2020 Custom Haul Success in an Uncertain World

Written by Clint McDonald, Director of Freight Sales 

This has been a year of the unknown and a year of change—seizing the moment and making the best of it has become the new normal. This is not only true in our personal lives, but our business as well. 

Keeping Our Drivers on the Road

When our volume dropped significantly in March, we decided to perform as an over-the-road (OTR) carrier so we could provide our drivers with miles while minimizing Dot Transportation, Inc. (DTI) costs, including carrier spend.

In a normal world, we custom haul to eliminate empty miles or eliminate the needs for a carrier. This activity would usually result in about 300 loads per week. But, during our COVID-19 peak, we saw our loads spike to 1,100 loads per week. 

Team Effort

Our success was truly a team effort. At our peak, we quadrupled our team, adding resources from other departments to assist in booking loads, providing communication to drivers and brokers, and invoicing. In addition to the resources added in the office, the number of drivers touching a custom haul significantly increased. A majority of our drivers have not picked up and delivered a custom haul since their training, but they were ready and willing to go to destinations they’ve never been to before and work with less certainty than they have in the past.

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It was evident to me that we made the right decision when drivers would share that they were thankful for the work and happy to see places of the country that they have never visited.  

While I hope that 2021 brings us a world with more certainty than what 2020 has provided, I am very proud of how we all came together as a team and made the best of the hand we were dealt.