END OF YEAR #'S; few thoughts for the newbies

[SquareOne]

(07-04-2020 )LRT1549 Wrote:  SquareOne let me preface this by saying I am in no means saying anything about how you do your stuff. However Looking at your expenses per mile they seem low to me. Now I'm nowhere near in the same boat as you. I don't know what you do, what you pull, where you run, or what your maintenance is. But i wonder if your actually truly including everything...

-----No offense taken, I appreciate the conversation!---

Yes , the expense/mile is low (it's actually $0.566), and that was my business plan and ultimate goal before I actually purchased the truck and took the plunge as a new O/O. Hopefully, it will continue to get lower as the miles get put on.

That CPM is EVERYTHING.....the entire business...truck, trailer, and forklift. All expenses get itemized into a program and I get to see in real time the actual CPM for EVERY mile the truck travels. The only change I made from the program was breaking down my insurance costs by the month (I pay in full, therefore at this point I would divide that amount by 12 and then multiply by 7 to get the accurate cost of insurance to this point.)

(07-04-2020 )LRT1549 Wrote:  ...I say this because I have had several conversations with other O/O's that believe they account for every dime they spend on their business, but when I start asking them specifics I find all sorts of things they don't account for....

^^^-------This statement is absolutely true. Unfortunately this is also why it seems so many fail at this game. How can you know the health of your Business if you don't know the cost of the goods you sell (miles in this case). Many of the horror stories I read prior to getting into this industry were directly related to poor planning, neglect, and lack of attention to detail.

(07-04-2020 )LRT1549 Wrote:  .... the only thing aerodynamic about it is the swan on the hood....

^.....Thats freakin funny lol!

(07-04-2020 )LRT1549 Wrote:  ...However, and without knowing you, your equipment, your maintenance regime ect, I wonder if you are indeed accounting for EVERYTHING...

Basically here is what I do... First if I buy anything, and I mean ANYTHING I get a receipt this don't matter if it's personal or business... ... But we are talking business expenses here..

Here's one example of things I find with others.. Paper Towels... I find guys that buy a few hundred dollars worth of paper towels every year for cleaning windows in the truck ect. They buy these with their groceries and never account for them in their business expenses.

Air fresheners, Windex, Paper Towels, Pens, Paper, and the list can go on and on... Re-examine your purchases and see what you might be missing. All to often I find that people think that ONLY truck specific items count as business expenses when in fact ANYTHING you purchase for the use in, on, or for that BUSINESS, not just the truck is a business expense...

What I do is when I go shopping (I prepare and eat all my meals in my truck) I separate everything. If it's not food, or for my personal health, or consumption, and it will be going in my truck then it is paid for separately on it's own receipt and put into my P & L as a business expense because that's what it is.

PrePass, Internet load boards, up to 75% of your cell phone bill, parking fees, all sorts of things like these I find guys not accounting for, but yet they are all business expenses and should all be included in your expense calculations.

Now from what i read your looking good , and doing a great job, specially for someone just coming into this industry blindly. Keep up the good work and congratulations.

Mike

I agree with much of the above. EVERY red cent must be accounted for in order to determine not only your current business health, but also for tax purposes. Not sure about anyone else, but I damn sure don't want to give Uncle Sam any more than I have to! If you don't claim a legitimate expense, you are doing nothing but skewing your business perspective financially as well as costing you more money when that tax deadline rolls around.

- I would be more than willing to share the specifics for those interested to see where the expenses go. I am fortunate to have a dedicated and simple run with little to no elevation change. That helps greatly with fuel mpg (and stress for that matter). I never stay on the road as this gig is local so that too will save a few bucks. My insurance, although not cheap, went down from last year (just over $8700) so that helped the CPM from last years figures. Last year, I replaced MANY items on the truck, so other than new wheels/tires on the trailer and brakes/wheel seals on one truck axle and a windshield, up to this point I have fortunately have had no major $$$ breakdowns. Work has also been very busy, so the more miles without a big $$$ breakdown translates to a lower CPM through averages. Up to this point, other than normal maintenances, everything has been doing quite well.



**BTW, I think Rawze has some ridiculously low CPM numbers as well....it can def be done, just takes a load of diligence and attention to detail**