Broke Down 69...The Adventure Continues

Well, Spring has sprung for me. May 01 hit and my phone has been ringing off the hook with companies I've done business with needing a truck.

Being a one man dog & pony show such as I am, I'm having to say sorry to most of them. It's a good sign though. My rate on the lane I run jumped 10% and will jump again this summer. It's time to make hay while the sun shines and start piling away those acorns for the winter mos.

Although, it does kind of suck for me because now I have to switch up my normal 4 days out & 3 nights at home to 5 out 2 home

 

On that note, one of the guys I run for squealed like a little pig when I quoted him 10% more,

"OH! Those loads are already covered now!" he said.

Some of these brokers & shippers are unreal, man. They will beat down independents during the winter, all the while having their rates locked at the same rate with the shippers during the year and then when you raise your rate due to demand, they will use bullying tactics, guilt trips, exaggerations of how they been "paying you more" than everybody else during the off season etc.

Whatever...

 

It's that way in every business, when I sold hay if they could find it five bucks a ton less they would tell you and practically demand it. If hay went up and you raised it five bucks they would cry the blues that "I've been paying X dollars how can you jump it on me?" it's human nature I guess.

 

This is the walmart mentality.

It is some form of mass phenomenon that works like this.

Wallyworld sells a product for Xx, People buy the product for a while at Xx, then WW will raise the price to XX, nobody notices the price increase, partly due to it's WW, so it has to be the lowest price. Every one knows WW is the lowest price, the ads say so. Part due to they never shop at other stores. Then, for some reason they do go to a different store and find products that may be from the same brand, but are not the same products as WW, then complain that they can get the product at WW cheaper. When in reality the price is not lower, it is the same or in some cases higher. But the perception is there.

 

Years ago my Dad worked at a K Mart part time as a shift manger. Think early 70's.. they did an experiment. Took popcorn makers in center isle, marked sale on the stand. Now they were .50 higher than the ones in the regular section. They sold out of the "sale" ones.. people see sale, think they got to have it, because it's on sale...

 

I'll say my usual reply to customers like that.
SCREWEM!

Yes, this type of"marketing" has gone on as long as the "self service" stores have been around.
Just like the old time butcher or green-grocer with his finger on the scales.

 

Fuel is a good example of supply and demand and how things in the market place get manipulated.

The funny part is, you never hear some one say, well I can get it at wallyworld for a lot cheaper.

 

Actually before i leased to mercer i used to fuel at the walmart near our farm. It was always a good 20 cpg cheaper than any truck stop.

 

I never know whether I should hit the "Thank" button on something like this?