As a micro or small freight carrier, landing a massive freight hauling contract with a large manufacturer or a dedicated run for a mega retailer’s distribution center might seem like you’ve hit the gold mine, but it’s not necessarily the case.

Believe it or not, you're on a team. A big, big team.

Think of your team as a combination of all the people, companies, and organizations required to help your freight trucking service run smoothly. Many owner/managers think only the employees who are working for them are members of their trucking teams. But you know better...

We’ve all seen the cell phone commercial where an actor is yelling into a phone, “Can you hear me now?”

In trucking, it’s not just being able to hear someone on the other end of a line that’s important—it’s just as important to be listening and understanding what is being communicated.

In the world of freight logistics, there are two distinctively different types of trucking operations.

One is the very large behemoth of a trucking machine that seemingly eats every load that’s in its path. Though it’s slow to adjust to changes in the trucking environment, it's very efficient in moving large volumes of freight all at once.

Have you ever wondered, "What is my trucking company’s prime directive?"

Like guiding values, your prime directive determines your behavior as an organization.

Ultimately, a carrier’s prime directive is to pick up and deliver loads on time, with items shipped arriving at destination in the same condition they left origin, while creating a reasonable profit along the way.

What’s the best way to accomplish this goal?

Want to know the key to trucking success?

Become the “go-to carrier” within a selected niche.

Doing so requires you to learn about every shipper and broker who ships loads within your selected hauling specialty. The plan—your plan—is to become the expert that shippers and brokers seek out to handle their shipments.

Why You Should Become a Niche Carrier

January is here and a new year is looming — and I use the term “looming” advisedly. For many small carriers around the nation, 2012 means another year of dealing with difficult-to-satisfy shippers and another round of HOS and CSA slowing the wheels of progress for your trucking company.

You can’t do much about government regulation. But, that shipper that has you grinding your teeth every time you deal with him — something can be done about the situation.

Fire him.

The Time-Sucking Shipper