This is a great question, and the answer is simple: you never put all your eggs into one basket. I have two reasons why I say this — first, look at what happened in 2020 (the COVID pandemic), and second, what if the broker, shipper, or customer's supply chain takes a hit from their supplier, or their credit score gets downgraded?
I see this a lot: a carrier only works with one broker for all of their loads. If something like COVID happens again and your broker loses 50% of their business from their customer, you're now getting 50% fewer loads too — and that wasn't very smart of the carrier for trusting one broker with that much business. While the getting is good, you need to be running loads with multiple brokers and expanding your network.
Second, what if the broker's credit score gets downgraded? This happens more than you might think. The supply chain can be very sensitive. If a broker, shipper, or direct customer experiences a shortage with the product they're producing — say, glass, and they can't get the sand to make it — they might be short on cash for a month or two. They may resort to not paying their bills within the standard 30-day window, extending it to 60 days instead. This reflects on their credit score with your freight factoring company, and the factor might say, "Yes, they had a good score, but it looks like something is going on and they're taking longer to pay their bills. Unfortunately, their credit score has been downgraded, and they're no longer approved to factor."
These aren't made-up scenarios — they're very real situations that happen every month. As a carrier, you need to diversify and not get all your loads from one source. No one plans on getting into a car crash or getting stung by a bee, and when it happens, you might have to make some life adjustments. But if you plan ahead, don't overexpose yourself, and don't run all your loads with only one broker, shipper, or customer, you increase your chances of not finding yourself in these predicaments.