O/O or Company Driver?

Yes, it's possible. I used to have my own authority and ran 4 days out and 3 at home. Develop your customer base in a loop and you will have created yourself a nice little dedicated gig.

 

Before you even look at trucks. Bare in mind,.. that it is a business. You need to set it up and know exactly how much you will bring in and what your expenses will be. Knowing how to cover those expenses and still be able to earn a livable living. (Money in the bank).

Simply buying a truck and then wondering how to make money with it will be a disaster in the making.

Search around for shippers in your area that fit the segment of trucking that you want to provide a service for. It sounds easy,.. but you need to know how much you need from the shipper and you need to know those numbers like the back of your hand. Find the sweet spot where you and the shipper can both come to terms.

Ultimately you wont know unless you try. Just be smart about it. Do not going into it blindly.

Hurst

 

Your main goal is to develop direct customers with a direct billing system in place. You will need to have a face to face meeting to agree on the terms of payment, commodities hauled, weights of each load, a per mile or per-truck load rate, what happens if you break down, etc.

One of the best things you can discuss is how to keep your customers happy and not get under bid by another carrier simply because they are bigger and can haul your freight cheaper. Nothing wrong with openly talking to your customers and establishing a trusting business relationship that can withstand good and bad times.

I think business success is the art of negotiation and knowledge coupled with intelligent decision making where both parties benefit.

If you would like to hire me as a business consultant I could help you secure direct customers.

 

I personally would never start a business on the premises of how much home time I could get. I would start it out full bore and the work to achieve the home time goals. With that being said I would look at a new Glider kit instead of these late model used trucks. Some are doing okay and they are getting better but a lot depends on the preventive maintenance that has been done to them. A lot of these companies that are selling the late models let the maint slide because they know they are selling them before serious problems develop and at about the same time the warranty runs out.

 

Hiring Robert as a business consultant could be a good idea but I would pay him on commission only. If he can't produce then he wouldn't get paid.

 

With the experience they say they have, why would they need a consultant? Selling is selling, whether it's a service or a product.

 

Before trucking my back ground included running a group of banks. I believe my business background helps. Yours will also. You know sales. Sales is the key to success in any business. Drivers who act like jerks out there create a opening for new owner operators. You know all that. Just run a first class operation and when you expand hire the best and pay them the best. You will be fine.

 

Yes but he could reach out to customers they don't know or may never know. If paid comission only could work out for both.