We’re talking about motivation to improve your trucking business this month on the TruckingOffice blog and today, we talk about your motivation for your trucking authority. Once you understand the whats and the whys of getting your own trucking authority, you’ll be able to make the decision that’s best for you.
Do You Want Your Own Trucking Authority?
I’ve spoken with a few truckers over the years who are happy to be drivers. They don’t want to own their own rigs, they don’t want to build a business. That’s fine for them. Driving for FedEx or another logistics company is what they want to do.
Building your own trucking business is not for the fainthearted. Starting any business, especially in this economy, is a risky venture. What are the benefits?
You pick your own loads. If you’ve got a family that you want to see on a regular basis, having your own authority allows you the freedom to turn down loads. Or you can bid on the load boards for the freight that’s right for you. If you want to be a regional carrier, you can limit your trips by distance or time. If you’re committed to the long haul, you can choose those loads. While the feature is more choices for you as a trucker, the benefit is that you control your own life and have the freedom to control your time.
You make your own deals. Leasing on to some carriers means you have to take the loads at the rate they want to pay – even if you will take a loss on the trip. Ask around the truck stop and you’ll hear a couple of names of trucking companies that make their money on the backs of truckers who aren’t paid fairly or expected to break the HOS restrictions – taking the risk on themselves. When you can go on a load board and find a load, you can bid on them and you should bid what you are worth. Do you know what you’re worth? TruckingOffice PRO can tell you with our reports that break down how much money it costs you to run your rig, and how much money you earn per load.
You can make more money. Brokers are looking for reliable, exceptional truckers to deliver loads. They’ll pay for it too. With a broker on your side, you’ll get notice about loads that shippers don’t want on the load boards. Get a good reputation with brokers and they’ll go to bat for you. Detention pay? If the broker’s not in your corner, you probably won’t get it.
Motivation for Your Trucking Authority
The biggest benefit of having your own authority is that you can make the financial decisions that make sense for you.
Authority to Make the Best Decisions
For example, how are you going to file IFTA? Are you going to try to do it yourself (how many hours are you giving up on the road?) Do it with a so-called “free” IFTA calculator (that lets you upload your data for free but won’t let you download your IFTA report without paying them first.)
Your business is your business. You make the decisions. How you build your trucking business is a complicated process. By having your own authority, you make the best choices for you.
Like which trucking software to use.
Free Trial
When you’re thinking about building an owner-operator trucking business, you want to get the best options to choose from. That’s why we offer a free trial of TruckingOffice trucking software. You’ll need secure and reliable accounting software for your invoices, dispatching software to manage your loads, a maintenance scheduler and recorder, and software that manages your trucking data like trucking data, not like an accountant. IFTA, IRP, revenues per mile – that’s what you need. That’s what you’ve got with TruckingOffice PRO.
So take us out for a spin and see how you can get started building your own trucking business with your own trucking authority today.
Is that enough motivation for your trucking authority? Do you think the benefits of having your own trucking authority are worth it?
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