mercer transportation

@cnja

I would never book a load on a Sunday I was just making an example first off.. Secondly I don't care what the guy has booked I have only been prebooked my first few weeks here. After that it's been hey it's tight or hey it's slow.. You're not gonna tell me the Van side is flourishing because I can give u a list of drivers old and new here that are doing Vans that want to either do Fb or just leave all together.. My profile is set to take any load possible... I loaded out of the house going to Minnesota this week.. Minnesota is a good area supposedly..I tried to get a load before I even got there.. I couldn't do it... Had to wait till I got empty.. Even still sat for a 34 hour.. We can agree to disagree and that's fine... Anyone that ask me on the road about Mercer I always say great company and if u come over do Flat... I'll never bad mouth Mercer cause they are a great company with even better people but I'm going Flat.. If u not on a dedicated account ie Northern Tool or etc your gonna struggle a bit

 

Obviously I'm flat and not van, so things may be a little different, but I don't just run anything to make my payment, that's stupid. The point of running a business is to maximize your profits whether you have a lease truck, financed truck, or no payment at all. Some people can make that happen, others cant, has nothing to do with whether you lease a truck or not. As far as pre-booking, we go by position as well, but you can still do it.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong on this since I have not been here but a few months, but positioning comes into play more the longer you wait to book. If I'm going to empty out tomorrow, then run a two day load next, book another two day load after that, I'm booked up until friday. If I'm truck A and truck B is also booked up to the same day but empties an hour sooner according to eta, then he is 1 I'm 2. If truck C comes along and doesn't pre-book his loads then no one knows where he will be next yet so he isn't on the board position for friday. Truck A and B both find loads they want and get them booked tomorrow for Friday. If truck C ends up empty first on Thursday after finding loads last minute, then he should have been position 1, but since he waited those two loads are already gone by the time he becomes position 1, thus limiting his freight. That's overly simplified taking all preferences as equal, but things begin to shuffle a little more once preferences are taken into account.

I personally try to book my next two loads out, but depending on the area I'm going I may gamble a little and wait until I'm almost empty before I find something I'm happy with. I rarely sit without knowing what I have next. That doesn't mean I am against sitting for a load, I do it, I just know ahead of time that I'm going to. If there isn't something where I am going that I'm happy with, I expand my search and I'm not against deadheading. I know most people seem to figure their all miles pay and use that to judge whether to take a load or not, but I think a little different than most. If a load pays $2500 for 1000 miles ($2.50/mile) but you have to deadhead 400 miles to get it, now it pays about $1.78 all miles. Some people won't do that. It costs me about $35 per 100 miles I deadhead, so I subtract the $140 to d/h and now the load pays $2360 or $2.36/mile. If I feel that is worth my time and effort, I may do that, but I also take into account the time I'm losing and look at a gross revenue per day I'm under a load to help judge whether the d/h justifies itself.

 

Yeah, I've been noticing on a lot of the loads I've ran lately they have paid empty miles even when I didn't ask for it, it's always a nice bonus to see the agent throw an extra $2-300 unsolicited on a load

 

Thanks but I've been running my own truck for long time i don't and tips on rates and what to take.. I don't take anything either.. But it's a fact that you guys with the quality trucks will take a load that lets say me or someone else won't because of the weekly payments.. You don't have the freedom to sit for days because I won't get paid or just not paid alot... 2 trucks in a market is cool but when u get to market where it's 9 ahead of you you're gonna sit.. Unless u get lucky.. I'm just saying

 

That doesn't make sense to me if they are taking Anything to keep moving they are not taking the time to look for the best freight witch would leve you more shots at good freight if you are watching the board during Business hours and I don't mean after empty as for rates if you are trying to say mercers van rates are lower then the rest of the market I don't agree and you will proable think the same about the flat side ther are lots of loads posted under a 1.60 not going to the greatest of places I am learning fast that when in upper Minnesota to look for the short hop that pays 2.75 to 3.00 per loaded mile to move a little south granted it is only 500 to 700 for a day's work but you can wait a long time for that 1.80 to 1.90 load and yes I do try to book them befor empty they use some sort of estimated empty eta, and I have found that that some times my standings are a little better before empty then after especially if the consignee is slow about getting me unloaded

 

Again, you're generalizing. I took two weeks off for the 4th of July. I was ready to go home Friday and almost d/h from Long Island to Mississippi because I couldn't find anything that I felt justified taking the load. Something came up last minute going to NC that covers my fuel and I'm d/h from here tomorrow. I'm already working on finding a load for when I come off home time. I'm not telling you you are running your business wrong, it's your business not mine. What works for me may not work for you, I was just saying what I do. I take a 34 at least once a week, go home for a week or two at a time and am far from struggling. You keep trying to blame lease guys for running anything and everything, but if that's true, then they are taking the cheap freight and that leaves the good freight for you and everyone else, where is the problem?

 

Well I can't comment on the lease guys or even much for the van guys. But the load I pick up in the morning I prebooked Tuesday or Wednesday of last week. I was #26 but somehow (yeah I got a lil lucky) managed to get this load paying over $3 on 620 miles. Not a bad deal for a day's work. Most loads I get when I prebook I'm #10-15. Razor explained the board a little better then I am willing to on an open fourm but if you want to pick my brain a little feel free to PM me and I'll try to share what I've learned here so far in regards to the load board.

 

Sorry about that

 

Most loads I book I'm not even matched to, but what I look at and what my coordinator looks for are obviously a little different. The ones I'm matched to I'm rarely closer than 7 or 8, but I just assume those people are either not pre booking or are on hometime. In other words, I assume they aren't looking out as far as I am, so odds are still good I'll get it

 

Exactly, I purposely have tighter restraints on what I'll match to. Otherwise my coordinator is calling trying to offer me a dozen loads at a time. I my only match to 50% (if that) of the loads I take. When looking for loads I use the advanced setting, never the matched loads setting. To much good money missed trying to use that.