Brokers, Please explain the plummeting rates these days.

I absolutely live by this. Why? Because if I'm only making enough to get by, then I can't justify the headaches of running my own numbers.

If my cost is $3, and I want $4, well guess what - I still want that $4 when my cost is $1. It's not greed. It's: "Why would I leave that money on the table?"

My operating costs are low so I can increase margin, not so I can cut throats when times get lean. I'm not looking to buy a job here.

Of course I know I'm not changing anything for everyone else by "doing my part". This is about me. I personally refuse to act like this is a job. If I want a job, I can go work at McDonald's.

I want to hear a turbo whistle, shift gears, haul interesting freight, work on my truck, and make good money. If any of that changes, then I'm not really interested. Hopefully I don't look back on this post in two years and laugh at the naivete.

 

Heck, that’s the way it’s supposed to be for all businesses. I don’t like to cut throats as hard on the broker side as I do on my carrier side but that’s just because taking care of the customer is number one and I think also me knowing what it takes to run a truck gives me more insight. You are doing your part btw… us small guys collectively make up to be a very large guy.

I can appreciate all sides personally and just have to appreciate capitalism as a whole. A lot of times I blame cost cutting and cheating carriers just as much or more then cheap customers or brokerages. You know, those chicago outfits running employees on 1099 or hauling two loads on one trailer upsetting customers by hauling two loads for 3/4 the normal rate on the two loads they jammed into the trailer.

It’s transportation, a very interesting and ultimately difficult business. As long as you have pride and do the right thing, I feel like good juju will head your way.

There have been some companies and individuals scam and screw me from time to time but ultimately it’ll come back to bite them as what goes around does eventually come around. I’m a true believer in that.

 

Why not use one of these tracking apps. Make sure they are within distance?

 

We were actually but we’re just behind in the office and trusted momentarily. Trust but verify as Reagan said. We’re a really small office and we’re brokering 10 loads on the day plus doing another 10+ loads on our trucks. Slipped thru the cracks. Bummer really because partially on us but should make sense to folks who don’t like tracking or check calls. So many dishonest folks out there especially during desperate times. Clearly, the truck was looking outside a doable radius trying to get higher paying freight.

 

No, he mentioned the cost of running the truck being an inelastic, you however read it as him being wrong and it is elastic. You referred to one thing, he another, and you cross wired it. Costs of running are inelastic. Market is elastic. I should need to restate the variance that occurred.

 

Cost of running a truck is elastic because of fuel prices and insurance rate alone. elastic means it can vary, those are costs that can and do vary, wildly, based on MANY condidtion.

This is the language we have all agreed to use. @JimmyTwoTimes was giving him the benefit of the doubt that he knew what he was talking about and just misspoke. Personally, I think either he learned a couple economic terms to sound smart, or he got his degree so long ago that he has forgotten most of what he learned and now remembers just enough to throw some Words and terms out (2 of which he has used incorrectly) that sound vaguely right.

 

The more you speak, the more you make it clear you lack any understanding of what is being said.

Cost of running a truck is price inelastic. PES (price inelastic supply) is where the percentage of price change causes a small percentage in quantity demanded or supplied. You need fuel to operate. You need insurance to operate. You can shop them around somewhat, you can buy them cheaper somewhat, but your demand for both is the same regardless. Fuel and insurance could drop their costs 99% by next week and you will still only use what you’ve been using. That’s inelasticity. It’s also why everyone is #####ing about fuel prices. They still need it, but it’s costing everyone so much more versus last year or the year before that. It’s why trucks continue to be bought and sold at inflated prices. The more you need something the more price inelastic it becomes. Price elasticity would be if fuel went to $6-$7 a gallon and everyone absolutely shut down. Or if fuel went to 50 cents and everyone started demanding 3408s with twin sticks again. A price elastic good or service would be a cheeseburger from McDonalds or going to the movies. Or, to use things in trucking, a set of big 8 inch stacks or paying someone to polish your truck and trailer.

Now that said, each operation can and will have different operating costs. Owner Op A May have more or less operating costs than Owner Op B. Same with larger carriers. However, that is comparisons between different operations. If you look inside any one single operation and look YOY you will see the lion’s share of operating costs they have are price inelastic. They have very little variance year to year.

I’m beginning to think some of you are being argumentative just to get an education without paying for it.

 

not gonna waste my breath. you are a clown, man.

 

You felt need enough to reply this sparse message.

 

Couldn't figure out how to delete it. Sorry I tried to match whits with super trucker and prize winning economist @KrumpledTed.