For distributors, 3PLs, carriers and freight brokers
Stop retyping POs, rate cons and invoices between your systems.
The order shows up as a PDF or a 940, the rate con sits in Outlook, and the invoice waits in QuickBooks until someone has a free afternoon. We connect the WMS, TMS, EDI and accounting you already run so each order or load moves through once, with a person approving anything that costs money. When the real fix is a billing engine or a customer portal, we build that too, in stages you sign off one at a time.
Example workflow · Sheet DL-01
Sound familiar?
Where the dock gets ahead of the office.
Freight moves by the hour. The paperwork behind it often moves by the week.
- Emailed POs and rate confirmations get keyed into the ERP or TMS, then again into QuickBooks.
- Client billing is rebuilt in a spreadsheet at month-end, and accessorials slip through.
- A retailer or client wants EDI or an API connection by a date you didn't pick.
- Customers phone to ask where their order or truck is because nobody can see it in one place.
What we build
Before and after, dock door to invoice.
Your team still sets rates, picks carriers and signs off on client bills. The software carries data between systems and flags what needs a person.
| Job | Today | After |
|---|---|---|
| Order entry | PDF purchase orders retyped into Prophet 21 or Acumatica | Orders created from email or EDI, with anything unusual held for inside sales to check |
| EDI | Portal logins, hand-built ASNs and the chargebacks that follow | 940, 945, 856 and 810 mapped to your WMS or ERP, and a failed file alerts a named person |
| Rate cons and PODs | Downloaded and filed by hand, with the invoice sent days later | Attached to the load in the TMS, and the invoice goes out when the POD lands |
| Carrier setup | SAFER lookups when someone remembers to run them | A checklist on every new carrier plus insurance expiry alerts, while the broker makes the call |
| 3PL billing | Storage, handling and accessorials rebuilt in Excel every month | A billing engine that records charges as work happens and drafts each client invoice for approval |
| Status calls | "Where's my truck?" by phone, all day | A customer portal showing orders, inventory, shipments and invoices |
Typical prices for distributors and 3PLs
Know the number before we start.
These are our published ranges. The audit fee is credited toward the project.
We trace one order or load from request to cash and price each gap we find.
One workflow, such as POD-to-invoice or carrier insurance expiry alerts.
Your WMS, TMS or EDI provider connected to QuickBooks or the ERP.
Clients and shippers check order, shipment and invoice status themselves.
Distribution & logistics FAQ
What operations and billing leads want to know.
Can Extensiv or McLeod integrate with QuickBooks?
Usually, yes. Extensiv, McLeod, Tai and Prophet 21 offer APIs, EDI or scheduled exports, depending on your license, and QuickBooks Online has a well-documented API. We match customers, items, lanes and GL accounts first, then run a week of real orders or loads through both sides before cutover.
If an audit shows a system truly can't do what you need, we tell you, and you decide what happens next.
What happens if an integration fails on a shipping day?
A named person on your team gets an alert, and the failed order or file is held rather than dropped so it can be re-sent once fixed. We won't leave you stranded with trucks at the dock.
We can't promise 100% uptime when a WMS, carrier or EDI provider changes something on their side, but we commit to fixing it. Small fixes are covered on a Care plan, and bigger changes get a written quote.
Can AI answer our quote emails or pick carriers?
It can draft quote replies and pull carrier details into your TMS, but a person on your team approves every rate and every carrier before anything goes out. The software gathers vetting data; your broker decides who hauls the load, and the regulatory calls stay with you.
How much does a customer portal for a 3PL or trucking company cost?
Usually $5,000–$15,000 for a portal where customers see orders, inventory, shipment status and invoices. Replacing a spreadsheet billing engine or building a dispatch or quoting tool runs $15,000–$40,000+.
Larger builds are delivered in gated stages, each with a written price. Dean has built an organization-wide platform that let a large employer stop paying for costly licensed software, so multi-system projects of that size are familiar ground.
Who can see our clients' inventory and pricing data?
Only the people you approve. A 3PL holds several clients' stock and rates, so each client's data stays separated in anything we build. We turn off our access when a project ends; if we stay on for support, credentials live in a business password manager such as 1Password.
We're based in Macon and visit warehouses across Middle Georgia. Elsewhere, including Savannah and Atlanta, we work remotely.
A note from Dean
I've built ERP features, reports and dashboards for logistics and manufacturing companies, so an ASN, an accessorial or a missing POD doesn't need explaining. I work out of Macon, on the road between Atlanta and the Port of Savannah. When you call, you'll get me, and I'll tell you plainly if your WMS can already do what you're about to pay for.
Dean Whitten
Start here
Tell us where an order or load gets keyed twice.
You'll hear back within two business days with a useful next step, even if that step is a setting you haven't turned on yet. Rather call or text? (478) 954-7760