How Smart Carriers Stay Profitable: Trucking Operations Advice from 21 Years in the Industry

Amy Chavez

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April 22, 2026

Most trucking companies don’t make it.

85 to 90% of them don’t survive past the 18-month mark. Not because the owners don’t know trucking — but because they skip the foundational steps that turn a truck into a business.

In this episode of This Week in Trucking, we sit down with Bo Prock, Operations Manager and subject matter expert at Eagle Logistics. Bo has spent 21 years in logistics, 13 of them managing operations for a fleet that’s now running 38 power units and over 140 trailers.

If you’re an owner-operator or small carrier trying to grow your trucking business the right way — without burning out or going broke — this conversation lays out the playbook.

Episode Highlights

The Biggest Mistake Small Carriers Make

“They spend a lot of time chasing revenue instead of figuring out disciplines for their company that work. And that really sets them back.” — Bo Prock

Bo sees it all the time with carriers under 10 trucks. They try to run like a mega carrier. They chase every load that looks good on paper. They see dollar signs and go for it without guardrails.

Then growth hits — from 5 trucks to 10, or 10 to 20 — and they don’t have the systems in place to manage it.

“They just see some dollar signs across the street and go for it.” — Bo Prock

Growth without discipline is just risk multiplied.

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The Only Data a Small Carrier Actually Needs

“Take expenses divided by miles and figure out your cost per mile. I don’t think they need big, complicated dashboards.” — Bo Prock

For a 1 or 2 truck operation, Bo says you don’t need a $3,000-a-month analytics platform.

You need three numbers:

Cost per mile Revenue per mile Downtime

That’s it. If you know those three things, you can make smart decisions on every load. If you don’t, you’re guessing — and guessing in freight gets expensive.

Cash Flow Is King — Even at 38 Trucks

“Even at our stage, cash flow is the main thing that we try to keep a hold on.” — Bo Prock

Bo runs 38 power units and 140+ trailers. And cash flow is still his top concern.

For small carriers, the problem is even sharper. You need eight drive tires and that’s $4,000–$5,000 out of pocket. But you’re still waiting on a check from a load you pulled five weeks ago.

Not turning cash fast enough is one of the fastest ways to get into trouble.

Why Contract Freight Beats the Load Board

“If you’re not on contract with a customer, that should be your daily goal.” — Bo Prock

Bo doesn’t mince words: backhaul rates don’t pay the bills. They might keep a driver happy and cover fuel, but they won’t keep the lights on.

The carriers who survive build contracted relationships with direct shippers. Bo’s proof? Eagle Logistics grew 300% — organically — because a customer they’d served for 10 years offered them double the load volume.

No salesman. No cold outreach campaign. Just a decade of reliable service.

How do you start? Bo’s advice:

You’re already at places that have freight — start conversations Shake hands, be polite, represent your company well Let your drivers be ambassadors (some of Bo’s best leads came from friendly drivers at delivery stops)

“Everything we do in trucking builds off initial relationship.” — Bo Prock

What Makes a Load Look Profitable but Turn Out Bad

“That load that pays $3.25 a mile has 18 stops on it, and all of a sudden it doesn’t pay all that well.” — Bo Prock

Bo’s team learned this the hard way. A load that looked clean on paper sent a driver to a dirt lot covered in snow with no loading dock. Four hours of driver time. Six hours of dispatch time. The math on that “good load” fell apart fast.

His rule: ask all the questions before booking. And when terms change after you’ve accepted, hold freight brokers accountable.

“Whenever things aren’t what they say, I ask for more money. Every single day.” — Bo Prock

New Equipment vs. Used: The Math Most Carriers Get Wrong

“Even though that number is scary off the front end, proper budgeting and loan alignment can make it just a single line item at the end of every month.” — Bo Prock

Eagle Logistics made the switch to newer equipment about ten years ago. The upfront cost looks bigger, but the math is better.

Older trucks mean more downtime, more emergency repairs, more shop hours. Bo says some carriers spend more time in the shop than on the road. A predictable truck payment beats chasing starters and alternators.

Dash Cams: The Best ROI Investment in Trucking

“The return on investment on cameras is out of this world.” — Bo Prock

Eagle Logistics was involved in two fatality wrecks last year. Neither was their fault. And because they had camera footage, the legal process was straightforward instead of a nightmare.

One incident: a driver was sitting still in traffic when another trucker — on his phone — plowed through two cars into their trailer. The camera footage settled everything.

Bo’s drivers were skeptical at first. They thought it was surveillance. Then two weeks after installation, the cameras saved a driver from a false accident claim — and the word spread fast.

The cameras aren’t about spying. They’re about protection.

AI Is Already Changing Trucking Operations

“AI is absolutely the future. And if anybody argues that, they’re going to end up like a lot of companies did in the ’90s with the internet.” — Bo Prock

Bo runs six personal AI agents across different areas of his operation. He’s not a tech enthusiast by nature — he says he’d happily live on an island fishing for food. But he recognizes that AI is here, it’s not leaving, and the carriers who learn it early will have a real edge.

His advice for small carriers: start with learning how to prompt properly. AI can’t read your mind. Give it the right information and train it to work for your business.

Bo’s Advice: Operate with Intentionality

“If I’m going to go broke, I’m going to do it at home on the couch eating Cheetos. I’m not going to kill myself to end up broke.” — Bo Prock

Bo’s final advice to every small carrier:

Operate with intentionality — don’t chase Set discipline guidelines that hold whether freight is high, low, or nonexistent Put up guardrails so you and your team don’t stray so far that you end up running a ton of miles and making no money Get a good CPA and a basic accounting system like QuickBooks before anything else Communicate properly with your drivers, your employees, everyone

The carriers who get past that 18-month mark are the ones who build the foundation first.

Keep Your Trucking Business Moving with the Right Cash Flow Tools

Cash flow is what keeps compliant, disciplined carriers on the road. But when freight brokers and shippers take 30, 45, or 60 days to pay your invoices, even the best-run trucking business can hit a gap.

That’s where Bobtail comes in. Same-day pay on loads you’ve already hauled. No hidden fees. Real customer support — actual people answering the phone when you call.

Not a loan. Just your money, faster, so one slow payment doesn’t undo the disciplines you’ve built.

Check out Bobtail’s financial tools for cash flow →

Talk to our team about your operation →

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And don’t forget to subscribe to the YouTube channel so you never miss conversations like this one. Drive safe, everyone.

FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions: Trucking Operations and Profitability for Small Carriers

What is the biggest operational mistake small carriers make?

Chasing revenue instead of building disciplines. Bo Prock says carriers under 10 trucks often try to run like mega carriers, and when growth comes, they don’t have the systems to manage it.

What data should a 1-2 truck carrier track?

Cost per mile, revenue per mile, and downtime. Bo says you don’t need expensive dashboards — balance your checkbook at the end of the month, divide expenses by miles, and know your numbers.

Why do 85-90% of trucking companies fail within 18 months?

Most owners know trucking but skip the foundational business steps — getting a CPA, setting up an accounting system, building guardrails, and establishing operational disciplines before chasing growth.

Is contract freight better than using load boards?

Yes. Bo says backhaul rates from load boards might cover fuel but won’t keep the lights on. Contract freight with direct shippers provides the stability and consistent revenue that sustain a trucking business long term.

How did Eagle Logistics grow 300% without a salesman?

By serving a contracted customer reliably for 10 years. The customer eventually offered double the load volume. Relationships and consistent service drove the growth organically.

Should small carriers buy new or used trucks?

Bo switched to newer equipment 10 years ago and says the math is better — predictable payments beat unpredictable shop bills. Older trucks create more downtime, which kills profitability.

Are dash cams worth the investment for small carriers?

Bo calls them the best ROI investment in trucking. Eagle Logistics was cleared in two fatality wrecks last year because of camera footage. The cameras also protect drivers from false accident claims.

How can AI help small trucking companies?

Bo runs six AI agents across his operation for tasks like communication, dispatching support, and workflow management. His advice: learn to prompt properly and start adopting it now — it’s the next internet.

Should I fight a freight broker when load terms change?

Yes. Bo asks for more money every single time terms go outside what was agreed upon. Carriers have the right to hold freight brokers accountable when conditions change after booking.

How can owner-operators improve cash flow without waiting weeks for payment?

When you’re waiting 30–60 days on broker checks while expenses pile up, the gap can stall your operation. Bobtail’s financial tools let you turn unpaid invoices into same-day working capital — so you can cover tires, fuel, and payroll without the cash flow crunch.

How do I find the most profitable freight lanes for my equipment type?

Subscribe to This Week in Trucking’s FREE newsletter for weekly insights on fuel prices, market updates, and interviews with successful carriers who share real strategies that work. Subscribe here.

What is freight factoring, and how does it help owner-operators?

Freight factoring (also called accounts receivable factoring or invoice factoring) is when a factoring company purchases your unpaid invoices and pays you immediately — typically within 24 hours. This gives owner-operators and small carriers the working capital they need to cover fuel, maintenance, and compliance costs without waiting 30–60 days for freight brokers to pay.

Full Transcript

not be turning cash flow enough.

00:05:58:09 – 00:06:02:03
Unknown
You know, that happens a lot with Rick Dylan. Customers listed factoring invoices,

00:06:02:06 – 00:06:04:12
Unknown
and week paycheck. And then you have,

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Unknown
you know, needing eight drive tires for your truck and your needing to come up with 3 or 4 or $5,000 really, really quick.

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Unknown
And you’re still waiting on a bill for a load that you pulled 4 or 5 weeks ago?

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Unknown
also something I would like to know from your perspective and, and with your expertise,

00:06:20:11 – 00:06:22:17
Unknown
turning more now to speak about drivers,

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Unknown
what are some,

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Unknown
characteristics you would say,

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Unknown
make a good driver and an a person you would like to keep on board with you.

00:06:28:19 – 00:06:33:22
Unknown
So that’s got a little temper. Over the years, my, my opinion would been a lot different 7 or 8 years ago.

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Unknown
Currently,

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some of our non-negotiables about how we act and how we present ourselves and make sure that we’re aligned on that.

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Unknown
We have to have two years worth of driving experience to be able to consider a driver with our insurance.

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Unknown
Eagle, our other smaller trucking company that we have is actually training program for guys that don’t have that experience. But,

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Unknown
with the Eagle, they have to have two years experience.

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Unknown
No more,

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than one reportable accident in the last two years is something that I’m pretty big on.

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Unknown
Even if they have a really good argument for why I wasn’t their fault.

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Unknown
tend to try to kind of stay away from that. And in most cases,

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Unknown
and then if they have really any history of,

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violence,

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in their deal, we have learned that that is a very smart one to stay away from. But

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Unknown
other than that, we’re

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Unknown
we’re pretty open,

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giving people a chance.

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Unknown
I try not to be the

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Unknown
that hiring guy that is looking for,

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Unknown
you know, a very specific

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driver.

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Unknown
Because some of my best hires, I think, in the last 15 years have been guys that I think would have been passed up in some other jobs. And at the time, we were really desperate and took them on, and they realized that and it stayed with us.

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Unknown
You know, I’ve got several drivers now that have been with us ten, 12 and 13 years. So,

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Unknown
it’s it’s not always a bad thing to take a shot on somebody as long as you put up the guardrails that really watch it for a while,

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Unknown
Could you let our audience know what type of equipment you’re running?

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Unknown
And also,

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Unknown
one of them that has some complexities people wouldn’t really understand or maybe underestimate from one of those equipment types?

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Unknown
far as trucks, we are a total Peterbilt fleet. That’s all all we got.

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Unknown
All 570 nines.

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Unknown
We, see our old, our oldest ones in the Eagle logistics fleet, our 2020s that are actually getting traded in this week or next week or, some new trucks.

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Unknown
We got,

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Unknown
six new trucks coming in. Another six on order, I think. So we’re doing a little bit of trading there.

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Unknown
But mostly we have, 23 and now 26. That’s after this trade. So,

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Unknown
that’s pretty well, the truck area,

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Unknown
as far as,

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Unknown
trailers, we have 142 driven trailers and a flatbed.

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Unknown
we’ve got a lot of trailers. We do a lot of, drop in hook and staging and, storing, for customers.

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Unknown
As far as complexities, I mean, a a dry box is a dry box. And anybody that know it’s not, it’s just probably not telling the truth. It’s pretty simple.

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Unknown
Trucking goes.

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Unknown
we learned, you know, a few hard lessons on motor transitions with Peterbilt over the years.

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Unknown
We used to be all cat that that was all we had in our trucks. And whenever that went away,

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Unknown
went to Cummins and then, we got convinced to try a bunch of our engines,

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Unknown
they have ran out really well,

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Unknown
but on the, tech side,

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Unknown
as far as my checks out in the shop,

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Unknown
the, Davy system for diagnosing and working on those trucks is is gar.

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Unknown
Oh, it is the word system out there, as far as I’m concerned.

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Unknown
That’s created,

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a few hurdles that we’ve had to get over, and now we’re almost completely back,

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Unknown
to the coming drought now.

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Unknown
And then from your experience over the years, what makes a load look profitable on paper but turn out to be a bad run in actual real life.

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Unknown
I guess first I can tell you that we just had this happen last week during the snow and everything. Okay, our dispatch team booked a what appeared to be a really good load for a driver.

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Unknown
It was, simple. I mean, there was no red flags or anything in at all until the driver got there, and, it was a place that did not have a loading dock.

00:10:09:19 – 00:10:24:23
Unknown
It was in a dirt parking lot, that was covered in snow. And after, you know, fighting with them for quite a long time, we thought we had a good plan, on some high ground where we could get in and out of there, safely,

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Unknown
tires slid off,

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Unknown
of the high ground and kind of buried the truck.

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Unknown
It wasn’t a huge deal,

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Unknown
but it ended up costing the driver about four hours of time. It probably cost our dispatch team 4 to 6 hours worth of their time dealing with it.

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Unknown
So, you know, loads like that,

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Unknown
can’t help or are one thing,

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Unknown
we try to really watch, the other loads that we’re booking.

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Unknown
One thing I really got,

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Unknown
pretty serious on is, a lot of the brokers out there, whenever we’re booking freight through brokers, want us to,

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Unknown
supply tracking, like, you know, through one of one of the bazillion apps out there, you know, that they wants to do that through which, you know, it’s it’s the new way things are happening, and and we pretty well dealt with that.

00:11:07:22 – 00:11:09:09
Unknown
But what I don’t,

00:11:09:11 – 00:11:16:07
Unknown
let happen anymore is for them to use that tracking and then call us three, 4 or 5 times a day asking where the trucks at.

00:11:16:12 – 00:11:26:18
Unknown
I, you know pretty well let the dispatch team let them know they they have the right to fill them, and they can make the choice. They can either make phone calls or help track, they they’re not going to waste our time.

00:11:26:20 – 00:11:35:19
Unknown
And, you know, make drivers America’s most drivers, you know, want to be tracked on it. So, yeah. They they’re not going to get both of us. So, we try to watch that,

00:11:35:21 – 00:11:43:11
Unknown
I think a lot of guys, especially on some of the load boards, there will be rates, you know, sometimes posted on the side without you having to call.

00:11:43:13 – 00:11:58:10
Unknown
And I think they, get a little too excited whenever they first see those numbers without asking all the questions, and they find out, you know, that’ll load, that pays, you know, $3.25 a mile, has 18 stops on it, and then all of a sudden it doesn’t pay all that well.

00:11:58:12 – 00:12:04:17
Unknown
But yeah, I mean, I think putting good people in those, in those positions, like we have in our dispatch office,

00:12:04:17 – 00:12:08:23
Unknown
making sure they ask all the questions that they can ask is, is really important.

00:12:09:04 – 00:12:15:06
Unknown
And then we we really, really hold brokers feet to the fire whenever things aren’t what they say.

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Unknown
If it gets outside of what we’ve agreed upon.

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Unknown
I asked for more money.

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Unknown
Every single day.

00:12:20:11 – 00:12:21:16
Unknown
And, you know, sometimes

00:12:21:20 – 00:12:28:18
Unknown
it’s, it’s a back and forth battle for several hours, and other times they are like, yeah, yeah, this is not what we called you.

00:12:28:18 – 00:12:32:12
Unknown
It would be let us help you out. So. And they should I mean, that’s not

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Unknown
somebody being greedy. You know, whenever you book a load, you agree to a certain amount of terms, and, those terms are basically I’m going to pick up here, drive this many miles to here and deliver it. And when things get vastly outside of that, carriers have a right to ask for more money.

00:12:48:03 – 00:12:48:12
Unknown
I think.

00:12:48:16 – 00:13:01:04
Unknown
when freight slows down, what do you think are some operational levers small carriers can pull before cutting rates? Because we know rates aren’t great. So what would be some other,

00:13:01:08 – 00:13:05:00
Unknown
routes or routes to take when the situation is,

00:13:05:05 – 00:13:11:16
Unknown
I think, the most successful smaller guys out there, including us, you know, we live off contracts.

00:13:11:18 – 00:13:16:12
Unknown
the, the backhaul is what it is. It’s a backhaul. It’s going to be a mac. All right.

00:13:16:16 – 00:13:18:18
Unknown
I think where guys get in trouble is

00:13:18:20 – 00:13:27:06
Unknown
non contracted, you know, customer has to slow down. And so you don’t have that freight and they just jump over and play on the boards the whole time.

00:13:27:10 – 00:13:29:02
Unknown
You know that gets to where

00:13:29:04 – 00:13:44:17
Unknown
you’re pulling a back hole rate both ways. And backhaul rates do not pay the bills. You know, they they may keep a driver happy, they may pay for the fuel, but they’re not necessarily going to keep the lights on and loans paid and all that. That external. So,

00:13:44:23 – 00:13:53:16
Unknown
I preach everybody that if you’re not on contract with the customer, I mean, that should be your, your daily goal.

00:13:53:16 – 00:14:08:06
Unknown
Like we need to go out and find an actual contract that covers however many trucks you have available, on a weekly basis. And I think that’s where real security starts to come from.

00:14:08:08 – 00:14:12:05
Unknown
Because then you can start building that relationship with that customer,

00:14:12:08 – 00:14:16:12
Unknown
the customer that we’ve had for over ten years now, or right at ten years,

00:14:16:14 – 00:14:18:18
Unknown
we just last year

00:14:18:20 – 00:14:24:22
Unknown
got directly offered another part of their business that was twice the low volume.

00:14:25:01 – 00:14:30:11
Unknown
So we tripled the size of our company without having a salesman, not staff.

00:14:30:13 – 00:14:41:01
Unknown
Not that we are constantly going out looking for other customers, you know, and things like that. But developing that relationship under contract and then knowing that they can depend on you to,

00:14:41:01 – 00:14:45:16
Unknown
take care of their freight, take care of their customers and, and do things correctly,

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Unknown
let us grow the company by 300%,

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Unknown
just organically.

00:14:50:08 – 00:14:53:02
Unknown
So you know, that that was really gained.

00:14:53:04 – 00:15:04:13
Unknown
thinking about the 1 or 2 truck carrier looking for contracted freight? What are some tips you can give them to just start those relationships, to open up those relationships?

00:15:04:15 – 00:15:09:23
Unknown
So and there’s going to be some brokers out there that just absolutely destroyed me on this one.

00:15:10:01 – 00:15:30:01
Unknown
No matter. I mean, if you’re out trucking, I’m going to say like this. So maybe they can’t directly point that on, then I’ll be honest. Brokers. If you’re out trucking, you are going to be in places that have freight. No matter how you’re getting that freight, you are going to be in places that have freight and

00:15:30:03 – 00:15:31:18
Unknown
you just got to start a conversation.

00:15:32:00 – 00:15:34:09
Unknown
I mean, you’ve got to shake hands with people. You’ve got to be polite.

00:15:34:12 – 00:15:41:21
Unknown
That’s that’s one of the few things in our company that will get you fired quicker than anything is just bad attitude while you’re out on the road.

00:15:42:02 – 00:15:46:03
Unknown
You know, bad attitudes are not only bad for business, they’re bad for safety. They’re bad for health.

00:15:46:03 – 00:15:47:22
Unknown
You know, there’s just a long list of things,

00:15:48:01 – 00:15:49:03
Unknown
and we have

00:15:49:07 – 00:16:07:13
Unknown
even though we’re not doing it, we’re not to the point to where owner and, you know, like me as the manager of the company, are actually in trucks. Our drivers are still out there in the world at those stops talking to people. And they’ll bring in, you know, phone numbers and go, hey, this guy wants you to call him.

00:16:07:13 – 00:16:17:19
Unknown
It’s a load I delivered, you know, to XYZ, the plumbing or whatever. And you call him up and you know, they want to start a conversation just because of how friendly your driver was while it was there.

00:16:17:22 – 00:16:23:11
Unknown
everything we do in trucking. To me, all is build off initial relationship.

00:16:23:17 – 00:16:25:18
Unknown
There’s a lot of initial contact

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Unknown
affects you positively or negatively for years down the road.

00:16:30:14 – 00:16:36:04
Unknown
So making sure that not only you, but your, the people under you are representing the company,

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Unknown
in the right tone, the right format, the right way,

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Unknown
is really by.

00:16:39:22 – 00:16:43:12
Unknown
From everything you’ve seen in all these years,

00:16:43:14 – 00:16:49:06
Unknown
what’s one operational change that could immediately improve profitability?

00:16:49:08 – 00:16:50:04
Unknown
Definitely. I,

00:16:50:08 – 00:17:02:17
Unknown
I mean, AI is is absolutely the future. And if anybody argues that, they’re going to end up like a lot of companies did in the 90s that work like the internet, like it’s it’s coming whether we like it, love it.

00:17:02:22 – 00:17:07:05
Unknown
Thank you. So much of terminators of that are going to take over the world. It really doesn’t matter. It’s here.

00:17:07:07 – 00:17:08:14
Unknown
It’s not going anywhere.

00:17:08:20 – 00:17:11:13
Unknown
And the people that

00:17:11:15 – 00:17:26:19
Unknown
at least adopt part of it and learn how to, give correct props, you know, I mean, that’s I, I talked to a lot of people whenever I’m consulting on the side that, you know, step one is learning how to prompt properly.

00:17:26:21 – 00:17:33:07
Unknown
I cannot read your mind, so you have to give it the correct information and you have to train it.

00:17:33:09 – 00:17:38:17
Unknown
I think I have six of my own AI agents that work in different areas for me. Bailey.

00:17:38:20 – 00:17:42:23
Unknown
And, you know, I, I get along better with them than I do a lot of people, so.

00:17:43:04 – 00:17:45:01
Unknown
they cut my workload down a lot.

00:17:45:03 – 00:17:51:00
Unknown
I tell everybody, you know, I’m not a huge AI, and I’m not a huge social media fan. I’m not a huge internet. But,

00:17:51:02 – 00:17:55:03
Unknown
I would be perfectly happy living on an island and fishing every day for my food.

00:17:55:05 – 00:18:01:04
Unknown
But right now, I’ve got bills to pay and a job and if I’m going to excel at that job, the next,

00:18:01:09 – 00:18:02:21
Unknown
thing on the horizon is AI.

00:18:02:21 – 00:18:05:04
Unknown
And how far it goes. How far are you willing to go with it?

00:18:05:10 – 00:18:06:23
Unknown
And if we’re talking to,

00:18:07:01 – 00:18:17:08
Unknown
small carriers, owner operators, what would you say is a system they should put in place to maybe help them grow their operation? Maybe

00:18:17:08 – 00:18:18:01
Unknown
Scale up?

00:18:18:01 – 00:18:25:07
Unknown
you know, we talked about cash flow. I think, having a good CPA is, is probably the first thing that you put in your back pocket.

00:18:25:10 – 00:18:31:19
Unknown
To go along with that, though, is a, you know, fairly inexpensive system like, QuickBooks online.

00:18:32:00 – 00:18:37:21
Unknown
to make sure that you’re giving your CPA all the data they need to, to try to make sure you’re doing okay.

00:18:38:02 – 00:18:47:12
Unknown
I mean, you get into some, like, load board type stuff, but, you know, process wise, you know, if you get up to, you know, ten trucks or so, you probably need some kind of basic DMs system.

00:18:47:17 – 00:18:55:10
Unknown
You have to have all these, like, that’s not, you know, a huge conversation anymore. Like, you know, most people just have to be all these me learn how to deal with them.

00:18:55:12 – 00:19:01:15
Unknown
one of the best ROI things that we’ve added to our fleet is the, cameras.

00:19:01:17 – 00:19:10:07
Unknown
it has saved us from paying out. God only knows how much money in accidents, because we have the actual video proof that we weren’t the one that caused it.

00:19:10:13 – 00:19:15:23
Unknown
We, last year we were involved in, in two,

00:19:16:03 – 00:19:17:21
Unknown
two fatality wrecks.

00:19:17:23 – 00:19:20:03
Unknown
One was a

00:19:20:05 – 00:19:43:21
Unknown
and the other, we were absolutely sitting still in traffic in somebody, another trucker was pay attention. He was on his phone. His camera showed that and, plowed the two cars behind us and then into the back of our trailer, and, you know, all of that stuff that we had on video saved me much of having to go back and forth with lawyers and.

00:19:43:23 – 00:19:58:03
Unknown
Well, are you sure that you know, even though you were sitting still in traffic, were you exactly where you should have been at, not over the, you know, the yellow line, you know, three inches I go, you just look at video, you know,

00:19:58:06 – 00:19:59:09
Unknown
you look at it, you let me know.

00:19:59:14 – 00:20:11:04
Unknown
Yeah. It does feel like in, in this day and age, it’s it’s a must like you the conversation around if you should have cameras on the trailer, on the truck and everywhere you can, it’s something.

00:20:11:04 – 00:20:11:15
Unknown
Yep,

00:20:11:17 – 00:20:18:10
Unknown
yep. In drivers, you know somewhat. I know most of them don’t like the the driver facing. And we don’t have driver facing right now.

00:20:18:10 – 00:20:19:18
Unknown
I think we will in the future.

00:20:19:22 – 00:20:22:08
Unknown
Just because again of deals like that,

00:20:22:13 – 00:20:24:22
Unknown
you know, you want to make sure that although

00:20:25:02 – 00:20:40:04
Unknown
you have a picture of the front, you know, that your driver’s not on the phone, that your driver wasn’t around trying to get in the backseat, in all those things, you know, even the forward facing cameras at first, whenever we first put those in, a lot of drivers thought we were trying to spy on them.

00:20:40:04 – 00:21:04:08
Unknown
And, you don’t trust us. And then it wasn’t. I think it was, like, two weeks after we got the cameras put in that there was an accident and wasn’t our fault. The lady got out of the car holding her neck and calling us everything in the book. I mean, just ringing us up. And the cop showed up and she gave them the spiel, and as they were all standing there, the driver said, oh, I’ve got camera.

00:21:04:10 – 00:21:28:08
Unknown
You know, I bet my boss can can pull this and show it to you. And it totally changed the entire time. You know, the ladies, you know, she’s apologizing then, hey, maybe I hit you. Are you okay? And so after that point, you know, he spread the word. He was like, hey, these gamers are, you know, savers and and and they are, it has it has nothing to do with want to spy on drivers.

00:21:28:10 – 00:21:34:00
Unknown
You know, I’ve got way better things to do with my day than watch video footage of guys driving around the country. So,

00:21:34:03 – 00:21:39:05
Unknown
they’re so valuable. The return on investment all gamers is is out of this world

00:21:39:07 – 00:21:53:23
Unknown
And lastly, had of this wonderful, wonderful conversation. If you had one piece of advice to give a small carrier to say efficient, to stay compliant or to be profitable in this current market, what would it be?

00:21:54:01 – 00:21:55:02
Unknown
getting above,

00:21:55:05 – 00:21:58:15
Unknown
you know, the 112 truck, communication is key.

00:21:58:17 – 00:22:04:11
Unknown
You you have to get properly to your truck, your truck drivers, your employees, all that,

00:22:04:14 – 00:22:09:23
Unknown
but I’m going to say as, as a whole, you need to operate with intentionality.

00:22:10:03 – 00:22:12:01
Unknown
Don’t don’t chase things.

00:22:12:05 – 00:22:20:08
Unknown
Have some real discipline guidelines that that you follow, whether freight is high or low or nonexistent,

00:22:20:10 – 00:22:22:08
Unknown
that give your company,

00:22:22:12 – 00:22:24:10
Unknown
your employees some guardrails.

00:22:24:15 – 00:22:29:08
Unknown
To where they don’t stray so far outside of that, that at the end of the month

00:22:29:12 – 00:22:44:16
Unknown
especially, you don’t want to run a ton of miles and end up not making any money. I tell everybody, if if I’m going to go broke myself, I’m going to do it at home on the couch, eat Cheetos. I’m not going to kill myself to end up broke.

00:22:44:18 – 00:22:55:16
Unknown
And and there’s guys out there that do that every time, you know, I, I just read a study the other day that it was like, 85 to 90% of trucking companies do not last past the 18 month mark.

00:22:55:18 – 00:23:01:11
Unknown
and they should, you know, I mean, most guys don’t go buy a truck and trailer and go, okay, now we need to learn about trucking.

00:23:01:11 – 00:23:06:03
Unknown
Like it’s guys that have some kind of knowledge. They just miss those first steps.

00:23:06:05 – 00:23:17:17
Unknown
and getting those off early, you know, the CPA, some kind of accounting system, putting up guardrails, you know, mission statement, vision, you know, all that stuff to get those guardrails to where you can be a success

00:23:17:19 – 00:23:21:21
Unknown
Thank you so, so much for your time and for your words.

00:23:21:23 – 00:23:29:11
Unknown
I know this is be very helpful for our carriers. Yeah. Is there anything else you would like to add? Before we wrap up?

00:23:29:15 – 00:23:38:01
Unknown
So if people are on LinkedIn or Facebook, you know, look me up too. I’ve got a newsletter that goes out a few times a week. A lot of people subscribe to it.

00:23:38:01 – 00:23:39:08
Unknown
It’s got an excellent open rate.

00:23:39:13 – 00:23:48:16
Unknown
And, we tie in with some industry leaders that I’m personally friends with and spread some good information. There’s no charge. It’s just trying to help guys out on the weekly.

00:23:48:18 – 00:24:02:13
Unknown
And for all our listeners, as you know, our links to This Week in Durkin’s newsletter will be in the description we’ll put down those LinkedIn page and their newsletter as well so you can subscribe.

00:24:02:14 – 00:24:20:19
Unknown
And before we wrap up, if you’re an owner, operator or a small carrier running under your own authority and cash flow is something you’re trying to get under control, I’ll leave the link in the description for Bob tails Factory and service. Same day pay, no hidden fees and real customer support. Yes, everyone answering the phone whenever you call

00:24:21:01 – 00:24:35:12
Unknown
Just a simple tool to help you keep your business moving forward. Don’t forget to subscribe to This Week in Tracking so you never miss a great conversation like the one we just had with Bo. Bo, thank you again for joining us and for everybody watching. Thank you. And Drive Safe.

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