People are always moving. It doesn’t matter the time of year. Some people are moving across the city, some across the state. Others across the country. And more people are moving across the world. But they’re always someone moving, and that means there’s always the opportunity to put food on the table.

But the best thing about it is that you work for yourself. You decide when to take on customers and you decide when you want to work, meaning that if your truck is your company, you can just work part time on weekends as a great way to make extra income. So, if you’re looking to start a moving company, you came to the right place.

How to Start your Own Moving Business

You might wonder “what do I need to start a moving business?”Or have questions like “how can I start a moving business?”

By the time you finish reading this post, you’ll be ready to act and get started on owning your own moving company.

Step 1: Learn How a Moving Business Works

Running a moving business is a lot more than just picking up and delivering stuff.

You must consider marketing and logistics. Track every single moving piece. And know exactly how long it takes you (or your drivers) to get from point A to point B. And how much it costs.

Basically, you must have a plan. And the best way to build a plan is to go work for someone else for a little while.

As an employer, you’ll have to pay taxes and need an Employer Identification Number. Do you know how to do that?

The point I’m making is that you can research all you like, but nothing is better for you than rolling up your sleeves and doing the actual work for a seasoned industry veteran.If you already have a company, you can decide to open a liaison office and explore the local market, before establishing a business in this field.

Step 2: Create a Plan

Moving companies are a little different than other companies. It’s not like your traditional store where people walk in, shop around, deal with a smiling employee, buy something and leave.

But one thing we have in common with every other business is you should have a plan for your business.

The moving industry takes a lot of planning. You need to have an idea of the structuring and sales projections of your business. You can’t do this without a plan.

Are you a residential mover? Or a commercial mover? Or maybe you see your business as a hauling company?

Regardless, understanding your market can tell you what equipment you might need. If you’re focusing on moving commercially, you might want to explore refrigerated trucks. And when it comes to finding those customers, where would you look?This all needs to be figured out in detail before you do anything.

Step 3: Discover Earning Potential

One of the first questions everyone has for me is “how much money do moving companies make?”It’s a good gig.

The American Moving and Storage Association reports that the industry is comprised of 7,000 companies with 13,900 locations in the U.S., employing about 122,600 people. According to IBIS World, their efforts to ease the process of moving for thousands of people generates about $16 billion dollars every year.

The fact is, 21st-century families are just constantly on the move. The millennial workforce no longer expects to settle down and stay in one job at the same company for the rest of their lives. And with more people choosing to rent than buy, it’s no wonder millions of people move each year.

The average starting salary for a truck driver is about $9.66 to $27.62 per hour or $20K to $57K per year, according to Payscale.com and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. But you set your own schedule and work as much or as little as you want, so you can make way more than that if you’re a hard worker.

So, if you’re thinking “Is now a good time to open a trucking company?”, the answer is hell yes.

Your prices should be affordable and negotiable. That way businesses and individuals can use your service, and you can have different price ranges for different category of clients.Your bid must be low enough to be competitive, but still high enough for you to make a profit. And to do that, you should know your expenses, like maintenance, repairs, truck and trailer payments, fuel, and the cost of your work. Don’t forget to add your time and hassle in. Driving a moving truck through a city is a lot harder than down rural highways, and should cost more.

Step 4: Set a Budget

Setting a budget helps you know how low you can set your rates and how much profit comes in from each job.

You really should know every expense.

So just how much does it cost to open a trucking company?

• Down Payment for Truck: $7,000
• Legal: $500
• Stationery: $300
• Licenses and Permits: $1,000
• Fuel: $11,000
• Insurance: $6,000

Total: $32,000

But the good news is that you don’t have to have all that to get started. There are tons of financing options available to you as a trucker. You can finance your truck, which is your largest startup expense. Or you can lease it (but then you don’t own it). You can finance operations and even fuel costs.

When financing, make sure you’re considering your interest rates and payments.

Costs to consider:

• Truck payments
• Registration/permits
• Insurance
• Repairs and maintenance
• Washes and cleaning costs
• Fuel

Step 5: Decide Which Products/Service to Offer

No matter what, you must focus on meeting deadlines. No excuses.

When it comes to choosing what services you want to offer, that depends on you and your truck(s).

Different moving companies might focus on different areas:

• Selling moving supplies
• Moving goods and equipment locally, including office and residential moves with smaller trucks and vans
• Local and long-distance movement, like the TRGroup.co.nz
• Heavy duty equipment movement
• Construction equipment, like excavators and bulldozers
• Agricultural equipment movement
• Food service moving

Different industries have different needs, so if your focus is on servicing the restaurant and hospitality industry, you may need to invest more money into refrigerated trucks. But then you can also charge more for your services.

Figure out if you want to compete on price, service and reliability, speed, or something else. But you can’t do it all. If you’re the most reliable guy in the biz then you shouldn’t be the cheapest.

And if you’re the cheapest option, there’s probably a reason – so be careful not to underprice yourself when you’re setting your rates.

Step 6: Decide on a Location

Another great thing about the moving industry is that you don’t need a fancy storefront or shiny office like so many other businesses. But you DO need an office for your business.Or at least somewhere to park your truck(s).

This depends on if you’re working alone, or if you have drivers working for you. If you’re by yourself, you can rent a space to park your truck. If you’ve got a lot of trucks, ranging from pickups to moving trucks and vans, you’ll want to lease commercial space (to keep costs low) with lots of parking for your vehicles. Look for access to water for being able to keep the trucks clean, and space to perform maintenance and repairs.

Look for a place that fits your budget but still has everything you need. Remember, most of the time you will not have customers at your office, so don’t worry too much about a nice, expensive place for them. You should at least have a nice waiting room set up for those customers who do want to stop in, and for drivers to relax when they’re not on the job.

Step 7: Find Suppliers

Moving companies need different equipment than traditional businesses. And you’ll need to find and buy the right equipment before you get started.How many vehicles you have should depend on how much money you have to start your business. If you’ve only got a little money, start with one truck. Or start with multiple smaller trucks and do small, local moves, delivering anything and everything you can until you can scale up and buy bigger and better trucks.

For commercial trucks, remember that different types of cargo require different equipment. For example, if you’ll be transporting food, you require a refrigerated truck. If your cargo is oversized, you’ll need a flatbed truck.

Shop around and look for trucks and equipment with a blend of quality and pricing to meet your budget so your company is ready to roll.

Step 8: Create a Staffing Plan

Technically, you can start a moving company on your own with your legs, a hand cart, and a truck. But if you want to grow your business, then you’ll need to recruit employees.

Do you know where you’re hiring them from? Is it by placing advertisements on job sites or by enlisting the help of a specialist truck driver recruiter?

Other options include checking out CDL certification schools for fresh faces you can bring on. This saves you the cost and time of having to hire movers and then pay and wait for their certifications. Figure out how many drivers you want to bring on and make sure that number fits your budget. If drivers are properly qualified, it should reduce the risk of accidents and mistakes. Of course, business owners can always track this sort of thing by using software from Lytx to manage drivers and ensure they are following DOT compliance rules.

Also, you will need to find a reliable mechanic service for your truck/s to ensure that you reduce the number of breakdowns or issues that you have with them, especially if it is at the detriment of customers. Companies like Ferguson Truck Center (Visit Website) should be able to provide this reliable service to keep your business running smoothly.

Have a plan for staffing in place to help you grow.

Step 9: Promote Your Moving Company

Before you promote your company, you need to figure out who you want to promote it to.

Some options include:

• Merchants (importers, exporters, traders, suppliers, wholesalers, and dealers)
• Residential households
• Corporate organizations
• Small business owners
• College Students
• Veterans

Once you know who you want to talk to, figure out how to talk to them.

The best thing you can do is go talk to people in person. Whether that’s residences you see putting up for sale signs or companies which have regular moving needs, showing up shows them how much you want their business by investing your time in them. This doesn’t cost a thing other than a time investment, but it shows businesses and people you’re serious about handling their moves.

Regardless, your marketing starts with your website. So, make sure it’s a nice site and easy to navigate. Some suggestions here would be rate calculators and appointment booking or scheduling features.

People check rating when picking vendors, so keep yours up and use that as a sales tool. A company may take a chance on a new moving company with a perfect rating on Yelp and Google if their current mover just isn’t getting it done, but if your scores aren’t good, and if people are leaving terrible reviews about damages and about lack of customer service, you’ll have a hard time convincing your prospects.

The Bottom Line

Opening (and running) a moving company is a lot of work.But if you do it right, it’s a great gig.

You’ll be yourown boss. You will help remove the stress and hassle of the moving experience for all your customers. Hopefully, you put this guide to use!