The next significant trucking business influencing factor

Coupled. with rising freight demand and increasing truckload prices, this situation paints a welcoming picture for new trucking businesses. In 2018, the trucking industry had a shortfall of about 900,000 qualified truck drivers (Raphelson, 2018). This means that the industry battled to cater its market fully. Thus, trucking freight customers had to find other ways to get their goods delivered in time and cost-effectively to their destination.

This is an excellent opportunity for you to join the industry and help it meet customer trucking demands. Experts predict that conditions in the trucking industry will likely remain strong and gradually improve. In fact, these experts see the sector growing by 27% in the next 10 years! That’swelcome news to a person like you. But there’s more good news.

Small trucking companies dominate the trucking industry

With 91% of them running their businesses with six or fewer trucks (Corporation Service Company, n.d.). This indicates that you can get business in the industry even if you are a beginner. Now, if you empower yourself with the right knowledge and skills, you’ll be able to reap extraordinary economic results in this industry. And you’ve already taken the first step in gathering the required knowledge and skills.

Factors That Influence the Trucking Industry

It’s essential to arm yourself with the right knowledge before starting any business. More importantly, you need to know those niggling issues that could derail your ambitions. The same applies to the trucking business. There are factors that every carrier owner should know and take into consideration in their strategic planning. Let’s discuss seven of the most important factors.

Supply of Truck Drivers

A trucking business cannot survive even a day without drivers. Truck driving is a demanding job because you can spend days away from home and far from friends. Then there are government regulations, the weather, and schedules that require a great deal of responsibility. Overall, the lifestyle of truck drivers doesn’t appeal to many people. Earlier I shared that the U.S. trucking industry is in dire need of qualified drivers. The aging of current drivers has exacerbated the situation even more. Furthermore, the industry is seeing dropping numbers of employees who choose truck driving as their profession. As a result, businesses battle to keep or find qualified truck drivers. This forces Trucking business owners to offer their drivers better salaries to keep them for longer or to attract new drivers.

This situation isn’t ideal for a trucking business start up because it can lead to increased overhead and reduce its survival chances. You may wish to consider driving your own truck in the beginning if you’re already qualified. If you prefer to hire drivers, your negotiation skills need to be sharp to avoid overpaying. Perhaps you might consider other benefits like stock options for your drivers instead of hiring them at large salaries.