How Amazon Relay turns peak season volume into real opportunity

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Holiday shopping events mean one thing for carriers: more freight on the road. Amazon Prime’s Black Friday sale—running from November 20 to December 1—brings a surge in e-commerce volume that translates directly into increased loads across Amazon Relay’s load board. For carriers looking to capitalize on seasonal demand, this multi-day shopping event creates opportunities that extend well beyond a week of deals.

The relationship between consumer shopping patterns and freight demand is straightforward. When millions of customers place orders during concentrated sale periods, those orders need to move from fulfillment centers to doorsteps. That movement creates freight opportunities for carriers of all sizes.

The surge in e-commerce activity during Black Friday and the extended holiday shopping season drives significant freight movement across Amazon’s logistics network. Amazon Relay carriers see this activity reflected in increased load availability across the company’s booking channels, including its load board, contracts and auctions.

This freight moves in several equipment configurations. Power-only loads allow carriers to haul Amazon-owned trailers, which can be particularly efficient for carriers who want to minimize empty repositioning miles and lower operational costs. For carriers with their own equipment, dry van freight represents a substantial portion of the available loads, while refrigerated freight serves temperature-sensitive products and box truck loads support regional delivery needs. Yard hostler and shuttle opportunities are also available.

The variety of equipment types and booking methods means carriers can align their available capacity with the opportunities that make the most sense for their operation.

The information advantage

One of the persistent challenges in logistics has been the gap between what carriers see when browsing available loads and what they actually need to know to make an informed decision. Traditional load boards often display basic information but leave carriers making phone calls to confirm critical details. During peak season, when every minute counts and loads are moving quickly, that confirmation process wastes valuable time.

Amazon Relay approaches this differently. When a carrier looks at an available load, they see the complete picture before they commit. The total payout is displayed alongside the rate per mile, giving carriers immediate insight into profitability. The complete mileage figure includes deadhead miles, so carriers can accurately calculate their true costs. Exact pickup and drop-off addresses eliminate guesswork about where a load actually needs to go, and appointment windows with estimated load duration help carriers manage their schedules with greater precision.

This transparency represents more than convenience. When carriers have complete information upfront, they can evaluate loads in minutes rather than spending hours on back-and-forth communication. During peak season, that time savings compounds across dozens of load decisions, allowing carriers to operate more efficiently when the volume is high.

Making strategic decisions during high-demand periods

Capitalizing on peak season volume requires preparation. Getting set up on Relay before peak demand hits means having time to get familiar with how the load board works.

Once the busy period begins, high-demand freight moves quickly. The most attractive loads can disappear within minutes of being posted. Carriers on Relay have the opportunity to set-up filters and load recommendations, making it easier to sift through the noise and lock-in the right load.

The detailed load information that Relay provides enables sophisticated route planning. A carrier might identify a high-paying load heading from the Midwest to the Southwest, then use the specific drop-off location to search for backhaul opportunities that originate nearby. By planning these combinations in advance using the appointment times and load durations displayed, carriers can minimize empty miles and maximize their trucks’ productivity throughout the busy season.

Peak season as business opportunity

The conventional wisdom in trucking holds that peak season is chaotic—a frenetic period where everyone is scrambling to move freight and operational planning goes out the window. Amazon Relay’s approach suggests a different model is possible. When carriers have access to complete load information and increased freight volume across multiple equipment types, peak season begins to look less like chaos and more like opportunity.

For owner-operators, this means the ability to be selective about the freight they haul while still maintaining high utilization during the busy months. Fleet operators benefit from being able to plan capacity deployment more strategically. When you can see detailed information about loads across multiple lanes and forecast what volume will look like during the peak period, you can make smarter decisions about where to position trucks and how to balance contracted commitments with spot market opportunities.

The combination of increased volume during major shopping events and the operational efficiency that comes from transparent, detailed load information creates conditions to help carriers build their business during the final months of the year. Rather than simply surviving peak season, carriers can use this period to strengthen their financial position and prove their operational capabilities.

Carriers interested in accessing Amazon Relay can get started at relay.amazon.com.

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