Towing - It's a business, not a social service

I think some people in the industry are getting confused. Towing is a business, not a social service, and industry groups need to stay focused on business issues. A healthy bottom line would work wonders to solving almost all of the problems towers now face.

With the pressure of fuel prices some towers are starting to talk about starting a "movement". Motor clubs are "abusing" towers and not paying profitable rates. Municipalities are not adjusting their regulated rates. National action is needed to correct these injustices!

National action is needed. Towers need to start repairing their image as it has been altered by club interference (middlemen) in our relationship with our customers. Fast service is available just around the corner - but not via that 800 number and a dispatcher in India. Well paid towers can be clean and presentable, and they can be available to fully help a customer with their automotive problems.

Nationwide, education is available to help tow companies learn more about good business practices, but oddly, not through our industry. We need change our culture, or group consciousness, and move the industry discussion toward how can we be better business people. Return on investment, living wages, depreciation and other not so uncommon phrases need to become part of our discussions, and would have significant effects on concerns over safety and regulation. The discussion needs to move away from, "How little can I charge and still make a profit?" and move toward, "What is the most I can charge, so I can get the best return on my investments?"

Good service isn't cheap service, and towing definitely isn't a social service. We are businessmen (and women). Let's act businesslike, it would be good for us.

National Towing Association handcuffed by the Motorclubs!

It is my contention that as long as the TRAA is dependent on motor club associate member annual dues, there won't be any serious movement to reform the low rates paid by them. What is the single largest problem in the industry affecting quality of life for towers? Motor clubs, this has been true for years. Who has been persistently silent on the issue? TRAA. The fact that the leadership of our national association doesn't see the clubs' continuing encroachment/monopolization of retail towing as an actionable problem, is just shameful. While the efforts at increasing roadside safety and recognizing fallen towers are laudable, they do not get to the heart of the problem. The best way to make towing safer is to have more money to spend on it. We can't even make enough money to buy health insurance for our employees or offer paid vacations. 60 and 70 hour workweeks are common. How alert are you to traffic hazards after your 12th hour on the road?

TRAA, stop letting yourself be bought by our customers. Dump those associate members, re-figure your finances, and re-focus how to help make towing a better business, soon, please.

The first post, Welcome

Hi, thanks for visiting. I hope to share a few thoughts about the business aspects of towing industry here with you. I have been in the towing biz since 2000 and before then I had businesses in retail, service, and construction. I have been self employed most of my life, and hope that my real life experiences as a student of business make for an interesting perspective on the towing industry.

Please share your thoughts on my posts, positive or critical, and hopefully we can all learn something.