E-commerce, global pandemic, supply chain delays: three terms that populate nearly every piece of logistics writing in early 2022. This economic uncertainty causes businesses of all sizes to rethink their distribution strategy, often through carrier diversity. Carrier diversity is a term that ConnectShip holds in high regard. Not only because multi-carrier is in our DNA, but due to the benefits that diversification can bring in times of uncertainty. One such measure of diversification is across modes.

Less-than-Truckload (LTL) shipping is often perceived as the choice for high-volume, large-item shippers, those toting industrial HVAC systems or restocking stores. Diving deeper, LTL has so much more to offer. It is true that FTL, or Full Truckload shipments, do require the shipper to fill a long-haul, often 53’ trailer to get their money’s worth. These are your industrial and box store restocking shipments noted above. The beauty of LTL is its division of that single trailer’s space and cost across many shippers. If a shipment can be palletized, weighs over the 150-pound small parcel threshold, and all pieces of the shipment are headed in reasonably the same direction, LTL could be a great fit. Oh, and one more myth to debunk: LTL is not just for commercial deliveries. Most LTL carriers allow for residential drop-off, a huge plus for consumer-facing operations. All this to say, LTL provides a potential second option for long-time parcel shippers and fills a niche for the sizes and shapes that small parcel is less equipped to handle.

A singular tracking number for multiple orders, reduced handling, improved shipping rates, environmental friendliness from shared space, customer delivery preferences, reduced redundancy of travel to the same area, and shorter delivery times are all reasons to consider LTL as part of a greater distribution strategy.