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Getting into the Truck Business

Being a great trucker and running a truck business does not fall into the same league of success, because truckers may be good in driving and charting routes but may not necessarily be good businessmen.  Granting that you're a trucker and want to up a business on Union City truck transportation, the following are guides to help you through. Check out Union City Specialty Trucking at this website.

 

Investing on the right equipment is the first step in the right direction in this business.  The next step is to decide if you want to buy or lease the equipment.  When you plan to buy the equipment, be sure you have the money to pay for the down payment, so that the rest of the balanced value of the equipment can be gradually paid off through a loan.  If you don't have the sufficient funds, the only option left is to lease the equipment.  There are a lot of leasing companies that deal with truck rentals and their terms vary according to the kind of equipment or some will allow structuring the rental to suit into your capacity to pay or even structuring in a way that you'll be owning the equipment after the last payment.  Since the decision will be on you, on whether to buy or to lease, why not consult the services of an experienced accountant, one who can help you see your financial condition and can provide projections so that you are able to get the pros and cons of the investment situation and can land on a better decision.

 

Now that you have the right equipment, the next step I how to get the right customers.  By checking online on the load board, which is an online matching system which allows shippers and freight brokers to post loads, as well as also allowing truck operators to post their equipment, you are able to get your first customers. Load boards are jump off points to get started in the business, but the best way to get customers on a long-term basis is to build your customer list by making sales calls, visiting shippers and freight brokers.

 

Bid well, so that you'll be attracting customers and be sure that the price is low enough to earn a profit and remain competitive.  So  you can determine what would be the right price to bid, know your expenses - maintenance, truck repairs, truck and trailer payments, fuel and labor cost, and by doing so you can compute what would be your profit margin, enough to give a low bid.

 

It is important that you establish a back office if you're running a fleet of trucks.  To have your business run on efficiency, your back office should have trained personnel who can do functions, such as settlements, clearances, record maintenance, regulatory compliance, accounting and IT services.

 

A low cash flow situation may arise in your business because of delayed payments coming from shippers who pay on net-40 or net-60 day terms, which means that you will have to wait for two months to be paid on a load that you have already delivered.  When there's an existing cash flow problem, to remedy this, try sourcing the freight factoring program, which is a financing company that provides funds to pay for freight bills, drivers' salary, fuel and repairs, and by ironing out your problem, you are able to continue with operation and take on new loads.

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