2023’s releases you should know about

There’s no question that Digital air cargo has firmly established its presence in the freight forwarding industry. This year continued to prove that, with a record number of eBookings being placed reflecting just how many carriers and forwarders have come to embrace the power of digital bookings and the efficiency of doing business this way. 

The air cargo digital journey is a gradual process, continuously evolving and creating new opportunities to adapt to the market. This year, WebCargo has continued its commitment to driving progress in the industry, introducing important new tools and features designed to enhance the eBooking process, elevate user experience, and integrate the latest technologies. 

As we move into 2024, we look back on some of the advancements WebCargo rolled out this year that have helped reshape the way freight forwarders, businesses, and those in the freight industry move air cargo.

 

eBooking Essentials for Better, Smarter Decisions

WebCargo’s ebooking solution empowers freight forwarders in making better, smarter and faster decisions. The digital solution gives forwarders instant access to accurate airline pricing and routing to compare and book real-time rates and capacity. This is particularly useful in time-sensitive situations, so this year, the developments we’ve added simplify the process to better optimize the business day.  

 

• Allotment Tool

Facilitates the creation of regular scheduled shipments with fixed cargo quantities through a direct API connection with airline databases. For freight forwarders, this optimizes negotiations and management of special rates with airlines.

 

• Client Management Tool 2.0

Simplifies the addition of client information for use with static rate quotations. This new feature enhances organization and accessibility of client data, improving the overall workflow.

 

• Dynamic Quoting Tool

Real-time prices and live capacity are integrated into quotations. This enables forwarders to combine the different rate types  – consolidations, long term contracts and spot rates – and easily convert these into a simple quote for the customer.

 

• Quote to Book

Seamlessly transition from an accepted quote to searching live flights and rates, streamlining the booking process. Its value? Driving efficiency by eliminating the need for separate quoting and booking workflows.

Optimizing User-Experience

This year, WebCargo also focused on improving the user experience to ensure a more user-friendly and personalized journey for freight forwarders.

 

• Card Top-Up Feature for WebCargo Pay

Allows users to instantly add funds to their WebCargo wallet using a credit or debit card, ensuring continuous access to key services without delays or communication with finance teams (available to US customers only at this time).

 

• Bookmarks Feature

Enables users to bookmark dynamic rates for future reference and use, while providing insights into price changes and expiration dates. This simple yet powerful feature enhances planning by allowing forwarders to monitor rates over time and choose the optimal booking moment.

 

• Copy Flight Itinerary Tool

Allows easy copying and pasting of flight details for communication with customers or internal reporting. The tool streamlines communication and reporting processes, reducing manual data entry.

 

• Duplicate eBooking

Facilitates duplication of flight details from existing eBookings, automating the population of live rate search forms. Forwarders easily save time utilizing this feature while ensuring accuracy in the booking process.

 

• Predefined User Preferences

Forwarders can now set their weight and dimension preferences for frequent shipments, eliminating the need for repetitive data entry. By applying predefined preferences, it improves efficiency to streamline the search process.

Integrating New Technologies

WebCargo is placed perfectly as the industry opens up to digitalization, with many logistic professionals expecting to leverage AI in the coming years. Discover how we’re integrating this technology to deliver better solutions.

 

• Autofill Feature

Integrates with ChatGPT’s AI bot for quick and accurate autofill of cargo information when searching for live rates. Instead of spending time on manual entry, the feature increases speed and accuracy when inputting data, streamlining the overall workflow.

Bring on 2024

Digitalization proves to be a crucial component for optimizing operations and ensuring customer satisfaction throughout the logistics chain, and WebCargo aims to continue to be a leader in this transformation.  

The stickiness of digital air cargo will no doubt continue into 2024 and beyond, with the help of even more tools and features to drive a forwarder’s operational efficiency together with WebCargo. 

We look forward to another year, bringing even more developments that not only meet, but exceed, the evolving needs of freight forwarders.