ThinkFreight

Episode 90: Why Manifest Matters with Katie Date

Katie Date from Manifest [https://partner.manife.st/partner/thinkfreight] joins the ThinkFreight Podcast to break down what to expect at Manifest 2026 in Las Vegas. We cover what’s new this year at the Venetian, including expanded expo space, more activations, and a dedicated Cold Chain Pavilion with curated sessions and featured companies.  Katie also shares how Manifest is shaping its agenda around what’s happening in the industry right now, where AI is showing up in meaningful ways, and how attendees can get the most value by using the app early, building a plan, and prioritizing high-quality conversations over trying to do everything. Grab your tickets now!  [https://partner.manife.st/partner/thinkfreight]

Episode 89: Building a Brokerage by Leaning Into “Ugly Freight” and LTL with Tyler Harper

Tyler Harper [https://www.linkedin.com/in/thisistylerharper/] thought he was signing up for a “big box brokerage” job after ASU. Instead, freight turned into a decade-long obsession, a crash course in carrier sales, and eventually the push that forced him and his co-founders to start Pinnacle Logistics Group [https://www.pinnacleteam.com/], debt-free, on short notice, and with a single book of business. In this episode, Tyler breaks down the origin story behind Pinnacle, including the moment that changed everything, why the team intentionally leans into “ugly freight” like Mexico, drayage, consolidation, and multi-stop truckload, and how they’ve built a company that’s basically the opposite of the standard brokerage model: roughly 30 people on the team and only 2 sales reps. The conversation really gets interesting when Tyler explains why LTL is still one of the most underserved modes in freight, how rebuilds, reweighs, and reclasses quietly eat shipper budgets, and how Pinnacle built LTL Flow, a free pre-shipment tool designed to remove human error before the load ever gets booked. Think photos, measurements, documentation, and a dimensioning workflow that cuts down disputes and surprises. We also talk leadership, how Tyler’s role has shifted from “I’ll do everything myself” to building a culture where speed is king, response time is tracked like a KPI, and offshore teams are treated like a true extension of the company, not a separate branch.

Episode 88: Using Shipper Intent to Win More Freight with Kevin Hill

What if you knew a shipper was actively searching for capacity before they ever reached out? In this episode, I’m joined by Kevin Hill, longtime freight media voice and now part of the team at CarrierSource, to talk about one of the most powerful tools in freight prospecting today: shipper intent data. We break down how CarrierSource tracks shipper behavior across thousands of lane and equipment type searches, how sales teams are using that intel to target better, and why this kind of visibility flips the old “spray and pray” approach on its head.  Kevin also walks us through how carrier sales reps are using the platform daily to find, vet, and build relationships with high-performing carriers — all based on real reviews and data, not just FMCSA basics. This episode is a playbook for using smarter data to close more freight. ______________________________________________ 📍 Thanks to our incredible sponsors:  ⚫️ Rose Rocket [https://www.roserocket.com/?utm_source=affiliate&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=thinkfreight] and TMS.ai are transforming the freight industry with seamless transportation management solutions. Improve your operations, streamline communication, and gain real-time visibility—all in one powerful platform. Try RoseRocket and TMS.ai today! ⚫️ Salesdash CRM [https://salesdashcrm.com/] is built specifically for freight brokers & 3PLs. Organize your sales outreach, notes, follow-ups, and lane profiles for your shippers and carriers. All for an affordable price. Try Salesdash [https://salesdashcrm.com/] free for 14 days with no credit card required.

Episode 87: From Coyote Grit To Cross-Border Hustle with Rich Krul

Rich Krul [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rich-krul/] didn’t plan on ending up in logistics. He didn’t plan on launching his own brokerage. And he definitely didn’t plan on starting a company right before a freight recession. But that’s how the best stories start. In this episode, I sit down with Rich Krul, co-founder and CEO of Hoplite Logistics [https://shiphoplite.com/], to unpack his freight journey — from growing up in Michigan and chasing sales leads in LA, to leading 250+ reps at Coyote, launching a carrier sales rebuild at Traffic Tech, and eventually starting Hoplite alongside his co-founder Brian. Rich’s story is packed with freight lessons, leadership missteps, underdog grit, and hard-won wisdom on building teams, betting on yourself, and keeping service at the center — especially when you’re small. ______________________________________________ 📍 Thanks to our incredible sponsors:  ⚫️ Rose Rocket [https://www.roserocket.com/?utm_source=affiliate&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=thinkfreight] and TMS.ai are transforming the freight industry with seamless transportation management solutions. Improve your operations, streamline communication, and gain real-time visibility—all in one powerful platform. Try RoseRocket and TMS.ai today! ⚫️ Salesdash CRM [https://salesdashcrm.com/] is built specifically for freight brokers & 3PLs. Organize your sales outreach, notes, follow-ups, and lane profiles for your shippers and carriers. All for an affordable price. Try Salesdash [https://salesdashcrm.com/] free for 14 days with no credit card required.

Episode 86: “AI Everywhere”... But Does It Actually Work in Freight with Jamyang Tenzin

Everyone in freight is racing to slap “AI” on their product, brokers, carriers, TMSs, even startups that launched six weeks ago. But are any of these tools actually helping you operate better? In this episode of ThinkFreight, I sit down with Jamyang "Jam" Tenzin [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamyangtenzin/] from Rose Rocket [https://www.roserocket.com/] to cut through the noise and talk about what AI in freight is really doing, and not doing. We unpack the reality that most AI in logistics is still in the proof-of-concept phase, flashy demos and generic agents that look great in pitch decks, but can’t survive the real complexity of daily dispatch, order entry, or customer response time. But there’s a bright side: very specific, boring problems are already being solved, and solved well. ______________________________________________ 📍 Thanks to our incredible sponsors:  ⚫️ Rose Rocket [https://www.roserocket.com/?utm_source=affiliate&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=thinkfreight] and TMS.ai are transforming the freight industry with seamless transportation management solutions. Improve your operations, streamline communication, and gain real-time visibility—all in one powerful platform. Try RoseRocket and TMS.ai today!