Why are we putting up with under payment

If you're running non-specailized dryvan, your competition is everyone from the one truck guy to Swift. Since this is where the most competition is, supply and demand dictates it will also have the lowest rates. It's simple economics really, and what lead me to selling my van trailers. When I lived in the northeast I did fine running regional, and you'd do fine running midwest regional, but everywhere else your sunk unless you have your own contracts. I've never found Texas to be that great for freight in the first place, either.

 

That's not entirely true. Nothing special about my dry van it's not even vented. I guess maybe I got lucky or am even good but part of what I have found your typical Swift cannot compete with me and provide the service I am providing for at least this one broker I'm working with. Agreed on Texas, everyone else can have that I want no part of it, although we have a driver who will go down there and roll intrastate for a while and does very well with it.

 

Learn how to say , " NO THANK-YOU" to cheap freight.

I pull a dry van and "NEVER" take less than $2 a mile, and I don't sit.

Also, if they need me to take a load to an area that I know has little or no freight coming out,, I have pay me enough to where I can get back to a good area.

 

To tell the truth I have been using the getloaded.com rate indexes to get a base on what to aim for. Going into this I thought the relative I am working with would know what to charge but he doesn't. Is there a better place to get an idea of rates? We have been running from TX to CO and PA. I would love to get better rates but for all I know the brokers can tell I am inexperienced and work me over.

 

You're running OTR in cheap areas. On top of that, the big brokers have databases telling them the rates you've run at before. That's why they ask for your MC, DOT or CHR number. It will be hard to dig out from that, but is doable if you stick to your guns. I guarantee the brokers have you pegged for a greenhorn as well. Instead of running TX to PA, run TX to Chicago, then Chicago to PA, break it up into smaller segments and you'll get better rates. Running to CO is a waste of time if you want decent rates. The only time I'll go out there is if the load pays enough to deadhead back to civilization at a good rate. For me that needs to be $3.50+ a mile to Denver.
You need to run better areas to make more money, and if your drivers only want to go out and back, you will continue to struggle. Back in my dry van days, FL was tough except for a few times of the year. I would run the midwest to northeast lanes and fly home out of Baltimore. It made a lot more sense then taking some crappy load into FL and bouncing to Atlanta from Miami.

 

Thank you fortycalglock, I feel like I have been fighting with my relative a lot about how to run. He keeps telling me about how he ran when he was signed on with a large company 4 years ago. I am thinking about just running him in state for awhile. Short run rates look real good.
It seems that I contact new brokers constantly. Am I better off calling back the ones we have already done work for first even if they don't have anything posted?

 

How is it the Brokers and Shippers fault for the rates?

The Carrier always provides the service and sets the rate for that service provided. You have a poor business plan when you let the customer tell you what your rate should be for the service you provided.

You don't go to McDonalds and tell them what you pay for their Big Mac. No, you choose what you want from their menu and their PRICE for that. So why should you the service provider let the customer dictate what you charge for your SERVICES you provide.

Remember it is not CHEAP FREIGHT until it is hauled by a CHEAP FREIGHT HAULER.

You have all the power to adjust your rates to make a profit and maybe your cost are too high to compete with others in your market. Either find another market or cut your cost to be more competitive and profitable.

 

How is it the Brokers and Shippers fault for the rates? So very true , they just OFFER the low rates and there is ALWAYS a trucker more than willing to run for those LOW RATES.

If you ever saw a RATE sheet for so called added service that customers get charged you would .

 

How much time do you waste signing up with new brokers?

 

You could probably make out fairly well running intrastate in TX. Your relative needs to understand that what he was doing at an established company 4 years ago, likely with contract freight, is worlds apart from what you guys are dealing with now in spot.