>There seems to be a shift in their strategy that is
>bothersome to say the least because the idea of ‘exclusive
>use’ has not been reinforced with this or the other
>program they instituted last year. The shifting makes me
>nervous because I can see more problems in all around
>communications as I mentioned before and a dropping in
>customer confidence that is being ignored.
As Leo mentioned, FedEx offers a bewildering array of expedited and non-expedited freight services. When I review some of them on this web page (http://www.fedex.com/us/sameday), I find myself with more questions than answers about how all these divisions and services relate to each other. If I'm confused, it is safe to presume that the customer is confused too; which is exactly why, I believe, FedEx is moving toward the one-call solution. Customers call with needs. Agents direct them to the serivce that best meets the needs.
This does not make me nervous. It makes me confident that we (Diane and me, a married-couple, one-truck, owner-operator, WG-qualified, reefer-equipped, independent-contractor team) are in the right place at the right time.
In the four short years we have been in this business, we have adapted to several "shifts" including skyrocketing fuel prices, truck prices, the introduction of FedEx Expedited Freight Services, the FedEx acquisition of Watkins, a changed fuel surcharge, changed freight rates, hours of service changes, the introduction of TVAL and its more stringent equipment requirements, growing outside competiton for TVAL and White Glove freight, a growing number of expedited freight carriers, a change in Custom Critical CEO, and most recently, the introduction of FedEx Truckload Brokerage (just another day at the office when you consider all the other shifts).
I feel confident and optimistic about our future with Custom Critical because I believe (perhaps wrongly so) that the one-call direction in which FedEx is moving will produce a net gain for Custom Critical. I believe that while some freight that might have gone Custom Critical trucks will go to other FedEx services, more will come to Custom Critical as the Custom Critical option becomes better known to the hundreds (thousands?) of sales people and agents in all FedEx divisions. Just as some Custom Critical freight (that really is not Custom Critical freight) will find its way onto other FedEx trucks, Some of the freight that would have gone on those truck will come our way. Only more of it will come our way because there are more other-division FedEx agents and customers out there than there are Custom Critical agents and customers.
I also feel confident and optimistic about our future with Custom Critical because our (Diane and me) numbers say I can. Our run count is up. Our pay per loaded mile is up. Our pay for all miles us up. And we are continually finding ourselves on the loading docks of companies we have not served before. That tells me the FedEx team is doing a good job selling the services we and our truck are equipped to provide.
That's our experience. Others have theirs to share, equally valid. Readers can consider all accounts and decide on their own what to think and feel about FedEx and the changes that are part of life in any business.
The short story for us is that we are happy campers at Custom Critical.
(By the way, it is not just a WG thing. We accept over half the surface expedite loads that are offered. If we limited ourselves to surface expedite freight, we'd be in a D-unit dry box with a higher surface-expedite accept percentage and still making a good living. If I was a solo driver, I'd get a short-wheelbase C or CR unit, move to northern New Jersey, learn the East Coast city streets, stay close to home, and haul Custom Critical freight as much as my log book would allow.)
>bothersome to say the least because the idea of ‘exclusive
>use’ has not been reinforced with this or the other
>program they instituted last year. The shifting makes me
>nervous because I can see more problems in all around
>communications as I mentioned before and a dropping in
>customer confidence that is being ignored.
As Leo mentioned, FedEx offers a bewildering array of expedited and non-expedited freight services. When I review some of them on this web page (http://www.fedex.com/us/sameday), I find myself with more questions than answers about how all these divisions and services relate to each other. If I'm confused, it is safe to presume that the customer is confused too; which is exactly why, I believe, FedEx is moving toward the one-call solution. Customers call with needs. Agents direct them to the serivce that best meets the needs.
This does not make me nervous. It makes me confident that we (Diane and me, a married-couple, one-truck, owner-operator, WG-qualified, reefer-equipped, independent-contractor team) are in the right place at the right time.
In the four short years we have been in this business, we have adapted to several "shifts" including skyrocketing fuel prices, truck prices, the introduction of FedEx Expedited Freight Services, the FedEx acquisition of Watkins, a changed fuel surcharge, changed freight rates, hours of service changes, the introduction of TVAL and its more stringent equipment requirements, growing outside competiton for TVAL and White Glove freight, a growing number of expedited freight carriers, a change in Custom Critical CEO, and most recently, the introduction of FedEx Truckload Brokerage (just another day at the office when you consider all the other shifts).
I feel confident and optimistic about our future with Custom Critical because I believe (perhaps wrongly so) that the one-call direction in which FedEx is moving will produce a net gain for Custom Critical. I believe that while some freight that might have gone Custom Critical trucks will go to other FedEx services, more will come to Custom Critical as the Custom Critical option becomes better known to the hundreds (thousands?) of sales people and agents in all FedEx divisions. Just as some Custom Critical freight (that really is not Custom Critical freight) will find its way onto other FedEx trucks, Some of the freight that would have gone on those truck will come our way. Only more of it will come our way because there are more other-division FedEx agents and customers out there than there are Custom Critical agents and customers.
I also feel confident and optimistic about our future with Custom Critical because our (Diane and me) numbers say I can. Our run count is up. Our pay per loaded mile is up. Our pay for all miles us up. And we are continually finding ourselves on the loading docks of companies we have not served before. That tells me the FedEx team is doing a good job selling the services we and our truck are equipped to provide.
That's our experience. Others have theirs to share, equally valid. Readers can consider all accounts and decide on their own what to think and feel about FedEx and the changes that are part of life in any business.
The short story for us is that we are happy campers at Custom Critical.
(By the way, it is not just a WG thing. We accept over half the surface expedite loads that are offered. If we limited ourselves to surface expedite freight, we'd be in a D-unit dry box with a higher surface-expedite accept percentage and still making a good living. If I was a solo driver, I'd get a short-wheelbase C or CR unit, move to northern New Jersey, learn the East Coast city streets, stay close to home, and haul Custom Critical freight as much as my log book would allow.)
