I'll jump in the kool aid:
Here's something to chew on:
Define your market. What type of hauling are you CURRENTLY experienced? Does that haul offer you loads that line up with what home time vs out on the road time you seek? What time of year is your slow season, if there is one.
This can get specific due to location and experience. When I 1st started out I ran reefer and lived in Denver CO. I found shippers in Nogales AZ who had products for my customers in Denver. Once the haul was setup I put together a tractor and trailer that could climb hills and open up on the stretches to improve fuel mileage. I stayed busy in winter because I knew how to chain and get over Raton Pass when a lot of other customers couldn't find trucks. The best situation to be in is people asking for your services and you have more work than you know what to do......That's where dedicated lanes get established. I always told my customers " we could make this a weekly run year round if you like" That one sentence turned into a lane I hauled for three years.
The last thing I worry about is the truck and trailer. If you don't 1st pay attention to customer acquisition and retention then you won't need a truck at all because there will be no loads to haul!
Owner operating with your own authority is a business. You must employ tact, skill in presenting yourself in a professional capacity using proper etiquette and always be pleasant. Customers can find another truck to haul your loads in the blink of an eye, it's a good idea to always keep that in mind. I let professionalism be my salesman.
In your initial post your title stated " Let's say you buy a 50,000 dollar truck for cash" You can define what equipment you need once you establish a lane or commodity. A trailer you haul boats is completely different from a grain trailer!
Money is easy to find, banks are full of the stuff. Convincing a loan officer to fund your business takes a business plan, risk analysis, profit forecast etc. When first started I needed working capital and needed to show the bank I knew what I was doing. Good news is once you get going it gets easier and easier to get money from your bank. Today I can e-mail my loan officer and he will put whatever I need into my checking account because he knows I've proven myself over several decades. It's just like your personal FICO score. When people see you are a person of your word and pay your debts on time, or early, they are more likely to take a risk on you. Eventually if you make enough good decisions the bank will say " OK, sure, no problem"
If you're going to be a business person you can forget about being a billy-big-rigger trucker and become a transportation professional capable of being successful at business.
If you don't have business experience there are millions of sources where you can acquire business skills; you just have to study and practice what you learn. You'll learn about risk. "should I change that tire or run it until I can get home? Are you going over a desolate mountain pass where cell service or a repair truck can't get to you? It's all about risk. Risk analysis skills take a while to develop but you'll get there if you're disciplined and stay in the game. Just remember to own your decisions and you'll do fine!
Best of luck
Robert
Let’s say you buy a $50,000 truck for cash....
Discussion in 'Ask An Owner Operator' started by Lennythedriver, Jul 7, 2020.
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Who will do the Maintenance and Repairs ?? It's very hard to find a Mechanic that can Fix it right the first time..Labor Rate is 70 to 120 Dollars an Hour...if they don't fix it right then you're on the road with the same problem you already paid for..
tommymonza, Rideandrepair and D.Tibbitt Thank this. -
As far as insurance you will pay either 6 months or a year at a time I’m not aware at least of any company that does it by the month.So if you don’t want to run for a month doesn’t matter you have to keep insurance in place or the first day without your authority will go inactive.So insurance is what it is.So if you’re able to absorb that cost yes you can run like that.As far as leasing to a carrier and wanting to run 3 weeks and off a week I don’t think it would be a problem if you are available for dispatch for 3 weeks at a time . But taking a month off I think it depends on how often you did that might become a problem with the carrier because they too have to carry you on there insurance for that time unless you maybe canceled the lease and resume when you go back To work I personally don’t think any carrier would want to do that simply because of the cost having to plate and permit the truck over and over.
Last edited: Jul 8, 2020
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In a true contractor deal they cannot force dispatch. They can treat you like crap so you quit.tommymonza and Rideandrepair Thank this. -
Last edited: Jul 8, 2020
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