Vision & Strategy
The DFA is a network association designed to connect freight forwarders to each other and to cargo opportunities. Uniquely among such associations this design is part of a wider vision to facilitate digital transformation for members, by providing the best on-line digital tools and access to a dynamic cargo booking platform.
members
190+
countries
We set up DFA in 2020 as a development from the SeaRates.com freight booking platform which was designed to help smaller cargo owners looking for spot rates, and for larger cargo owners who look for spot rates to make up that 10-15% of their overall freight spend that is not already committed on a contract logistics basis.
To understand the philosophy behind how a wider vision grew from this beginning one needs to know that DFA was born from DP World and that DP World was born from the cultural background of Dubai as an entrepot. As barriers have progressively risen to world trade in the last ten years, DP World sees the digital revolution as an alternative engine to create growth.
To deliver this growth however we must provide the opportunity for SME forwarders to digitize, to compete with large scale players who are digitizing at scale. SME forwarders who are able to “go global” are the key to prosperity, we believe.
To understand the philosophy behind how a wider vision grew from this beginning one needs to know that DFA was born from DP World and that DP World was born from the cultural background of Dubai as an entrepot. As barriers have progressively risen to world trade in the last ten years, DP World sees the digital revolution as an alternative engine to create growth.
Looking at the range of products on offer on the DFA website our recommended strategy for “plugging in” is as follows:
Integrate your website with the Logistics Explorer product. This product is a rate management system that allows customers visiting the website to quickly obtain rates.
* There is zero cost to do this when joining on a Standard membership no charge package.
Take a further step and on a Premium package use that same Logistics Explorer software to utilize a widget which permits you to either advertise your rates and services to up to 20,000 cargo enquiries a day on SeaRates.com and/or advertise your rates among a select group of premium members whom you nominate as partners.
These first two stages are about deciding the size of the funnel, the size of the shop window, to attract business. The choice of scope is always with the member. In all cases, a premium membership will come with an account manager who actively pushes cargo leads in your direction.
DFA has a vision to build greater transaction density between members, and then deliver container provision and ocean freight opportunity in the future as a neutral platform , building opportunity on the back of DP World’s physical asset base and data feed from that base.
This is the next stage of the journey as we progress through 2022 and 2023. These were also the subject of discussions at the first DFA Global members Meeting held in Dubai during March 2022.