hey brokers, has elogs changed business/rates etc?

Ask for that rate increase with confidence. Rates are still crazy high for February. Seriously I'm still paying absurd money out of the better markets for flatbeds for this time of year.

Normally around this time of year prices are in the 1.50-1.75 per mile range. This is why RollinCoal typically takes his vacation and does his maintenance this time of year. Hell it's why I do too (seriously I'm doing like 20-25% of my produce season volume right now and I'm completely fine with it).

If you have contracts that are up for renegotiation in February that's very intentional by the shipper/broker. Prices are going up this year. Don't be shy about trying to get a 10-15% increase on your contract rates. Unless they paid REALLY well for 2017 they are pretty expendable in 2018. There's no shortage of people looking to add regular carriers right now, so if you run a good trucking company it's a sellers market.

Seriously I know that a lot of people are still scarred by 2015-2016, but unless you were doing well those years you don't owe the customers from those years much if anything. If you hauled for reasonable prices in 2017 they owe you a large rate increase for your loyalty. If they can't come up with that... well you know enough about them to look for new customers.

Don't be lazy. Times like these are when you get new and better customers and move up in the world. Missing this opportunity to upgrade your revenue is very dangerous as inflation in our industry has already really kicked off. Your drivers are going to want a share in the riches from the last year whether you got rich or not. To pay them you need the customers to pay you.

EDIT: For future reference this is how you write a 'don't haul cheap freight' post. You explain how and why they should take more from the customer. You don't just say 'just say no' like that's some kind of answer. Prices will rise and prices will fall and when they fall the only two choices will be haul it or go out of business. That means you need to get PAID now. Either in length and size of contract + decent money (thus giving you security and scalability), or just in cash that you can save for a rainy day (which is definitely coming at some point in the not-that-distant future).

 

There's more that could be read into that very statement though, like if that snowballed into happening 3 times in a week, you gonna loose a day of time at the house with your kids, family and friends?......
Actually let me go a step further, that day lost means a day lost the following week also, lost revenue, lost paycheck. Now there is no way to get that back, the carrier can't make that day up nor can the driver. It is now a viscious cycle that will take hold every week and everyday.