How to scale your logistics business quickly?

Scaling a business is not always the right move – but with logistics, it makes perfect sense. 

You will quickly reach a ceiling with the number of deliveries you can complete, and if you don’t scale quickly, you could lose potential customers. After all, a logistics company can develop a negative reputation if it systematically fails to deliver orders on time, cannot stretch past a very limited amount of delivery slots, or makes consistent errors because it is understaffed.

By scaling your logistics business, you will be able to cater to more customers, feel less overstretched by demand, take a step back from daily driving, and deliver a more flexible service.

Despite the clear benefits, scaling any business is tricky, and requires the right strategy to execute successfully. For example, you will need to do it in a manner that doesn’t overburden your available finances, ensure that there is enough consistent demand for your services, maintain your current levels of quality control and customer service, as well as expand your administrative department to cope with the additional staff members.

This is how to scale your logistics business quickly:

Join a load board platform

A difficult balancing act which needs to be struck when scaling a business is the recruitment of more staff coupled with the average demand from your customers.

Full-time members of staff are not cheap and can leave you vulnerable to cash flow issues if there isn’t a similar increase in sales. This is especially pertinent with a logistics company because you will likely have to buy new trucks, hire additional warehouse space, pay for more expenses and market in new areas in order to generate the extra work.

A great way to help find delivery jobs is to join Truckstop.com’s load board platform. On these platforms, you can find people who are looking for someone to deliver their goods or be put in contact with other companies who need additional drivers.

Although this leaves your cash flow dependent on last-minute trade initially, you can quickly build lasting relationships with these first-time clients. 

Ultimately, your target should be to attain enough regular customers to easily cover the additional staff, leaving you with a safety net if you suffer a quiet month.

Be intelligent with your route choices

A great way to scale your logistics business without enduring the risk of hiring too many extra members of staff or acquiring additional capital too quickly is to think through your route choices carefully.

If you can visit a destination that incorporates a multitude of different customers, then you will be able to fulfil more orders on less fuel and use far fewer drivers. While there will come a time when you may have to hire new employees to complete deliveries, this strategy will ensure you maximize your efficiency in the meantime. 

Use automation to increase process speed

If you want to scale your logistics business then you will need to ensure that every aspect of your company is as efficient as it can be. Therefore, automating your processes can be incredibly valuable. 

For example, you may want to use robots in your warehouse to manage and load your stock, an online timesheet system to keep track of employee working hours, or a chatbot who can take orders on your website without you lifting a finger.

This will make every step of your delivery process faster, cheaper and more replicable, which is what will help you achieve lasting growth. 

Increase the number of vehicles on your fleet

You can have all the additional staff members you want, but your business won’t be able to fulfil orders if you don’t have enough vehicles with which to deliver them.  

Depending on your budget, this may either be a fast or slow process. There is no incorrect choice, it simply hinges on whether you can spare the extra cash. Estimate how many more orders you could realistically accept if you had an extra vehicle, and then use that figure to justify whether you could quickly pay off the purchasing cost. 

Bear in mind that markets change quickly, so allow for a little leeway when making this calculation. 

Open depots in different locations

Once you have started to process more orders and have an increased number of staff and vehicles on your fleet, it is probably time to open some additional depots in new locations. 

This will help you cater to a much wider customer base who may not have otherwise heard of your business, or been too far out of your jurisdiction to be relevant.

As a result, the success of your logistics business could quickly snowball, allowing you to make further inroads in new markets and develop more cash flow security.

You should be tactical with the locations that you choose, and the sites you acquire. 

Only open for business in a new area once you have thoroughly researched it. You need to be as sure as you possibly can that you are going to find enough customers there, and that it is well connected to a road network and other vital infrastructure. 

There is also the question of finding employees who are willing to commute or relocate to that area, so making sure your depots are in a city or desirable neighborhood always helps.

Create lasting relationships with customers

Lastly, you will find it impossible to expand your logistics business meaningfully unless you develop lasting relationships with your customers. 

There are a few crucial reasons for this:

The first – and most obvious – reason is that repeat customers are the bedrock of any business, whether they are a start-up or multinational. The reliability of regular trade will allow you to budget more accurately, develop a strong reputation within your industry and build momentum. 

Secondly, if you consistently burn bridges with your customers, then you will eventually run out of people to sell to, leading to bankruptcy. Bad customer service can be lethal for any brand’s image, so you should endeavor to make it as strong as possible.