"The almighty $2.00 a mile theory"

Even as a leased o/o I do this. $1000+ is my weekly salary.

My point is you don't have to have your own authority, or haul for $2 p/m to be successfull. Besides, success is in the eye of the beholder.

 

I already have a thread doing that.

 

So VERY true!! The hardest part of accomplishing that is having the time to go out and find the customers. Word of mouth is best for customer leads, but most people are tight lipped about that for good reason. Another caveat of going out and finding your own customers is that by only having one truck and trailer(in my case), you are limited in what you can offer that customer.

This is a very good thread Optimus and others! I'd like to see it morph into more about WHAT IT TAKES to find $2.00 all miles average. Atleast in my BEP, I could make a killing at that all miles average. It is out there, I know that for a fact. What makes it interesting, is how people in different areas are making it happen.

 

That is the question many folks want answered! IMO you must have your own Authority or lease with a percentage CO. These two options won't get you $2 per without using your head,asking questions,ect. Making a plan and sticking with it will.

 

You're starting to get a little closer to asking the right questions. Eventually you might even realize that $ per mile isn't the end all be all to being financially successful in a big truck. Its merely one small part of a total package.

 

Perhaps you can expand your customer base by carrying business cards and handing them out.....

As an example.....Last week I picked up a load of granite countertops from a distributor in an industrial park....Another business owner came up to me while I was tarping the load and started asking the particulars......

He was impressed that although I was based in California...SO-CAL in particular, that I will go just about anywhere if the rate is right.....

It's like fishing....You may not get a "strike" every time you cast out the "bait"...but eventually you "catch" your "fish".....

 

That is my only game as of now; handing out business cards. In the following weeks to come, I plan on making a couple of days out of nothing more than going cold door. There are so many places near where I live not to try and see what can happen. It's all a numbers game. Fishing like you said, but more like with a cane pole! I also have my foot partially in the door at a couple of places by knowing people on the inside working to get me a shot. I have a relatively strict plan that will keep me no more than 500 miles away from my home territory, mostly in one certain direction where I know I can always do good on a return load.

 

[QUOTE=" OPTIMUS PRIME ";1686756]

Bingo!!!!!
I want to know what it takes to get to those levels. What are you doing differently to separate you from other o/o? If it's a contract, low bep, no or little responsibility at home, etc? Please help us with your knowledge so we can get to your levels...

[/QUOTE]


Well I'm not personally at 'that' level yet with my own authority. I say yet, because I will be there. I could already be there, but I do not want to pull a reefer! I will give you a little bit of my background. Hopefully none of it will bore anyone...

I've been an O/O since 2000. All of the rates I name here are to the truck after any carrier/agents cut. At first, I did nothing but expedited freight in a dry van. I was leased to a small well known carrier in a busy freight corridor. I was getting rates of $2.00-$2.60 per mile going out. Getting back with mostly broker freight was in the $1.00-$1.50 range. I was generally averaging $1.65 all miles. Problem with that was that the expedited freight rates come and go way too quick. There were periods when I might only get in a 1200 mile week. After getting fed up with that after a few years, I turned to a dedicated milk run also in a dry van. Light loads, easy stops, and dependable home time. Leased to another small local carrier. I ran 2600 mile weeks averaging $1.42 per mile. This was when fuel was still in the $1.40-$1.60 per gallon range. Things tightened up and all of the O/Ops were let go. After stumbling around a year or so working with another dry van outfit, and piddling a bit with a reefer, I finally found another good dedicated deal leased to a carrier. Side note: I do not see how anyone can deal with the reefer business!! That is another story for another time. The last dedicated deal I ran for 2.5 years up until the latter part of this year. I ran 180 miles R/T twice per day, averaging 9 hours gone from the house, home every afternoon, 5 days a week. To me, it was the almost perfect job. When fuel was at its peak a couple of years ago, I was at $2.28 per mile, all miles. With fuel at $2.50 per gallon, I was at $1.77 per mile, all miles. I was pocketing over $2200 per week being home every afternoon running only 1800 miles per week. The downside to that deal was that it was automotive, and I had to deal with several shutdowns per year. Not a big deal, but being off 8 weeks out of the year is a factor. Long story short is that the carrier brought in a small fleet to cover the lane and cut the rate deep. The funniest part about that deal is that it is a scumbag carrier that EVERYONE has heard of and you would never guess they paid that one particular lane that much money.
After leaving that deal with a very bad taste in my mouth, I took a little time off, then decided to get my own authority. Only after watching/listening to a couple of others who had recently done the same also within this year.
My gameplan was simple. Stick within an area that you are familiar with, and that also has a great track record of good paying freight in and out of it. My idea is that if you can run out and back from near your home, your chances of being hung out to dry and having to wait days to be loaded become slim. Even if you do not get loaded when you want, you are home, or can go home conviently instead of wasting time being in a truck that is not making any money. My time is the biggest factor of my BEP. That is the ONE thing you cannot get back. I also have the advantages of having a well maintained paid for truck and trailer and another income at home. All factors I must make you aware of. I have been on the complete other end of that stick, and it was #### hard!