We live in a world where entrepreneurs with big dreams and even bigger ideas are sprouting everywhere. And one of the most fruitful industry sectors that’s evolving rapidly is shared transportation, including the use of motorpools. There’s so much opportunity for you to get your foot in the door if you know how to do it right too.
So what is a motorpool? Well, in a nutshell it’s a group of vehicles that is shared amongst particular organizations and personnel, primarily governmental or military institutions.
And how do you start a successful motorpool business yourself? Well, success lies in making the best decisions that streamline motorpol operations. You need to make your business strategy as cost and time efficient as possible to guarantee success coming your way as the manager of operations. There’s a few things you should know first.
Let’s get to the very basics of how to start a motorpool business. We’re going to break it down for you so listen up and take notes!
1. Start Small But Think Big
It’s all well and good having big ambitions, but you need to know the limits. The first step is to obtain the vehicles making up for your fleet, so have a serious think about how many you’ll need or want. Remember that there’s no minimum amount of vehicles you can start with, but fixing yourself a maximum is a good idea. It’s probably worth starting with a smaller vehicle pool that doesn’t stretch your budget, that way you can enlarge if needed.
2. Make Sure You Have a Well-Devised Plan
A well-devised plan is a necessity. Start with the basics and don’t get caught up in the excitement of new state-of-the-art technologies straight away. Make sure the fleet is running swimmingly first, and then you can start thinking of advancements and improvements. Prove that your idea works first.
It’s also important you find a well-skilled team of employees. Make them fully aware of how your business model works and make sure they’re spirited and up for the challenge too.
3. Make Your Employees Happy
Your team of employees must be talented and skilled, but also 100% happy in their role. The rules, regulations, and policies in your motorpool business model need to be communicated well to both employees and stakeholders. Inform them of what’s in store for the near future, reassure them that the plan will work, and encourage them to give it their absolute best effort.
4. Find The Sweet Spot for Cost-Effectiveness
Don’t underestimate how much money you’ll spend on your vehicles. There’s not just a price tag on the leasing or purchasing of the vehicle, but a price tag also on maintenance, insurance, and other miscellaneous running costs.
So find the sweet spot for cost-effectiveness in your plan. Look at how much you’re going to be spending and decrease (or hopefully increase) the number of vehicles you have to turn over a stable but worthwhile profit. It’s all about maximizing your ROI!
5. Invest In The Right Vehicles
One of the most important decisions you can make as a motorpool business owner is what vehicles you operate. Take your time to research all types of manufacturers and models, and make a checklist of what’s most important. The key is to maximize utilization and ensure as much profit comes out of one vehicle as possible. Generally you want to find the spec vehicle that has the best fuel economy.
6. Switch To Automation
We’ve already mentioned how the use of tech shouldn’t be a priority at the beginning of your business start-up. But once you’ve built a solid foundation and things begin to flourish, you should consider switching to automatic processes.
Why? Well, automatic systems from companies like Ridecell are a great way of managing your fleet with greater control. Some of the biggest benefits include the simplification of vehicle security, the improvements to driver experience, and the lowering of costs with efficient operations.
7. Reach Out To Competitors
Don’t be shy to reach out to competitors and network with fellow businesses. You can learn from others’ successes and find out the ins and outs and dos and don’ts of running a successful motorpool business.
Launching a new business is never easy, so speak to others about what they learned the hard way and what changes they would make if they could start all over again.
8. Don’t Be Afraid To Make Changes
Learning from others’ mistakes leads to our next tip…Don’t be afraid to make changes along the way. Once you’ve set up your motorpool, adjust anything that isn’t working well.
Feedback is always a good way to know what you’re doing right and what you’re doing wrong, whether that’s feedback from customers, clients or even your employees. You can get their opinions on staff members, your service operations, and most importantly the vehicles themselves.
9. Prioritize Communication
Communication is absolutely essential when it comes to starting up your own business, especially a motorpool that revolves around shared usage. Although drivers work independently, it’s important there’s clear communication between management and the fleet of drivers. So put systems in place to ensure you can find out anything about everything in an instance.
10. Set Goals That You Can Measure
Last but certainly not least, you should set your self business goals that you can measure in order to make sure you’re hitting your targets. These goals could be long-term or short-term, but just make sure you’re able to measure them with the tools you have available. The objective here is to use key performance indicators to know whether you’re performing on track or not. You’ll later be grateful that you’ve planned ahead and secured a brighter, more prosperous future.
