Monitor Results and Make Improvements
Just like anything and like with every other business practice, you need to constantly monitor it. That’s why your freight finder procedures can act as a solid baseline or starting point. If you’re failing to meet expectations you can go back and review the areas that need improvement. At the same time if you are doing better than expected you can see what areas you need to expand.
But without a system in place you will have no way of knowing if you are failing or succeeding. This is the same for everything and it is the reason why record keeping is so important. If, for example, your fuel cost seem way to expensive but you never kept receipts, how will you know? Without records and schedules, how will you know when routine maintenance is due on your fleet?
Having strong freight finder procedures in place is the key to success, but remember they are only as good as they are enforced. Regardless what the procedure is, if it’s not observed it is meaningless. If you maintain strict records but never monitor them, they are equally meaningless.
Source: www.trucknroad.com
Make Personal Connections with Brokers
Brokers can be both your business’ best friend or a headache that just never goes away. They are our necessary evil. A hungry broker will hound you with leads; where as one who is mediocre will do the bare minimum. But this is true for anyone.
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Also, if you have a good broker, you’re not their only client and will send potential jobs to whoever is available first. If you aren’t trustworthy or easy to work with they won’t take your calls and they will avoid you.
Though brokers do build good relationships with both carriers and potential customers, they are in business as well. Reputations are very important, especially in competitive industries. If you have great reputation they will be more eager to work with you. But, if you don’t or you don’t stand out they will work with whoever is the easiest.
A way around this is to maintain a more personalized relationship with your favorite brokers. That doesn’t mean to constantly wine and dine them, nor does it mean you must call them personally every time you’re making arrangements. But what it does mean is try to be as social as is both realistically and professionally possible.
Source: www.overdriveonline.com
Conclusion
Running a Trucking business can be tough, but you can make it be profitable. There are so many things to deal with; the weather, vehicles, maintenance, staff, customers, regulations by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), and much more. But if you have proper plans in place like solid freight finder procedures, you’ll see it will run much smoother.
What are some of your ways to find clients? What do you do if your truck must run empty? Have you had a load cancel after you pulled up to the dock, what did you do? What other procedures do you think are important?
Share your thoughts.
