Moving Words – Cyclical

“You have to remember a lot of business is very cyclical.” James Daly

Moving by its nature is cyclic; in other words, the transporting of HHG, Special Commodities, Electronics and Tradeshow will always have good times and lean periods. So when things are going great, you’ve got to anticipate that it won’t last.

What we’re going to discuss in this article is looking back at the segment of moving industry for which you haul and seeing what type of pattern has developed. It’ll tell you when your business will take that dip.

By anticipating the lean periods, you can make special efforts to attract loads. For the extremely sluggish times, you might consider using these intervals for training, equipment repairs or vacations for you and your personnel. Sometimes you just can’t ‘beat a dead horse.’

If you haul certain types of loads, it’s easy to tell when the business will slow down. The example we all know is household moving: during several months each year, capacity is always greater than the available shipments; typically, in January, February and March. Or the tradeshow exhibit-hauling arena where from the first of November until the middle of January, very few trade shows like to compete with the holidays.

Another area in which to look for patterns is if a particular freight lane is slower certain times of the year. Causes can be from weather, culture, raw product availability, annual plant shut-downs for maintenance or a number of other reasons.

By looking at the patterns which affect your loads, you’re able to anticipate periods when they’ll be light and revenue less than desirable. Once you’ve established the ‘when,’ you can plan for other means to increase revenue. Perhaps you can haul other types of loads or run a different lane. If the period is short enough, say, a week to a month, it might be best to take some well-deserved time away from moving – or make preparations for the next onslaught of shipments. Or both. It’s also a great time to check your strategic plan and decide where it needs to be tweaked. Remember, a business is a lot like your trucks. You can’t run it pedal to the metal 24/7/365 without something eventually grinding to a halt. Your business requires maintenance periodically, and the best time to perform business and vehicle maintenance is when fewer demands are made on both. Knowing the cycles of your business permits you to turn what is considered the worst of times into the best of times.

“I think history is just so cyclical.” Alexandra Bracken

Timothy D. Brady © 2018

To contact Brady, go to www.timothybrady.com