I know what you’re thinking, “I have to get home” or “If I’m parked I’m not making money.” You’re right, and we are all guilty of using those reasons taking loads that we shouldn’t even look at. But there are other things to consider, the main reason is the cost to operate. As an owner/operator or a small trucking company, you must run your business as a business, which starts at turning a profit.

Let's think about the RPM that you are actually getting from Brokers or other Freight Forwarders to the CPM that you are spending.
You should have the answer to that question in the back of your mind each and every day. You should be able to answer that question without thinking, exactly how much it takes to operate my truck.

This is not just for fuel and labor, I mean for insurance, taxes, licensing, maintenance, labor and fuel all bundled together. In order for you to run your truck and make money, you need to run it a certain CPM.

When you see a load posted to a load board, you should be able to do the math and determine the profitability. Profitability = Total Revenue – Total Cost, where Total Revenue is the load pay plus any fees and the fuel surcharges.

I think we all need to live by “Say no to cheap freight.” But how many of us actually put the motto into action? It starts with each of us as individuals. We must operate our businesses in a successful manner in order to survive in this highly competitive industry. Calculate your cost to operate, add your profitability, and commit it to memory. And remember, if the load you are looking at doesn’t meet your profitability minimum, then help yourself and the rest of us – Turn Down That Load!!