How does the view smell from back there?
By “Stormin” Norman Horton
Some of us who are old enough remember the Borax Commercial with the 40 mule team pulling a mule wagon across the desert. With that kind of heat, I would hate to be anything but the lead mule. Can you image what it would be like to be stuck in the middle of that team with the only fresh sent coming from the mule in front of you?
I wonder if some of us in the towing and recovery industry run our businesses lie that. It seems like many of our decisions are not based on logic or innovation but on the “mule” in front of us.
Why do we run our business the way we do? Do we do things just because we can get away with it? Or because someone else got away with it? Or do we do things because it is right for your business?
For example, one area where heavy duty towers follow the pack instead of using innovation and the logic that God gave them is pulling tractors with full wind fairings backwards. Be honest now. Why do you do it? Because everyone else does it? Does it save you time? Is it easier? Or is it because you are just plain lazy?
Let’s put it all into perspective, if you’re pulling a tractor with full wind fairing, you may say “Aah, it’ll never hurt it.” Why? Because it hasn’t happened to you yet? Look at it logically. If you are pulling a tractor backwards at 55 mph, you have a big sale or parachute catching the wind. The wind exerts a pressure of X amount per square inch. That gives you a pressure of so many tons pushing on the wind fairing trying to tear it off.
If that thing flies off, guess who gets to pay for it. No, it’s not the customer. And if it doesn’t fly off, who pays for the two mph extra in fuel consumption? Certainly not the customer.
Look at it this way, if you turn around and hook up the tractor from the front with your underreach, then you don’t have to worry about the wind fairing coming off. Plus, you can charge for hooking up to the tractor properly. It’s an amazing thing, but customers will pay you to hook up vehicles property, but you get to pay for the damage when you don’t.
Whoa! That mule in the front of you smells real good now, doesn’t he? I bet you like safety conscious towers. You can really beat the competition by not using straps with your wheel lift. Why do you do it? Because everyone else does? Because it takes to long? “Why should I take the extra time to hook up safety chains and straps? Nothing has ever happened to me when I didn’t.” Amazing. The guy said the same thing right before he pulled the trigger the last time after playing Russian Roulette 20 times. Just because another tower is stupid enough to gamble his business on running without safety chains, are you going to do the same thing?
Boy, it’s getting ripe around here. These mules are smelling bad! How about pricing? What do you base your prices on? Yes, it is important to know what your competition and the industry are charging. It is another tool used in determining your cost structure and the way your business is run. It is important to remain competitive. However, it is also important not to base your process on what someone else is charging just to get an account.
For instance, many towing companies with air bags use the base rate of $300 or $400 an hour for the bags. But a typical air bag job can run $3,000 to $4,000 and take three to four hours.
Last time I went to school, 3 x $300 = $900, not $3,000. Yes, the job is probably worth $3,000 bases on your time, equipment, expertise and liability exposure. But why not be honest with the customer and tell them how you arrive at that $3,000. “Well, we can’t because then they’ll call another tower and get quoted a cheaper rate. Then the customer will have a fit.” So let’s just fool ourselves and tell our customers that 2 x 2 = 22 instead of 4.
That’s one reason our company started charging heavy duty recoveries out on a Price Per Pound basis. We did not want to get penalized for doing the job faster or for the type of equipment we chose to use. Think about it now. Most operators go out on a recovery and charge by the hour. Yet to get the type of return the job deserves, they either drag the time out, or whatever else they can dream up to get a proper return on their investment. Why? Because everyone does it that way?
It is a strange thing to send $150,000 on a nice piece of hydraulic equipment to do the job quicker and easier for your customer. But you charge the same hourly amount as with the old equipment. Makes a lot of sense to spend money so you can charge less doesn’t it? What is wrong with charging the customer for what you know, while still doing the job quickly and efficiently?
Maybe it is time we stop basing our heavy duty recoveries on time, and start basing it on what we are actually having to do. And that is move weight, use our heads, and assume the liability for the cargo and the exposure involved with hazardous materials.
Our company has a rate sheet covering these areas. If anyone wants to discuss the format of it, you are certainly welcome to call. We could go on with examples, but I think that is enough to get you thinking for now. Why do you operate the way you do? Why do you tow the way you do? Why do you charge the way you do? Why do you recover the way you do?
Take a minute, step back and look at your business as a customer would. Then try to figure if you’re doing something because the mule in front of you id doing it or because it is best for your company.
Oh, by the way. If your goal is to stay in the middle, be sure to watch your step. You might find yourself in deep ….!
(Article was published in the December 1990 Towing and Recovery Phootnotes, on Page 1 and is reprinted with permission)
