It was early April when forty-five FXG contractors plus a handful of the eTruckBiz leadership team were seated at rows of classroom-style tables inside a windowless conference room. A Saturday morning respite from the sensory-overwhelming casino at the stylish Park MGM on the Las Vegas Strip. Day One of an intensive two-day learning session about the latest ISP Negotiations.
As you're aware, we've been explaining that contractors fall into one of two categories. A Lifestyle Business that bumps along for years with daily delivery hurdles thrown its way while providing the owner(s) with minimal profits needed to stay afloat, or a Transportation Company focused on systematically growing profits and reducing expenses. There's no judgement on our part - a number of owners prefer a Lifestyle Business because of its simplistic appeal; however, it's our job to inform our clients about the reality of today's FXG environment. Plus, we all make choices even when it's not apparent we're making conscious decisions.
One of the attendees felt it was his responsibility to challenge the merits of this truth and justify to the others in the room that owners and their managers can deliver packages while running a Transportation Company. Let me ask you a question...does Henry J. Maier who in his role as president and chief executive officer of FedEx Ground and is responsible for the strategic direction and performance of the company occasionally consider filling in for a Terminal Manager? You may think that's a ludicrous example, but it's the same as your business - simply on a grander scale.
Understandably, the student to whom I'm referring is a loyal client of ours (whom we appreciate) and he truly believes that owners have the discretion to captain a delivery vehicle if they so choose while calling themselves a Transportation Company. Allow me to explain why that's untrue. Time spent driving a vehicle prohibits an owner or manager from reviewing profit and loss data, recruiting, hiring, training, negotiating vehicle maintenance expenses, and a laundry list of other more important tasks required of decision-makers than delivering packages.
If you attend one of our in-person classes, you'll learn that our curriculum includes many elements of successfully growing your business. We intend for these sessions to be eye-opening and we also understand that presenting this information will draw push-back. However, facts are facts and you can't be one thing and call yourself another. You can't truthfully claim to be a vegetarian and occasionally eat bacon covered char grilled burgers.
Our role at eTruckBiz is to educate our clients and mentor them on their paths to economic success. Every journey is unique, but important elements along the way are overlooked without working with an experienced guide. We work with hundreds of FXG contractors and we've successfully worked alongside our clients in negotiating thousands of agreements. In-person learning is another way we provide our services and we enjoy the live interaction with our clients - even when they challenge us.
Until our next post...