What if your load board could learn what loads you want to haul and automatically filter out everything else? That's exactly what Dispatch Load Preferences does. It's a smart feature that learns your hauling style and adapts as your business evolves, so you see more of what works for you and less of what doesn't. It’s what makes Dispatch smarter (and more helpful) than a standard load board. Here's how it works.

Note: Dispatch is TruckSmarter’s AI-powered load board assistant that helps you search for and book loads faster. If you want to try Dispatch for yourself, you can sign up for a free 30-day trial of Dispatch.

How Dispatch Load Preferences Works

Your hauling preferences are personal. Maybe you run hotshot loads but avoid hauling cars. Maybe you skip New York City but haul everywhere else in the state. Standard search filters can't capture these experience-based decisions, but Dispatch Load Preferences can.

Load Preferences learns from the feedback you share about loads and uses that information to automatically filter out freight that doesn't match your business needs. It runs in the background to improve your results without you having to think about it. Consider it like training a dispatcher who's getting to know your operation, except this one doesn’t forget the details and improves with every rating you give. 

Two Ways to Train Load Preferences

1. Rate Loads in the App

One way to build your Load Preferences by rating loads as you view them in the app. On any load details page in Dispatch, scroll to the bottom and you'll see the Load Feedback section, where you’ll be asked: "Was this a good load?" Rate the load with a thumbs up or thumbs down:

👍 Thumbs up: This load met your needs

👎 Thumbs down: This load didn't work for your business

After you rate it, you'll get the chance to explain why. You can select from options like:

• Rate

• Broker

• Pick-up location

• Drop-off location

• Deadhead

• Commodity

The more specific you are, the more accurate your results become over time. If you downvote a load and tag it for "long deadhead" and "pick-up location," Dispatch learns to show you fewer loads with similar characteristics. If you upvote a load and tag "broker" and "rate," you'll start seeing more opportunities from that broker as they become available.

2. Respond to Dispatch Text Messages

Dispatch doesn't just live in the app. It also sends you load opportunities by text throughout the day. When Dispatch texts you a load, you can respond with simple feedback. No need to open the app or fill out a form. Just text back what you're thinking.

Here's how it works:

• Dispatch sends you a load via text 

• If it’s a good fit, reply to let it know why. Dispatch takes note of your feedback and updates your Preferences 

• If it's not a fit, reply with why. Again, your response automatically updates your Preferences

That's it. Dispatch reads your reply, understands what you mean, and adjusts your Preferences accordingly. Over time, you'll see more opportunities that align with what you've told us works.

This is especially useful when you're on the go. You don't have to stop what you're doing to log feedback in the app. Just reply to the text and keep moving. 

How Dispatch Interprets Your Feedback

Every time you upvote or downvote a load (or reply to a Dispatch text) the system looks for patterns in what you liked or avoided. It connects the dots across lanes, brokers, commodities, rates, and timing to predict what you want next. Your feedback does the heavy lifting so you can focus on running your businesses. 

What Preferences Can Learn About Your Business

Based on the feedback you share, Dispatch can learn a range of patterns about how you operate to remove what standard search filters miss. Remember: the system mirrors what a dispatcher would learn about you over time, except it never forgets and continuously refines its understanding as your business evolves.

Here are some examples of what it picks up on:

Lanes and regions:

• Load Preferences takes note of preferred routes by seeing, for example, that you consistently upvote loads running the I-5 corridor from California to Washington and downvote loads heading east to Texas.

• Load Preferences adapts when it spots patterns like avoiding specific cities during certain seasons, say downvoting loads to the midwest in January-February.  

Commodities:

• Maybe you run a dry van and want to avoid hauling trash. Downvote a few loads that have trash as a commodity for Dispatch to deprioritize them. 

• Or maybe you haul everything except cars. One "no cars" reply and Preferences takes note.

Deadhead distance:

• If you're consistently downvoting loads with more than 100 miles of deadhead, Load Preferences learns you want tighter pick-ups and will surface more loads that keep you moving efficiently.

Brokers:

• Over time, you'll rate loads from different brokers. If you give positive feedback to certain brokers and negative feedback to others, Dispatch learns which relationships work for your business and adjusts your search results.

Rates:

• If you routinely downvote loads below a certain rate per mile, Preferences picks up on your threshold and shows you more opportunities that meet or exceed it.

If your business needs change—maybe you start running a new lane or decide to work with different brokers—Preferences adapts automatically as you rate new loads. You're always in control, and the system is always learning.

How Preferences Fits Into Dispatch

Load Preferences is just one piece of how Dispatch helps you work more efficiently. It's designed to work seamlessly with other Dispatch features like Calling Assistant, which handles broker calls and wait times so you're only on the line when a real person is ready to talk, and Bid & Book, which lets you contact brokers with pre-filled emails and one-tap calling.

Together, these tools create a system that saves time at every step: finding loads, contacting brokers, and booking freight. You're not just using a load board, you're using an AI-powered assistant that handles the grunt work while you focus on driving and growing your business. 

The difference between a free load board and Dispatch comes down to how much time you want to spend on administrative work. Free load boards give you access to freight, but Dispatch gives you intelligence, automation, and support that adapts to your operation.

Getting Started with Dispatch Preferences

Ready to let Preferences start working for you? Here's how to get started:

• Open the TruckSmarter app and make sure you're using Dispatch (not the free load board)

• Start rating loads as you browse: thumbs up for good fits, thumbs down for bad ones

• Reply to text messages from Dispatch with quick feedback on loads you receive

• Keep using it consistently: the more feedback you share, the better your results become

• Let it adapt. If your business needs change, just keep rating and Preferences will adjust automatically

For step-by-step instructions on using Load Feedback, check out our help article: How to use Dispatch Load Feedback. Or for more about Load Preferences check out that article too: How Dispatch Learns Your Load Preferences.

The Bottom Line

Load boards can be crowded with reposts, scams, and loads that aren’t worth your time. Dispatch helps you cut through all that by learning what you actually want to haul and showing you more of it.

As a reminder, Load Preferences is available only for Dispatch users. It’s one of the easiest ways to cut down on scrolling, wasted calls, and loads that don’t match how you run. Start your free 30-day trial of Dispatch and see how an AI assistant can help you find better-fitting loads with less effort.