- building an application to assist with dispatching. Dispatching in the current state of the world is a human heavy process with a lot of phone calls. The application was built to make it easy to pick the correct shipment opportunities.
- paying for fuel and hotel stays. Fuel (other than labor, the drivers) will be your largest cost by far. Also, hotels for drivers that aren’t driving sleeper trucks (trucks with a built in sleeping cabin). This happened rarely but did occur when we took shipments late in the week. For the uninformed: never pick up a shipment on Friday, as it will likely extend over the weekend and your truck will stay full over that period.
- paying for trucks. Whether you rent or buy, the trucks have to be paid for. If you are brokering shipments only (as a broker vs as a carrier) this won’t be a cost
>Dispatching in the current state of the world is a human heavy process with a lot of phone calls. The application was built to make it easy to pick the correct shipment opportunities.
Can attest to the first part of this statement. What went into your decision making process in selecting the right opportunities? Focusing on a specific geography/lane? Type of cargo?
Appreciate your candor and wishing you success with your business! What do you think of this approach: I was thinking of starting off as an independent broker (I have a niche customer base I can serve) and using load boards to book independent truckers. Over time as I gain traction, add a customer facing layer for booking/tracking and retain full-time drivers.
- building an application to assist with dispatching. Dispatching in the current state of the world is a human heavy process with a lot of phone calls. The application was built to make it easy to pick the correct shipment opportunities.
- paying for fuel and hotel stays. Fuel (other than labor, the drivers) will be your largest cost by far. Also, hotels for drivers that aren’t driving sleeper trucks (trucks with a built in sleeping cabin). This happened rarely but did occur when we took shipments late in the week. For the uninformed: never pick up a shipment on Friday, as it will likely extend over the weekend and your truck will stay full over that period.
- paying for trucks. Whether you rent or buy, the trucks have to be paid for. If you are brokering shipments only (as a broker vs as a carrier) this won’t be a cost