Business cards when leased onto a carrier

Check the lease agreement with the company you plan to lease to, many have no solicitation clauses so that you can not try to take their customers away from them. In some cases doing what you want to with the business cards may also violate their brokerage contract as it could be viewed as the carrier trying to cut out the broker (if it is a brokered load).

The company may be upset if they find out you are soliciting their customers for when you go start your own trucking company, so tread lightly and quietly. It is all about building relationships first.

I like you concept, although I would just put your company on it so that it does not look like you are trying to represent yourself as someone with any control at the company you are leased on with.

 

If you were leased on to me and I found out you were trying to poach customers that would be the end of the lease. If you had other people on your authority after you get it would you want them doing that?

 

I had cards with just my info on it, but I got sick of explaining the relationship between me and the carrier and how I'm not trying to do anything shady under the table - I'm leased to a place that encourages finding my own stuff here and there.

What I did is: my name company logo contact info etc on the front, small company logo for who you are leased to on there as well

On the back are some bullet points of services, followed by "contracted to xxxxx" and their contact info. That way its crystal clear you are a contractor and tied into whatever carrier you work for, so there's no surprises when people are getting billed from the carrier and not you directly

Of course, make #### sure your carrier is cool with it. If your intent is to poach customers, I dont see that ending well. But if it's to pick up new business, as long as they get their cut, giddy up. Obviously make sure you guys are on the same page in regards to your right to take your customers with you if you leave

 

If that’s the case then disregard my earlier reply. Lol. I’d have my company name be the main thing, then something like “partnering with” the other company with their DOT number.

 

You give up 25% to a company that has no customers? Where is the value in that?

I also give up 25%, but i #### sure wouldn't if they didn't have a lot of contract freight paying much better than i could get on my own.

 

No matter what they tell you verbally, do read and reread the contract, and make sure it doesn't have anything about you taking a customer of theirs or them claiming any ownership of any customer you bring on board. This would only count on direct customers, load board brokers would not matter. A lot of brokers, most have a clause in the setup package about hauling for their customers for a year or so, I never knew anybody that got bit for doing it though.