DispatcHER Tip of the Week🚛🛻💨
In today’s market waiting is costing more than driving in some cases. On the one hand, if you wait, you could lose business income. On the other hand, if you keep moving, you could end up worse off.
Drivers need to be smart and diligent during these times to stay afloat.
• Waiting: I don’t like the wait game. Too many times, the driver was like “Nah, I’ll wait” on a load going exactly where he needs to get because they think they’ll come up on the rate or something better will surface. That strategy works maybe 20% of the time in my experience. I always tell drivers “You study long, you study wrong.” Why wait for a decent load to get away on a hope? Now you lost another day if you wait too long or have to take a real shit load.
• Not waiting: The only bad part of not waiting, in my opinion, is panicking and not planning well so you end up in BFE and deadheading so far you lost all the profit you made on the load getting you where you were. However, I think this is the best option because of the fact that if you plan properly, you will end up where you need to be with some money in your pocket. You may not end up exactly where you want, but if you plan accordingly, you’ll be ahead.
• Costs: Waiting could ultimately cost your business as sitting and waiting for loads to fall into your lap is never a good game plan. In times like this, you need to be a go-getter and be resourceful. For example, if you want to make $200,000/ year, then you have to make approximately $715/day. That equates to working 40 weeks of the year or 280 days. So, instead of waiting for loads to fall out of thin air call load coordinators, agents, and customers, you know, utilize all the load boards and make it happen. You may have to Deadhead a little more, but if it works out in the end and you’re not negative, then you’re up. The moral of the story is that when deciding to move, keep in mind to add your recurring expenses at home and truck costs into the mix.
At the end of the day, use your best judgment. If you’re not sure, ask someone with more experience, Hell ask me!
For more information on Trucking contact Sharmyn at 4kidz4jobz@gmail.com!
Be Safe and Profitable