VICTIMS OF OUR OWN SUCCESS ??

[hedgehog]

Just like any other business or product(s), the pioneers tend to reap the highest wages, simply put because there is little competition, if any at first.

When Roberts first promoted the idea of expedited freight, there was practically no competition. Today, anyone who has their own authority can outbid their competition.

When I took an early buyout from my career in 1997, I was not really aware of the expediting business. Then, I started to notice all the FedExcc, Panther, Tri-States, etc., etc. on the road.

There was more freight than units.

But, sadly, the secret is out. Get yourself a van, sign on with a carrier and become a paid tourist.

I doubt those days will ever return, only because of supply and demand.

Just my opinion. What's yours ??

Be safe.

 

[chuckwagon]

Supply and demand is the basis of any business.
But, to make money in this business it is all about taking the right loads at the right time at the right location.
You can still be a profitable paid tourist if you stick with your guns and not just take all the cheap freight.
Give and take but stick with your guns - set your rate range and hold firm.
Then again like any other business, you may want to adjust that range with time be it weekly or monthly.

 

[greg334]

Can we drop the paid tourist thing, I am not paid to tour anything and got to say I have passed up a lot of places I always wanted to go because I needed to make money first.

 

[highway star]

I know what you mean Greg. Last week I went by the exits for the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. I've always wanted to go there.

 

[nightcreacher]

I dont know about you Greg,but I've been on a paid vacation since the 1st day I started driving a truck.I have been places most people only read about,I've seen the stars in the western skies,snowy mountains in the Rockies,where can you see such a beautiful site as when you are comming into El Paso Tx from the east,ans see those many many miles of lights.
I've been to the casinos in New Mexico,Rino,Las Vegas.I've been to the Fiesta Bowl,the Rose Bowl parade,seen the tower resturant in Seattle,the tall timbers in Oregon
Ive eaten lobster in Maine,crabs in Mass.oysters in Marylnd,and by the way,most of the oysters jarred in Seaford Ma.,actually come from Seaford Tx,and that reminds me,I've been to the Alamo,the Washington monument,and if had the rest of the night,I could go on and on,and yes I did get paid alot of money at the same time,so my friend,yes this is my chance to see the country,and i've made a lot of money doing it
Hope you had a merry Christmas,and in the comming new year you get all you want
Oh yes,I've been to most all the Nascar tracks,as at Roberts Express,we use to carry the tires to these tracks for Good Year

 

[hedgehog]

Don't be mislead by the term I used "paid tourist". (Although in the minority, it does apply)

The point is this. The freight pie is only so big. No matter what we call ourselves, we all need a slice of it.

The more drivers, the smaller the piece.

Economic conditions determine how big the pie will be.

Not us.

Not the expediters.

If we are to succeed in this business, we need to stop whistling past the graveyared and face the economic facts. There are more drivers than freight !!!!!

Now, will someone will step forward with a solution ??

Be safe.

 

[Tennesseahawk]

The solution is to be flexible as to what kind of freight you can carry. Be open to all possibilities, and take a peak outside of the box most ppl call their comfort zone. A lot of individuals and carriers alike have already adjusted. They will be the healthiest when this storm passes.

Does anyone think I'm being too Zen? :7

"If I claim to be a wise man, it surely means that I don't know." - Kansas

 

[chuckwagon]

I agree with Hawk.

We need to look outside our comfort zone and be flexable.

However, I firmly believe we as individual drivers need to set our rate range at what we are willing to accept.

Sure, we should 'go outside our comfort zone', in some cases, like if we are in a bad frieght lane, when we have sat longer than we care to, etc.

But, we should set that rate range and stick to it the best we can, adjust it when the market changes, be it weekly or monthly.

We want to be independents, individuals, etc - so we need to set our own 'comfort zone' and are own rate range. But, we should, as a majority work to eliminate all the subpar freight rates the best we can.

We will not end the subpar rates - but I believe we can start to curb it if we all work within our own comfort zones.

 

[bryan]

Hi

IMHO
1, Put your pride aside when talking to wannabees,sure its great when they look at you with admiration when you tell them all the good points of the biz,but your hurting them and yourself when you don't tell the whole story.
2,Write your state reps, let them know that giving commercial drivers license to people who can't speak,read or write english is a safety issue.
3,Talk to your carrier,let them know that what you grossed last year isn't going to be enough this year (inflation).
4,There is no reason to haul cheap freight.PERIOD. The excuse of it gets me out of a bad area is just that an excuse.A pretty lame one if you ask me.You shouldn't of taken the load to the bad area in the first place if you need to take cheap freight to make up for it.Admit it you took a load to a bad area because you wanted to play tourist.Fine, but when you haul freight at cheap rates now your takeing food off of my table.
5,Empty miles and waiting around for a load are just a part of expediting.Thats is why they use to pay us the big bucks.Quality not quantity.Carriers need to stop paying empty miles and start paying half of the hotel expense.This gives us the incentive to wait around for a higher paying load and keeps them from low ball bidding or sending trucks into bad freight zones.
6, Big bunks hurt the expedite industry.The less comfortable you are the hungrier you get.Also the big company logo's on the trucks didn't help matters.Nobody knew who we were.People just assumed we were some local delivery company and left us alone.You could park any place and nobody bothered you.We were invisible.The only way you could even find out about the industry was if you knew somebody who was already in it.They need to go back to just the minimum DOT standard door signs.The big signs were a great advertising tool to get customers but I think just about every company has heard of us so lets go back to small signs and smaller bunks.

 

[nightcreacher]

DOT caused the dbl bunks,in years passsed,a team wasn't legal to both be asleep at the same.
Being comfortable has no bearing on whats going on with the industry.
In the early 80s,we had rates that are the same now.
I can give plenty of examples and to some may find this interesting ,others would just skip to the next thread.
In a nut shell,we are in an industry that our customers need,for one company to set a rate means,a company in competition,has to match,or lower the rate to get the work.
The highest paid freight in the industry,other than ltl,is expedite,and as long as shippers,have to have it there right away,then the charges should be high,but all our respective companies are fighting for the same freight,so there is always going to be a price war.
As a team,I know we all feel the same way,why offer us the short freight,well boys and girls,expedite in most cases is short freight,if your companies turn all this short freight down,do you honestly think they will get the longer loads when available,and in most case,if you didnt notice,5 short loads will make you more money than 2 long ones,and you can still afford that co-driver,so you can put a long load in there.
Another reason to take all your loads,do you think a company would need as many trucks,if less loads were turned down,think of it, less competition in your own company.
Well I'm done preaching on my soap box,those that know me,know I've been just as guilty as the next for turning loads down,but in turn, I also do around 175 loads a year,and I dont put myself unavailable,by hauling those so called back haul loads.
2007 is going to be a great year,hope you all,make lots of money,I know I will

 

[EagleRiverWI]

Constantly putting new people in expediting trucks is not my idea of success. FECC has become an expedite truck driving school. They are training their future competition.

 

[mhoy40]

the reality is the freight pie isnt getting smaller its getting away from the auto makers and as hawk said the carriers that put a honest effort into looking outside the automotive box will be the topping on said pie, and thats fine with me as long as long as the pay dosnt decrease and i can keep my deadhead low i dont care if its auto parts or tampons in the back of my truck as long as im making the most money i can.the red rock cliffs in western texas and the lights of vegas still the best veiw i have through the windsheild.

 

[hedgehog]

Don't understimate the problems short runs cause for both the o/o and carrier.

It's a double-edged sword. If the run is short, low-paying job that the company can't cover, then it forces them to hire even more drivers in hopes by playing the numbers game, this will solve their problem.

It just compounds the problem.

Be safe.

 

[OntarioVanMan]

Flexibility..
Thats why we got a Sprinter, brcause of the loads (customers base) my company has ( jet engines-landing gear) Long and tall is the order of the day. Don't have a permanent bulkhead or sleeping quarters, that would negate the purpose. We get more C loads in a month to make up for the added cost of purchasing an expensive van.

 

[bigjoep89]

Concrete truck driver 15 years
Concrete sales mgr, 13 years.
Expediter 2 years.
FECC

Let's remember if we want rates to stay up we as the contractors need to do our part.

Example:

Service is the number one reason a customer will leave one company and go to another. So this means we must do all we can to make sure everything arrives safe and on time. I know there a lot of people that will not believe that this is the number one reason and would argue price until the cows come home. Service is the number one reason!
Lack of attention from seller. In our case freight company is the number two reason. So remember to be polite and thank the customer for the business at pick up and before leaving delivery.
Third reason is price. If we all do our job in satisfying the customer the company we are leased to will have a much better chance of keeping our rates up. You simply can not give the customer a reason to look elsewhere.
I truly believe the larger shipping companies would agree with the above and have customer service representatives doing their part so lets do ours and keep those freight prices up so we can all benefit.
Just another opinion.

God bless our Military and Vets.

 

[OntarioVanMan]

I agree... Many a time we've babysat a customer because of previously rude drivers. Customer expects a certain degree of professionalism. Customers have told me horror stories about other drivers.

I don't mind going from 4th to 1st out just to babysit but I know it's cuz we screwed up and thats NOT good for anyone.

 

[ATeam]

The original post contained one statement I'd like to question and another I'd like to question.

The first is the often-made assertion that money back in the "good old days" was better than before. If that is so, where are the wealthy expediters? The business is barely old enough to carry someone from an early age to retirement as an expediter. If long-time veterans did sooooooo well, why are we not hearing about their success? Where are they? Did they really make the good money they talk about? If so, what did they do with it?

The statement I'd like to question is the assumption that the freight pie is only so big. At any given minute, that is true, but in the next moment, week, month, year, the size of the pie will change because the economy is continually changing, and over the long term, continually growing. Indicators include the size of the population, which would indicate the need for more transportation services, would it not?

Everywhere we drive we see urban sprawl and real estate development. Without trucks, none of that would be possible. The pie is not fixed in size. It is continually growing. If it were otherwise, the number of expediting carriers and the number of expediting trucks on the road could not be sustained for as long as they have.

 

[OntarioVanMan]

Yes, the pie is continually growing...But what is the cost of that piece of pie?
Longer away from home? More miles to be driven then what the "old timers did"?

I realize you Phil have your home on your back (turtle) and away time time is not a real factor.

But hows about quality time off with no financial penalty?

Can the majority really afford to time off and still make a living?

 

[slfisher45]

"Yes, the pie is continually growing...But what is the cost of that "

OVM, It sounds to me, you want a higher wage to take more time off. I believe that would be wonderful. This business is miles in money out. One has to set standards for themselves. Time spent on the road is the standard set for working. Time spent not driving is that quality time off. Live within your means and it is a balance. I love to drive and time away from home is a small sacrifice for the rewards reaped.

 

[greg334]

Phil said;"Without trucks, none of that would be possible."

Come on, without trucks we would have a different manner of transport of goods. Just as we evolved from using hand carts and carts drawn by horses to canals and river boats to rail to aircraft, if trucks were not the predomient means to transport something from point a to point b, we would have something else.