Not All Truck Stops Offer Repair Service - October 10, 2008
Truck Stop Updates
As part of our ongoing commitment to continuous improvement, TruckDown! recently completed a project to sort all vendor listings which had "Truck Stop" as one of their service categories into Truck Stops that provide repair services and those that don't.
The modified Truck Stop service categories now display as "Truck Stops (Repairs)" and " Truck Stops (NO Repairs).
This change required re-verifying thousands of Truck Stop related vendor listings, but will help TruckDown! users locate the appropriate resource faster. Thank you to the Fleet Customers that suggested this change and to the TruckDown! Team for getting the job done!
General Updates
TruckDown offers users and vendors a number of easy ways to request an update to a vendor's contact and service information. All such requests are verified by TruckDown staff and can be submitted by any of the following methods:
If Logged In - registered TruckDown users can click the "Vendor Feedback" link on any vendor listing to record a short note outlining the problem. Something as simple as "phone out of service" is all we need from a Logged In user to trigger a follow up with the vendor by TruckDown staff.
On the vendor search result pages each listing has a Vendor Feedback link that looks like one of the examples below. Click the Feedback icon on a listing, submit a short note on what needs to be updated and we look after the rest.
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If NOT Logged In - you can call toll free to 1.866.562.4081 or use the form on our "Contact" page to advise us of the need to update a vendor listing. If using the Contact form please include the vendor's company name and phone number for follow up purposes.
Need to Add a Vendor?:
To request a vendor be added you can use the "How To Add a New Listing form or send the request through our "Contact" page with the company name and phone number of the vendor to be added.
Missing Your Password?:
If your TruckDown User account information has gone missing, you can have it re-sent to you at any time by clicking the "Forgot Password" link on our home page just under the LOGIN button on the left side of the TruckDown.com home page. If you can't recall which email address you used to set up the account you can contact us during business hours and we will be happy to assist.
Help Your Vendors - Help Yourself - July 17, 2008
Can't Reach the Vendor?:
When a truck is down and you call a nearby vendor the last thing you want to hear is, "the number you have reached is no longer in service....."
TruckDown offers users and vendors a number of easy ways to request an update to a vendor's contact and service information. All such requests are verified by TruckDown staff and can be submitted by any of the following methods:
If Logged In - registered TruckDown users can click the "Vendor Feedback" link on any vendor listing to record a short note outlining the problem. Something as simple as "phone out of service" is all we need from a Logged In user to trigger a follow up with the vendor by TruckDown staff.
On the vendor search result pages each listing has a Vendor Feedback link that looks like one of the examples below. Click the Feedback icon on a listing, submit a short note on what needs to be updated and we look after the rest.
(small icon)
If NOT Logged In - you can call toll free to 1.866.562.4081 or use the form on our "Contact" page to advise us of the need to update a vendor listing. If using the Contact form please include the vendor's company name and phone number for follow up purposes.
Need to Add a Vendor?:
To request a vendor be added you can use the "How To Add a New Listing form or send the request through our "Contact" page with the company name and phone number of the vendor to be added.
Is Your Internal Vendor List Out-of-Date?:
An ongoing challenge for many trucking fleets is keeping their internal vendor records up-to-date. TruckDown can help by updating your fleet's internal vendor lists. For more information on our Preferred Vendor Verification service please Contact us at your convenience.
Contact TruckDown! Missing Your Password?:
If your TruckDown User account information has gone missing, you can have it re-sent to you at any time by clicking the "Forgot Password" link on our home page just under the LOGIN button on the left side of the TruckDown.com home page. If you can't recall which email address you used to set up the account you can contact us during business hours and we will be happy to assist.
Vendors Need Maintenance Too! - April 17, 2008
TruckDown Users & Vendors Keep It Current
Vendor contact information becomes out-of-date for many reasons including; phone number changes, moves, or changes in services being offered. We routinely verify and re-verify vendor listings, but things can change quickly so user feedback is given priority. Requesting a vendor listing update or addition is easy:
Vendor Updates:
On the search results every vendor listing has Vendor Feedback link that looks like one of the examples below. Click it, tell us what needs to be updated and we look after the rest.
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Note: You must be logged in to submit Feedback.
Add Vendors:
If you want to add a vendor you can use the Add New Listing function or send us a note through our Contact page with the company name and phone number of the vendor you want added. We will contact the vendor and let you know the outcome. If you have a lot of vendor records you would like added or verified please contact us and we will be glad to help.
Missing Your Password?:
If your TruckDown User account information has gone missing, you can have it re-sent to you at any time by clicking the "Forgot Password" link on our home page just under the LOGIN button on the left side of the TruckDown.com home page. If you can't recall which email address you used to set up the account you can contact us during business hours and we will be happy to assist.
TruckDown.com - Support Your Fleet! - January 31, 2008
"TruckDown! connects Fleets to Vendors, at the right time and place."
Referred to by the media as the "do-it-yourself" method of fleet support, TruckDown.com allows any size fleet to find the vendors they need when and where they need them. We recently upgraded TruckDown.com and extend a sincere thank you to all of the carriers, fleet management companies and vendors that continue to provide industry related feedback and help shape our vendor locator services.
About Vendors Listed:
Vendors listed on TruckDown.com provide services that support commercial trucking fleets. This includes repairs, maintenance, tires, scales, truck washes, and many other services regularly used by fleets. Updates to vendor listings are made by TruckDown.com staff upon request and through ongoing verification of contact and service information.
Fleet Support Features:
- Coast-to-coast vendor coverage (USA & Canada)
- 3 Quick Search methods (no login required, but extra features available with the free user accounts)
- Highway & Street Level Mapping of Vendor locations
- Free TruckDown user accounts. Features include:
- Autosave your Login.
- Autosave Recent Searches
- Identify preferred vendors with a "Thumbs Up" rating
- Record private notes on individual vendor listings
- Restrict vendor searches to specific dealer networks
- Follow the search crumb trail in the Red Toolbar to jump back to any point in a vendor search
- Click the Feedback button on any vendor listing to send related information directly to TruckDown staff
DID YOU KNOW?
- With your user name and password you can login to TruckDown.com from the office, at home or anyplace else you can surf the Internet.
- TruckDown! Wireless can be accessed going to www.truckdown.com or www.truckdown.mobi using your web enabled cell phone or PDA.
Getting Found on TruckDown.com - November 6, 2007
Vendors serving the trucking industry often find their customers are based hundreds of miles away with trucks going all over the country. At a minimum Fleet Managers need a fast way to find out:
- Who are the vendors in a local area?
- What services do the vendors provide?
- Where are the vendors located in relation to the truck or trailer needing service?
- When are those services available?
- Why choose one vendor over another in the same area?
TruckDown.com connects trucking companies and vendors with our easy to use vendor search engine. If you need to add or update a vendor listing or just have questions about using TruckDown.com please visit our Contact page and let us know how we can help.
DID YOU KNOW?
- With your user name and password you can login to TruckDown.com from the office, at home or anyplace else you can surf the Internet.
- TruckDown! Wireless can be accessed going to truckdown.mobi or truckdown.com using your web enabled cell phone or PDA.
This Newletter Sponsored by:
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Wireless Access to Vendor Listings - July 25, 2007
Wireless Searches for Vendors Continues to Increase
In July of 2006 TruckDown.com announced that our database of over 36,000 vendors could be searched using a web enabled cellphone or PDA. In the year since that launch we have monitored the growing number of wireless users and received some great feedback. If you have a vendor listing on TruckDown.com it is automatically made available to wireless users.
Who is Searching Wirelessly?
We launched TruckDown! Wireless on the assumption that it would appeal to anyone on the road that needed to find a vendor in the area. That proved to be true, but we also found that Fleet Managers, Dispatchers and other office based personnel were quick to adopt the use of wireless so they could manage road calls from anywhere.
Is My Vendor Listing Wireless Ready?
At the present time most web enabled cellphones and PDA's cannot handle large web pages efficiently and when you are looking for a vendor no one wants to wait long minutes for a colorful web page to load on the small screen. TruckDown! Wireless automatically prepares vendor listings for wireless display by removing graphics and other elements that slow a wireless search. All vendors need to do is make sure the contact information on their TruckDown.com listing is current and we look after the rest.
How Does Wireless Work?
When a web enabled cell phone/PDA is used to go to www.truckdown.com or www.truckdown.mobi our site automatically detects the type of device and routes the user down the correct path.
How Do I Update My Listing?
If you need an update to your vendor listing or have questions about TruckDown!, please click the contact link below or call 1-866-562-4081 during business hours.
This Newletter Sponsored by:
Need Parts Fast Try PartSeek!
With Partseek.com you can send a request FREE to truck parts companies all over North America. Here's how to use:
- Pick your part type. IE: Front Axles
- Fill in what you know about the front axle you need.
- Fill in your contact info.
Truck parts companies get back to you usually within 15-55 minutes during regular business hours, saving you TIME.
Click here to go to PartSeek.com, its FREE
Feedback - The Voice of TruckDown Users - July 16, 2007
With over 36,000 vendors listed, up-to-date contact information is critical. TruckDown.com users help themselves by using the feedback channels to advise us when a listing needs updating. TruckDown staff routinely verify vendor listings, but it is a big industry and things can change quickly.
Feedback Options
On vendor search result pages there is a "Feedback" link on each vendor listing. To report an issue such as an out-of-service phone number all a user has to do is click the appropriate feedback link and send a short note directly to TruckDown staff. All user feedback is automatically recorded and responded to within 2 business days. General comments and inquiries are made through the TruckDown Contact page.
Feedback in Production
In addition to helping keep vendor contact information current, user feedback also influences the design of TruckDown services such as TruckDown Advanced! which features many user suggestions including;
- Vendor searches by Latitude and Longitude. Ideal for companies using satellite or cellular based truck location systems.
- Ability to share ratings, preferred vendors and private notes among a designated group of users.
- Click here for a comparison chart of the features available with different types of user accounts.
We appreciate hearing from TruckDown users! Hopefully your breakdowns are few and far between, but when you need to find a vendor - think www.truckdown.com!
This Newletter Sponsored by:
Need Parts Fast Try PartSeek!
With Partseek.com you can send a request FREE to truck parts companies all over North America. Here's how to use:
- Pick your part type. IE: Front Axles
- Fill in what you know about the front axle you need.
- Fill in your contact info.
Truck parts companies get back to you usually within 15-55 minutes during regular business hours, saving you TIME.
Click here to go to PartSeek.com, its FREE
Got Your .mobi Working? - December 1, 2006
mobi is a top-level domain (TLD) approved by ICANN, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers. mobi is unique as the first top level domain dedicated to delivering the Internet to the mobile phone. The creation of the mobi TLD was sponsored by a consortium of companies including Google, Microsoft, Vodafone, Samsung, Ericsson and Nokia. General registration of .mobi domain names began in September 2006. TruckDown launched the current version of our wireless service in August 2006.
In order to provide content via a .mobi address the site has to comply with the standards set for delivering wireless content to devices such as web enabled cell phones and PDA's. Failure to comply with the standards can result in a .mobi registration being revoked. Fortunately TruckDown! Wireless not only complies, we are already working to expand the capabilities of our existing service.
Our wireless users still have the option of going to www.truckdown.com with their wireless device and looking up vendors or they can go to truckdown.mobi. We have optimized both paths to put over 34,000 vendor in your pocket!
Learn More About TruckDown! Wireless
Don't just Look up vendors, manage your own network! - November 8, 2006
The Connection Between Ratings & Preferred Vendors
If you have a TruckDown user account then you will have seen one of three images on your left displayed in the top right hand corner of every vendor listing.
To rate a vendor you click either the "thumbs up" or the "thumbs down" icon on the listing and add a comment if you chose to.
On the pick service screen there is a "Show my preferred vendors only" check box in the bottom left corner which when checked limits results to only those vendors in the area you have given a thumbs up.
On the search results screen you click the small map at the top and can see where your preferred vendors are at a glance. Then you can either click a map pin for contact details or scroll down to see the vendor's complete listing.
Please note the pop up map will display whatever you request on the results page so it can be used for any kind of search.
For more information on how you can use TruckDown.com to support your fleet please don't hesitate to contact us.
Click Here Request a User Account
TruckDown.com Cuts the Wires! - August 16, 2006
For those of you that tried TruckDown! Wireless prior to July 12, 2006 your experience probably fall into one of two categories, a) it worked fine, or b) you could get as far as the State/Province input screen and got stuck. If you were able to run vendor searches it is because your device is using a WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) compliant browser. The newest release of TruckDown! Wireless is able to to support virtually any web enabled cell phone or wireless device. If you have a web enabled cell phone you may have already used it to check the weather, sports, news or run searches on sites like www.google.com and www.yahoo.com. Now your web enabled device can be used to search the TruckDown database of 34,000 vendors for the ones closest to the truck or trailer you need serviced.
Getting Started
- Confirm that your cell phone or wireless device is capable of accessing the Internet. Prior to July 12, 2006 TruckDown! Wireless access was limited to WAP compliant browsers only, but the new version supports non-WAP browsers including devices that use the Microsoft Windows Mobile 2003 or Palm OS operating systems.
- Open the Web Browser on your phone or wireless device and go to www.truckdown.com. When you reach the site you should see a welcome screen for a few seconds then it will take you to a screen where you can type in the State / Province to begin your search. Enter the first letter or the abbreviation of the State / Province and move to the next screen.
Learn More About TruckDown! Wireless
Note: The buttons and commands used to navigate the Internet vary from one device to another. Please refer to your user manual or contact your wireless service provider for instructions on how to use your cell phone or wireless device to surf the Internet.
General Introduction to TruckDown! Wireless
Over the years many TruckDown.com users have asked if there was some way we could provide them with vendor information in printed form or on disk. We have investigated both possibilities and found that the sheer number of vendors we list and the fact that we are continually updating these listings, makes these approaches expensive and virtually impossible to keep current.
One promising avenue has been the rapid expansion of wireless networks across the country combined with improved Cell Phones, PDA's, Handhelds and other wireless devices capable of accessing the Internet. We have successfully tested TruckDown! Wireless on a wide variety of web enabled wireless devices but we are always interested in hearing from TruckDown users.
Dislike Trying to Remember User Names and Passwords? - July 4, 2006
If you use the same computer regularly to access TruckDown.com you can have the system remember your user name and login for you by clicking the "Remember Me!" box beside the user name field. To turn this feature off click the "Logout" link in the gray tool bar.
Please note that if you access TruckDown.com from different computers you will need to enter your user name and password then click the "Remember Me!" check box on each computer you use regularly. For example you may have a computer at work you use and another one at home for after hours road calls.
If you share the computer with other users that have their own TruckDown accounts you may not want to use this feature or get into the habit of logging off when you have finished locating vendors.
Click Here for our Contact page if you have any questions or problems with the "Remember Me!" feature.
Zip Code Search - TruckDown! Advanced Users - April 28, 2006
Companies taking advantage of the TruckDown! Advanced service for locating and managing vendor contacts can now run searches by US zip code. This feature is useful in situations where you need to find vendors near a location such as a consignee's warehouse where the zip code is known to dispatch or readily available to drivers. This search is not available for Canadian postal codes yet.
To use the zip code search TruckDown! Advanced users can key in a zip code in the new field located just below the "Search by Latitude / Longitude" option found on the screen where you select the country to search in.
Click Here for the Contact Form if you have any questions about the new zip code search feature or TruckDown! Advanced.
New Service Categories Available - April 25, 2006
As part of our ongoing effort to identify and add key services commercial trucking companies are looking for TruckDown recently added:
- Preventive Maintenance
- Quick-Lube
If you are a TruckDown user we invite you to run some searches using the new service categories and if you are a vendor that provides either of these services please let us know so we can update your listing.
Service categories will not display as a selection option in areas where we do not have supporting vendors listed.
For more information please Contact us at your convenience.
You Don't Have to Register to Use TruckDown.com - February 10, 2006
TruckDown.com can be accessed using the guest account which is user name = guest and the password = guest. However, the guest account doesn't include the following features which were designed by trucking professionals for trucking professionals, including many long term TruckDown.com users!
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Add Vendor Program for Carriers - November 5, 2005
TruckDown users have three options for getting a vendor added to our system;
- Use the Contact form to send in a Vendor's name and phone number and TruckDown staff will look after the rest.
- Use the Add Vendor Listing form to submit more details about a vendor and put in the vendor listing on line.
- If you have a lot of vendors that you need added or an internal vendor list that your company needs verified and updated please Contact us to review how we can help.
TruckDown.com is about getting and maintaining accurate vendor contact and service information. Maintaining accurate information is our core business and in many cases we can verify and update large vendor lists for commercial trucking companies at no cost to the carrier. Please Contact us and learn more about how we can get your vendor information up-to-speed!
Vendor Views - How Many is Your Listing Getting? - November 1, 2005
If you are a vendor with an active TruckDown.com listing then we are tracking how many times that listing is seen by a TruckDown User.
A 'view' as TruckDown.com and major search engines like www.google.com and www.yahoo.com define it is the number of times a vendor listing is displayed to TruckDown Users.
If you are a Level One or Level Two listing vendor in our system you may already be familiar with view reporting through the on line Vendor Manager reporting system we provide at no extra charge for these listing types. View Reporting allows you to see exactly how many times a day your listing is being seen by active TruckDown User/Buyers. These reports can be run as a summary or broken down to day-by-day views. Contact your TruckDown representative for more information on View Reports.
User Account Retrieval System Upgraded - September 10, 2005
TruckDown users that don't have a registered account often ask us why they need a user name and password. The reason is that we provide registered users with easy to use on line tools that include recording private notes about specific vendors, identifying your preferred vendors for future reference, automatically saving your last 15 searches and more. The only way we can provide these private services to each of our users is by providing unique user names and passwords.
Click Here to View Account Feature Comparison Chart
Of course, like a set of keys, user names and passwords sometimes get misplaced. As long as you know the email address associated with your account you can retrieve the information by clicking on the Forgot Your Password? link right beside where you enter your user name and following the brief instructions on the screen.
A Word About Spam Filters - please note that one of the most common reasons users do not receive their account activation notices or account details is Spam filters that block the automated emails we send. If you have requested an account or your account details and and email containing this information doesn't appear in your inbox within an hour please let us know so we can investigate for you.
If you need additional help with using or listing in TruckDown please Click Here to contact us.
Feedback Reaches Critical Mass - June 8, 2005
Not long after launching www.truckdown.com in 1997 we began to get feedback from users and vendors. It is always exciting to get a response when you launch a new service, but we recognized that feedback was more than just interesting, it was critical. We could not grow or improve our service unless we could tap into the collective knowledge of thousands of people dedicated to the management, operation and maintenance of North America's fleets. So we listened, we responded, we learned.
And we keep learning every day thanks to all of you who have taken the time to report everything from an out of service phone number to the start up of a new vendor network. This feedback not only helps keep our vendor information current, it actually drives the types of services we develop. Feedback is coming in at such a steady rate now that we focus resources on making sure we continue responding in a timely manner. It is fair to say that Feedback has reached "Critical Mass" and the TruckDown team is eager to continue building on this knowledge. A sincere thank you goes out to everyone that has taken the time to send in feedback and share your expertise.
What Does It Cost to Use TruckDown? - January 20, 2005
TruckDown is a service locator widely used by the commercial trucking industry to find vendors when and where they need them. TruckDown offers two types of user accounts - "Registered Accounts" which are completely free and "Advanced Accounts" for power users. If you are new to TruckDown we recommend starting out with the free Registered Account so that you can see whether TruckDown fits your requirements.
Click Here to view the Account Feature Comparison Chart.
Please click on the "Contact" link shown in the gray toolbar if you have questions about using TruckDown and would like to get in touch with a TruckDown representative.
