Driver Lifestyles

Driving your business to success

So, what does "success in expediting" mean?

Depends on who you ask.  To some, it might be the independence that the business people of this industry discover behind the wheel.  To others, it might mean taking on the responsibility of fleet ownership and management. 

Or, it might be as Matt and Katy Foscue, straight truck contractors who define the successful expediter - "Someone who's making money, having fun and is happy."

"For us, the key to success has been money management in minimizing or eliminating debt.  If, for example, we don't want to do this any longer, we can leave it behind because we don't have a truck payment, we have money in the bank."

"We know that trucking can turn around tomorrow - you can have an accident or something that puts you out of business, so we've already tried to prepare for that.  With that preparedness, it gives us a little more self-confidence and we're not out chasing our tails."

Matt says that from his personal experience, he advises anyone considering an expediting career to drive someone else's truck for a time.  "Find out if you like the business without the financial pressure, as well as discover what kind of truck you want.  We drove for someone for 6 months before buying our first truck and since we bought it five years ago, we're still very happy with it."

"We've seen other drivers who have bought trucks before they knew the business and they've been complete disasters - not balanced well, insufficient horsepower, wrong transmission, etc.  A key to success is patience, get your feet wet before making that big investment."

Ben and Melanie Easters are expediting 18-wheeler owner-operators who describe a successful person in this business as "Someone who learns what he needs to learn everyday and does what he has to do while getting along with others."

Since February of this year, the couple has been expanding their operation by purchasing straight trucks.  Their fleet has grown to 6 units and they've developed some techniques for success during their time in the emergency freight business.

Ben says, "Pay attention to where you've been and what you've done.  Learn from your mistakes.  If you've got questions, ask them and then listen to the advice that people give you, don't always assume you know the answers.
It's not always the obvious things that you need to know."

"Melanie and I have gotten to the point where we'll deadhead out of a bad area to get to a good freight area.  We'll lose a little bit now instead of losing a lot more waiting.  Keep in touch with everyone around you and work as a team, if you're part of a team, everybody profits."

Melanie says that fleet management has it's own set of challenges:  "Some of the tips we give our new drivers are on how to negotiate with dispatchers to maximize their profit.  We tell them to stay away from negative people and never, ever trust the directions you get over the Qualcomm.  Always call the receiver or look it up on your computer as well."

She says that the new drivers call about everything, until they get a feel for the job.  "Each day they pick up a little more on their own."

Gene Dunlap is a straight truck owner who runs a solo operation and his personal keys to success include:

*Stay in service

*Accept all loads - "I maintain a 100% acceptance rate because sometimes dispatch needs to move a load and you might dig them out of a hole.  I believe that you'll be rewarded for that one way or another."

*Pick up and deliver on-time - "That goes without explanation."

*Be aggressive in seeking a load.  "Don't just sit there and wait on dispatch to
give you something.

*Properly maintain and repair equipment

*Be a team player and problem solver - "I don't listen to whiners and complainers, every company has them and they create their own problems.  For a little over a year, I worked as a recruiter for JB Hunt and I found out that many people create their own problems."

*We have to be responsible for our own success - "Don't sit back and wait for your company to give it to you."

Rich Moore is one of the true veterans of the expediting business with close to twenty years behind the wheel of an expediting straight truck. He's operated with and without a co-driver, but is currently running solo.

Rich has seen a number of people both succeed and fail in this industry and his tips for making it include:

*Purchase a vehicle that meets your needs, but doesn't exceed your wallet - "I don't understand how some owner-operators do it.  They have these huge trucks with the giant sleepers and all that - they're working for the truck and not themselves."

*Incorporate - "I believe that it's wise for the small business person to incorporate and pay yourself a salary and put the rest in the checking account.  My wife and I have had an "S" corp for many years and there are many legitimate write-offs that sole proprietors don't receive."

*Know your cost per mile (CPM) - "You've got to know your fixed costs that come along every day whether you run or not.  You've also got to know your variable operating costs with a benchmark number to work against, i.e. how much mileage a year will you accrue.  I've worked it out so that I know my maintenance cost per mile.

*Be patient with your dispatcher - "Even though it's difficult at times, don't get mad and slam the phone down.  They'll remember that!  They're just doing a job just like we are and if they offer you a less than perfect load, it's nothing personal.  Be patient with customers as well."

Rich's definition of expediting success is, "Earn an adequate income while enjoying the freedom that expediting gives us. To me, the freedom is a lot more important than other things; if you want to take Tuesday off, go ahead.