Dollars & Sense
A closer look at "Successful Trucking"
There's a new book about the business of trucking that just hit the marketplace, and owner-operators from both expediting and general trucking owe it to themselves to take a look at this comprehensive guide.
The folks at PBS Tax & Bookkeeping Services are the creators of this book - "Successful Trucking" - and they have used the knowledge gained in more than 25 years in the business of tax preparation and bookkeeping services for the trucking industry as a basis for this guide.
"Successful Trucking" is not the company's first foray into multimedia/publishing. "Truck Books by Barry and Howard", introduced seven years ago, was a software package that was met with great acceptance by its trucking audience.
The PBS story
The firm was founded in 1964 and specialized in services to the dump truck industry, primarily on the West Coast. In 1974, the company was purchased by accountants Barry Horwitz and Howard Abrams. Under Horwitz and Abrams direction, PBS has grown to become an accounting firm that services a full range of trucking clients nationwide.
PBS contributes to regular tax columns and radio spots, attend trucking shows, host live tax chats and give seminars for a variety of truckers.
The authors
Howard Abrams is one of the authors of "Successful Trucking". He graduated from Woodbury College, Los Angeles in 1965 with a Degree in Accounting, and went on to pursue graduate studies in Finance and Economics at California State University Northridge until 1967.
Shasta May, PBS's Director of Business Development, is the co-author of "Successful Trucking". Ms. May has over 15 years experience in accounting sales and has been with PBS for over seven years. She is also a contributing author of PBS tax columns in Land Line and Independent Contractor magazines as well as being a frequent contributor to Expediters Online.com and the "Expediter News Break" on XM Satellite Radio.
Writing the book
The 150-page guide's introduction describes the book as a "A Comprehensive Guide to Business Start-Up, Operations, Bookkeeping and Income Tax."
Says Shasta May, "Over the years, when talking to our trucking customers, we were constantly being asked "is there a book that explains my income tax and bookkeeping requirements?"
"There was nothing that was trucking-focused that we had heard of, so we felt there was a real need for this book. We wanted to put something together that was part business guide, part resource manual."
She adds, "We tried to make it easy to read and easy to understand and put it in layman's terms. We tried to address the most commonly asked questions and areas of concern."
Howard Abrams says, "The book, "Successful Trucking", comes from those questions our clients ask us. The prospective owner-operator wants to know "How much should I pay for a truck, should I buy new or used, how much money am I going to make?"
"The existing owner-operator has questions about estimated taxes, write-offs, deductions, etc. They should be concerned about tax planning, but many are not aware of the problems that face them in that area."
He continues, "Cash flow is a major concern, as is the question of leasing vs. purchase of equipment."
"Successful Trucking's" contents
The book is in a loose-leaf binder format and its 25 chapters begin with sections dedicated to helping the trucking entrepreneur with his/her choice of career. The opening page poses a number of questions to the prospective owner-operator that boil down to the central issue - are you ready to do what it takes to be successful?
It should be noted that while "Successful Trucking" is designed for a general trucking audience, virtually all of the information within the guide is applicable to the business of expediting and it will benefit the prospective and new owner-operator and driver in the emergency freight profession.
This page is followed by chapters titled, "Going into Business", "What is a Business Plan", "Choosing a Motor Carrier" and a carrier evaluation sheet, "Operating with Your Own Authority", "Financing Your Equipment" and other trucking business start-up topics.
Those business formation topics are continued in lengthy chapters about the different types of business entities and business taxes, permits and regulatory issues.
Ms. May says, "One of the most frequently asked questions has been about an owner-operator's Business Entity selection - 'should I incorporate, should I be a sole proprietor, how should I start out', etc? We've tried to give a comprehensive overview on these real-world issues the prospective owner-operator will face."
Two succeeding chapters deal with Accounting and Bookkeeping - the necessity of timely and accurate bookkeeping, keeping track of income and expenses and choosing a bookkeeping system. The authors include a short list of available trucking bookkeeping software packages , both theirs and competitors' products.
Chapters Thirteen through Twenty of "Successful Trucking" deal with a topic that's been the cause of many a sleepless night for the owner-operator - TAXES.
These sections of the guide cover areas such as Annual Filing Requirements, Income Tax Basics, Income Tax Projections, Depreciation and an area that Ms. May says deserves special attention - Quarterly Estimated Tax Payments.
She states, "A key point is understanding estimated tax payments. In trucking, there are a lot of people who have started as company drivers, and when they become owner-operators, i.e. self-employed, their tax situation changes."
"This can be the biggest problem that the newly self-employed in trucking run into during their first year. They are on the road all the time, trying to make money, and they put off making estimated tax payments."
She continues, "At the end of the year, they owe, let's say, $5,000 and their response is, 'I just don't have that much money.' Then, when they can't pay it, the IRS will charge interest on their tax liability and it all begins to snowball."
"That's one of the things that we try to get across in the book, the necessity of paying taxes on a timely basis."
The tax section of the guide continues with Dealing with the IRS, Audits, Retirement Planning and Deductions.
"We take a look at deductions," say Ms. May. "Keep those receipts! All those little expenses add up - the truck wash, that bottle of Windex, that roll of paper towels. The more deductions you can show, the less tax you have to pay."
At this point, the book becomes a resource manual with listings of trucking-related associations, publications, insurance resources, events and financial information.
The guide even includes trucking and accounting glossaries, a Frequently Asked Questions section and a Sample Forms area that lists the forms most owner-operators will need to become familiar with.
Impressions:
The book is written in plain language and in an easy-to-understand style. It presents its topic in a logical, step-by-step format that makes it a reference book that one can refer to repeatedly.
It's not a dry, scholarly book that will be read once and filed away, but rather, as the authors state, it's a working guide that will be used frequently. Their firm has over a quarter century of guiding thousands of customers through the minefield of trucking business ownership and they've put their experience to practical use in compiling "Successful Trucking".
Howard Abrams reports that the book has met with positive response in the short time since it's release in May, 2004.
"Successful Trucking" sells for $69.95 plus shipping and handling. It is available through:
PBS Tax & Bookkeeping Service
18757 Burbank Blvd., Suite 216
Tarzana, CA 91356
(800) 697-5153