Partner News: Proxibid, uShip Deal Addresses Online Buyers' Transport Pain

Shipping large, oversized items has traditionally been a major pain point for buyers, especially within online auction marketplaces, such as Proxibid, where unique, valuable and oversized items need to get transported with care. 

To help address this issue and bring greater efficiency Proxibid’s auction process, uShip is pleased to announce Proxibid and uShip have joined forces to provide Proxibid’s online bidding community with direct access to uShip’s network of transporters. 

Why Your uShip Carrier Profile Matters (Hint: It Involves Gold)

What do you think your potential customers trust more?

a. Newspaper articles
b. Online customer reviews
c. Ads in a magazine
d. Online banner ads

If you chose b. online customer reviews then you made the right call. New Nielsen research says 70% of people trust online consumer opinions, second only to recommendations from friends and relatives (92%). Newspaper articles (58%), magazine ads (47%) and online banner ads (33%) rank lower. See more on the research findings on Marketing Charts.

Mobile App Update: Better Searching, Saved Searches

We’ve been working on some big improvements to the uShip mobile app. You now have the powerful search functionality of the main site available on your mobile device.

Check out the new features:

Point-to-point Search

All of you service providers participating in Mobile Madness will love this one. With point-to-point search, you now have the ability to see all loads that fall along a route. Here’s how it works: simply choose your end points (Dallas to Miami, for example) and how far off the route you are willing to go – the app will show you every load that appears on that route.

Saved Searches

All of your saved searches will now appear on the mobile app. Everything is tightly integrated, so any changes you make on the app will be reflected on the main site.

Category Icons in Map Markers

Now when you view search results in map view, the map markers will include category icons. This helps you quickly identify what type of load each is and will save you time while you’re on the road.

        

The uShip Mobile App is available for both iPhone and Android devices. All smartphone users can also access the uShip mobile site, touch.uship.com, which functions just like the app. 

Make sure to put these new mobile updates to use during our Mobile Madness promotion!

 

Romney Pet Faux-Paw: How Not to Ship Your Dog

Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney continues to be hounded by a dog problem that occurred 25 years ago.  Apparently, the former Massachusetts governor transported his dog in a kennel tied to the roof of the family car during a 12-hour trip from Boston to Canada. 

One of the latest jabs at the issue that's been dogging Romney came through a video (below) from MoveOn.org, a liberal advocacy group, that characterizes him as "Bad for Dogs."

While Romney's approach is clearly a safer means of pet transport than Chevy Chase's ficticious Clark Griswald character in National Lampoon's Vacation, it's by no means the proper, humane way to get the job done. 

In fact, every year thousands of people turn to uShip Pets to get it transport done right.  Puppies, rescue dogs, long-distance buys of virtually every breed and size imaginable make their way through uShip.  Check out the thousands of stories left by satisfied customers who have had amazing experiences getting connected with their dogs.

 

No dogs were harmed in the writing of this blog post.

 

Living the Transport ‘Dream’ on Apple Gadgets and uShip's Mobile App

Jumping into the cab of Scott and Susie Bawcom's Ford F450 truck, you’d think you just walked into an Apple Store.

The Bawcoms are die-hard Apple fans who use the tech products to run Dream Time Transportation (uShip profile), their shipping business of Nashville, Tenn. 

Their gadget lineup would make Steve Jobs proud:  2 iPhones, an iPad2, a MacBook Pro and Apple’s iCloud service.  They also have Comcast Xfiniti 4G Wi-Fi and a Rand McNally Intelliroute TND 710 Truck GPS.

And with 100 percent of their business coming from uShip.com, the Bawcom’s iPhones and iPad are loaded with uShip’s free mobile app so they have complete control of their account while managing customers’ shipments of boats, aircraft, RVs, cars, motorcycles, snow mobiles, and ATVs. 

Scott and Susie Bawcom have several Apples a day.

Mobile Usage by Truckers on uShip Surges 60%, Latest uShip Mobile App Available

If you're a transporter on uShip and find yourself more dependent on your mobile phone these days, you're not alone.  A recent uShip survey looked into trends in mobile phone usage by drivers on its site.  It found mobile usage for business while on the road has surged as nearly 6 in 10 (57%) are using their mobile device for business MORE this year than in 2010.  The study also revealed that text messaging is king when it comes to preferred method of communication -- 65% use their phone for this purpose -- and that most of you are yet to be smitten by the tablet computer phase -- 77% say you either won't be getting one (47%) or are unsure (29%).  

If you're one of the 65% with a phone from 2010 or later -- likely a smartphone -- you now have access to an enhanced uShip mobile app that helps you discover more business while you're on the road and also makes it easier to bid on uShip loads.  Based on a transporter’s GPS location, active shipments nearby will be displayed. Using the touch screen app, carriers can either place a bid directly through their phones or initiate questions to shippers before bidding.

How do you get it?  The free uShip app is downloadable directly from the phone provider’s online app store.  If you already use the uShip app, it requires that you redownload it.  Check out the short demo video below that shows how it works on an iPhone, or read our press release.

Here's a summary of additional mobile usage survey findings:

• 3 in 5 (57%) truckers are using their phone MORE for their daily business than they did last year
• 2 in 5 (40%) of owner-operators are using their mobile phones to find loads while on the road
• 1 in 3 (35%) of truckers have phones that are older than two years
• 1 in 5 (20%) don’t bring a laptop on the road anymore

For a full set of survey results, go here.

CNBC: uShip Offering Unique, High Tech Moving Alternative

We were honored to host CNBC in uShip's Austin's offices last week as their team gathered footage for a summer moving story being prepared for its 'Power Lunch' show, one of the top news programs for influential business decision makers and is viewed by approximately a quarter-million people on the average day.

The near-3 minute story ultimately ran today on a segment called Business Coast-to-Coast.  The video is found below, or check out a written piece on the same story here:

The essence of CNBC's story is this:  With more than 20 million Americans expected to move this summer and fuel prices super high, it's likely to cost more to relocate than it has in the past.  But uShip is helping people keep moving costs down, thanks for the competitive bidding process by transporters on its site.  The couple profiled in this piece saved 66% compared to the published rate from a commercial moving company and couldn't have been happier with their experience.

uShip Carrier Profile Spring Cleaning: Consider the F-Factor

uShip Carriers and Movers:

The busiest time of year for relocation and transport is coming up fast! There's no better time than now to do some spring cleaning on your uShip Profile.

Moving Tips: Maximize Your Income Tax Refund by Deducting Moving Expenses

With tax day 2011 looming, everyone's looking for ways to maximize their return. There are a dizzying number of potential credits and deductions on Form 1040, but very few that are as awesome as this one.

uShip Adds 'CarrierWatch Verified' to Help Carriers Build Trust with Customers

uShip has now begun carrier verification and monitoring through TransCore’s 
CarrierWatch service.  The service verifies that the business, authority, licensure and insurance information listed on transporters’ uShip accounts is consistent with FMCSA records.  CarrierWatch also monitors whether a service provider's authority and insurance is active or inactive. 

Once verified by CarrierWatch, transporters will see the “CarrierWatch Verified” badge on their profile to strengthen their reputation with potential and existing customers who may be considering accepting their bids.