How to find the right trucking partner for your business
COURTESY / BROWN DOG CARRIERS
Darrell Pardy is director of strategic planning and business development at Brown Dog Carriers and Logistics, a Biddeford-based trucking company.
Fellow business owners can probably relate when I say I’ve had many long days and nights worrying about trucking companies arriving late for pickup, delivering late, delivering damaged product or having poor customer service while representing my business. During my career running and owning a number of small- to mid-sized companies, I have overseen the logistics and transportation of more than $1 billion in products, and over this time, I’ve heard every imaginable excuse — but rarely a genuine apology.
In a few cases, the solution was to start our own trucking division, though not every business has that luxury or wants the added responsibility. After all, do you really want to be in the trucking business when your passion is your product? For most, finding the right trucking and logistics partner comes down to a simple strategy.
Understand and communicate your customers’ delivery expectations
Most product buyers rarely see the supplier, but they always see the company delivering it. It’s important for suppliers to understand their buyers’ freight delivery needs and preferences before selecting a trucking partner. This way, you can clearly communicate buyers’ expectations to trucking partners so they understand what success looks like for the customer. Most importantly, your trucking company must be ready to accept responsibility for meeting those expectations.
Make sure your partner shares your values
Values are more than words. They clearly establish your priorities and allow those doing business with you to understand what you regard as most important. When your partner shares your same values, it makes it much easier for both parties to meet each other’s expectations. When seeking out a trucking partner, take the time to understand how their values compare to yours by asking:
• How do they treat their team members?
• What is their adherence to strong safety protocols?
• How do they demonstrate being customer service-oriented?
• How are they involved in the communities where they live and work?
If a candidate can’t answer these questions to your satisfaction, move on.
Understand your partner’s reputation
You want to pick a trucking partner that has a proven reputation for top-level service and reliability when times are good, but also when times are not so good. Reputation is based on service, success and sustainability. Do your research online, check with peers you trust, and ask owners questions to paint a full picture of their reputation: how are they capitalized? Do they have a proven track record and strong management expertise? Are they reinvesting profits in the business? Are they active in the community? If you call after hours, can you get a senior team member or the owner on the phone?
Make sure the pricing is right for your customer
When choosing a trucking partner, pricing is critical, although it shouldn’t be your sole criterion. It's important to understand what makes up the full price, so you get what you are paying for and only pay for what will meet your end customer’s expectations. For example, if the customer doesn’t need personalized “white glove” service then don’t pay for it. If there are fuel surcharges or waiting fees, you need to know about those. Pricing is important to the bottom line, but it’s also wise not to chase the lowest rates. Unless you want the headaches of dropped orders, late deliveries, sudden rate hikes, additional fees, etc., don’t just go with the cheapest freight rate.
Parting thoughts
Your business needs and deserves more than a trucking vendor. You need a trucking partner. A partner will value constructive feedback just as much, if not more than, praise. A partner takes pride in relieving you of the stress that is inevitable in moving products around the country. These are the same criteria we expect our customers to hold us to when choosing a trucking partner. We look at what we’re doing from our customers’ point of view, and hold ourselves to the standard of delivering “on time, every time, stress free.”
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