Welcome to Central Dispatch! We’re excited for you to start finding loads with us. Read this start guide to make sure you have your account set up properly, and you’re ready to take full advantage of everything our platform offers.
1. Set Up Account
Confirm your company profile
We automatically populate your company profile based on the details you provided at sign up. Be sure to confirm all your info is correct by clicking your name in the top right of the screen, then clicking “Company Profile” from the dropdown menu. You can also add your business contacts and edit their roles (Owner, Billing, Listing, Dispatch), edit your account preferences, manage your preferred and blocked shipper list, and more.
For more details on setting up your profile, see our user guide >
Set up User Management
User Management gives each employee or contractor in your organization their own Central Dispatch log in — greatly reducing the risk of identity fraud and unauthorized access. It also allows you to assign each team member a role, giving you control over who can access certain features, and who can view certain business information.
Getting started is easy. Just click your name from any page on Central Dispatch and select “Manage Users” from the account dropdown. From this screen, you can add new users, assign their role, or edit any current user.
Adding a new user automatically sends an invitation to the email address you enter for them. Members of your team need to accept the invite before becoming active users.
Get an in-depth look at User Management in this step-by-step video tutorial >
Access and set up billing
To set up your payment methods and billing, click your name at the top right of the screen, then click “Billing” from the dropdown menu. Here you can add or edit your preferred credit or debit cards, pay invoices, view your billing history, toggle on automatic payments, and upgrade or change your subscription.
For more on billing set-up and payment, read our user guide >
Manage your subscription
To view or change your subscription, go to the “Your Subscription” area in the “Billing” page, then Click “Manage Subscriptions.”
There you’ll see all the details of your current plan, and add-on options like Price Check Plus and notifications. You can easily make changes in just a few clicks by selecting a new plan or add-on and hitting “Update Subscription.”
2. Searching & Managing Loads
Search for loads
With your profile, users, and billing set up, you’re ready to start searching for loads! From the Account Dashboard, click “Find Shipments,” and click “Search Vehicles” in the drop down menu.
Next, enter your preferred region of origin and delivery destination. To narrow your search even further, scroll down the page where you can filter by vehicle type, trailer type, number of vehicles, or minimum payment.
Toggle on the “Search Along Route” button to see vehicles that will be ready for pickup in the timeframe your truck is traveling through the area. Search results will show you the origin and destination, type of vehicle, price offered (including per mile), and the shipper’s company info.
Use our “Price Check” tool to bring up a table containing recent loads similar to yours and their listed price, helping you secure a fair, competitive rate. Or upgrade to access “Price Check Plus” for even more listing insights, and AI-powered pricing recommendations.
You can also sign up for our Saved Search Notifications, which sends you alerts when loads matching your preferences have been posted to the marketplace, so you never miss a load.
Once you find a load that interests you, make sure to review the shipper’s Central Dispatch profile and ratings before doing business with them. On their profile, you’ll see the shipper’s overall rating, as well as ratings for different categories like Timeliness, Communication, and Documentation. If you’re confident in a shipper’s profile, give them a call and accept the job.
For more on searching loads, watch this step-by-step video tutorial >
Managing your loads
Once you’ve accepted a job, the shipper will dispatch the load to you electronically, giving you all the information you need to pick up the vehicle and get started. No paperwork required!
Just navigate to “Find Shipments,” then “Dispatches” and view the dispatch details. The “Dispatches” page is also where you’ll keep track of all your loads on Central Dispatch. Whether they’re currently being dispatched, have been delivered, picked up, or were canceled.
All these important records are automatically updated, and can be accessed anytime, anywhere there’s an internet connection.
For more on managing loads, view our user guide >
Download the Central Dispatch App
We highly recommend downloading the Central Dispatch carrier mobile app, where you can complete vehicle inspections, send eBOL documentation, and share real-time delivery status updates with shippers on every load.
For more on the app, view the demo video >
3. Rate Shippers
Once a job is complete, use the Transactional Ratings system to rate and review your partners. This system allows you to give each transaction an overall rating, plus ratings in three distinct categories: Timeliness, Communication, and Documentation.
We recommend leaving a written review to give more details on your experience working with them. You can also choose when your review is published, giving you the confidence to share your full experience and provide honest feedback.
Be as fair and thorough as possible when describing your carrier partner’s performance, so other shippers can make better, more informed partnering decisions.
For more on Transactional Ratings, watch the demo video >
4. Additional Resources
Want to fully maximize your Central Dispatch subscription? Be sure to check out our Resource Center, where we’re always adding new content like in-depth video tutorials, thought leadership, and new feature announcements. It’s the best way to keep up to date with the platform, and ensure you’re using every tool to your advantage!
Ready to search for your first load? Get started! >
