If you own a trucking business or hold the position of fleet manager, then you know the hardships that get tossed your way when fetching clients.
With odds against you because of the overwhelming competition, the problems aggravate. Many new and well-established transportation companies already dominate the market.
You might be a great trucker, but that does not make you a good business owner. It will help if you learn the tricks to run and expand your transportation business by gaining more clients.
Here are ten ways to promoting a transportation business and gaining new clients to proliferate your profits –
Divert your time and funds towards investing in the right equipment for your transportation organisation.
However, this decision is expensive; and thus, you must review your fleet first and then decide upon the necessary investments.
You can search for a sell/lease as an alternative course to have the equipment for your trucking business.
To purchase the required equipment, make some down payments and then avail a loan to pay the rest of the money. You can pay the remaining amount in instalments.
Installing state-of-the-art equipment will help you grab the attention of the clients and help you land a sophisticated and elegant impression.
If your customers are not automatically giving you service reviews and recommendations, ask them politely for the same.
It does not matter if they are talking about you on social media or spreading a casual word of mouth, everything would prove beneficial as people are highly active on social media and have great faith in a positive word of mouth from a friend or an acquaintance.
Ask customers to post a review for your business on Glassdoor, Google Reviews, or other social media platforms. A few pleasant words can spread a respectable reputation of the services offered by your firm.
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Many new transport operators rely on load boards to obtain their first shipping customers. However, load boards can get pricey, as you are required to bid for the lowest price, which lowers your profits.
Instead, make sales calls on your own. You should try to build your customer list, which will eventually help you devise a list of shippers.
Many of these shippers might become your loyal customers. For instance, you can secure contracts through grocery stores in your locality to make thousands of bucks per month per truck.
Every time you contact your potential customers, hand out your business cards to them. A business card is your best bet to distribute your contact information and ensure retention.
If your business card is attractive in terms of its design, approach, and style, this will reflect your creativity and attention to detail, which will lead to new clients willing to collaborate with you.
In addition, you could try offering gift cards for client loyalty. It will show that you value your clients and are willing to reward them for their business. It can also help build a stronger relationship between you and your clients, making them more likely to return to you in the future.
Handing out your card to your clients is a sophisticated and professional way to introduce your business while providing them with the contact details of the company.
Outperforming your competitors is one of the best ways to market your trucking business to potential clients.
Notice what your competition is offering, then try to implement it in your firm but with higher standards.
If your competitors are offering a better deal, try to beat it with your unique ideas. Employ social media networks, websites, and newsletters to increase your outreach.
Display the price offered by the competition, then show yours which if viable, should be more economically feasible. You can even toss in a substantial offer with the deal.
It will help if you put your transportation business online, considering most of your prospective customers will browse for your services on the internet.
Your website must contain all the relevant knowledge about the various transportation services provided by your trucking business while being user-friendly.
Website optimisation is necessary as users will not wait for your dense website to load, but try a different link available on Google.
The website must contain crucial pages, which include About Us, Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions, to ensure that your customers take your business and services seriously.
When your clients enter your office, one of the first things they would want to notice is your brochure to discover salient features of your transportation business summed-up in a nutshell.
They will carry your brochure with them back home as a reference to your trucking business.
Therefore, you must have a professional brochure design that can showcase your trucking services pleasingly and unforgettably.
A brochure that stands out in the design approach can entice the customers toward your business.
Flyers are one of the most cost-effective ways of business promotion. All you need to do is stand at one place in a local street or marketplace of your city and hand-out your flyers to the passerby.
People looking for transportation services will undoubtedly notice your flyers. Others might pass the information to fellow peers who need the services.
Try to incorporate details and images of your transportation firm in the flyer for better insights without appearing verbose.
For tachograph analysis, Samsara is an excellent option as it provides deep insights on your fleet vehicles and interprets the data received from a tachograph in a user-friendly fashion.
Social media platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and YouTube can significantly enhance the outreach of your business.
Create a dedicated social media promotion page for different social channels. Then, start uploading text-based content accompanied by some visuals regularly.
Upload videos on YouTube-like platforms to drive engagement amidst your potential customers.
Upload amusing brief messages on the Twitter page of your business related to the special offers and services you offer.
Establish clear expectations for how you intend to market to your customers, what you suppose to accomplish and by what date.
For instance, you wish to market to your customers via a Twitter account. You give someone $100 off your quoted price, provided they mentioned they came across a particular Twitter post.
You then establish a goal, claiming you want to get at least one individual to point out the offer within the next two weeks.
If you can meet or exceed your marketing goals, consider revising your goals. Calculate the results and the reasons for a particular outcome, and based on these points, devise a new strategy.
Irrespective of the size of your trucking company, you can attain actual results by spending about an hour each day marketing your services.
You can even consider hiring a marketing professional to help you attract the customers to your door so you can concentrate on providing them with the best service.