their facilities are compatible with our group’s quality standards. We also check if the forwarder is listed in any international blacklist of freight forwarding debtors and analyze its financial situation using the Dun & Bradstreet number.

By doing this, we are able to have a better idea whether the company that is trying to join Twig has a positive image in the international logistics market or not. If a company gives us a good first impression, it will be one step closer to becoming a Twigger!

Proof of Eligibility

Another way that Twig has of detecting the top freight forwarders is requesting them to send proof of eligibility.

We ask the company to send us the license and registration allowing them to work as a freight forwarder in their country. Besides, we also ask all prospect members to provide us with anything that helps to state their experience, such as a portfolio of cases and successful operations.

Partner Recommendation

Since the creation of Twig, we have a purpose of being an extremely select network, which gathers the top freight forwarders worldwide. And what better way to check a company’s quality than getting feedbacks from their current partners?

In order to accept a member, we also ask the company to send us the contact of 2 of their international forwarding partners, so we can hear their opinion about the company’s expertise and reliability in the international market.

In case the freight forwarder in question gets a positive indication from the partners we get ahold of, the chances of accepting that agent into Twig are much higher!

How does Twig keep a quality control?

The Methodology

To be a part of our network, a new partner has to pass through Twigs quality control. That step is essential, mainly because we strive to be an elite group of freight forwarders. 

To make Twig a safer and positive environment for members exchange business, we have a strict process to select our agents, that’s because reliability is a crucial aspect when choosing a freight forwarding partner.

Learn more about our methodology, check out the process’ steps here.

Support and proximity among members

Another important factor that contributes to our quality control is that, Twig’s staff is capable of maintaining a close relationship with each agent that joins our group, offering them full-time support and assistance in anything they need.

We try to establish a close relationship with our members, making them feel safe to exchange business inside Twig because they know we will be willing to help in case a problem comes up. We strengthen this relationship even more during Twig Talk, our annual conference!

Tools and projects

At Twig, we not only want to ensure only top freight forwarders are accepted in our group, but we also want to encourage them to make the most of their membership and constantly aggregate value to the network. For this reason, we are always thinking about new tools that could somehow contribute to keeping the quality control inside our network.

One example of this is Twig Partner Rating, an exclusive system created by us that allows any Twig member to rate their experience with other partners inside the group. Although the evaluations are confidential (only the Twig team has access to them), they will help us to run constant quality control and ensure only members with a high rate get to renew their membership with Twig. 

Another example is the Twig Visit, a project in which every year Twig directors personally visit some of our members’ offices in different countries. This allows us to establish a closer relationship with our members, learning more about their company and services.

We hope to have helped you understand more about Twig’s strategy to only select top freight forwarders and always maintain the quality of our network!

In our 8 years of existence in the market, we are glad to say we have already formed a strong and diverse group of forwarding agents, who have built close relationships with each other and exchanged great amount of business. However, we are constantly looking for other top freight forwarders that believe they can aggregate even more value to our network!

Do you like Twig’s concept of being a select network and think you have the right profile to become a Twigger? Start the process right away and join the most reliable network for independent freight forwarders!

Got interested? Fill the form below, and be part of our family to enjoy this amazing tool and much more!