7 Keys to FedEx Ground Route Success

Running a successful FedEx Route is not a complicated thing, and whether you are new to the field and considering purchasing a route or an owner looking to expand your business, it’s never a bad idea to revisit the keys to FedEx Ground route success.

Here are seven of them that stand out.

Know Your Route

This is about more than just geography, although you should know the area of your route really well. The better you know the streets and even the traffic patterns the more efficiently you can run your route. However, it also means knowing your customers, the time the school buses run, and where construction is happening.

Knowing your route also means paying attention to new business and residential developments These can mean more business for you. These developments can also change traffic patterns and impact how you run your route and when you schedule pickups and deliveries.

Knowing your route is the first key to FedEx Ground route success.

Know Your Customers

The second key is knowing your customers. This includes not only your business customers but your regular residential customers. You may have people who get wine of the month club deliveries that require a signature, and knowing when they will be home can save you a lot of missed deliveries and keeps them from having to run to the terminal to pick up a package.

Knowing when your residential customers are home, where they want packages left, and even when they prefer to get deliveries can help you provide the best customer service and avoid complaints.

The same is true for business customers. Scheduling deliveries and pickups can be challenging for shipping and receiving managers, and if you can get on a regular schedule with them, they will not only appreciate it but may send more business your way.

Your customers are the lifeblood of your FedEx route success, so get to know them.

Maintain Your Vehicles

One of the most important tools your business has is your vehicles. They are what keeps you and your packages moving. Perform regular inspections on your vehicles and keep your maintenance schedules even when it is busy. Having to rent or borrow a truck at the last minute, especially during peak, can be a real pain.

If there is an issue with one of your vehicles fix it as soon as possible. Don’t put it off and potentially run into additional problems. Your FedEx route success depends in large part on the vehicles you use for delivery, so treat them like the valuable asset they are.

Maintain Positive Cashflow for FedEx Route Success

One key to success is financial management, and failure to understand cash flow is one of the biggest reasons a business will fail. If you understand cash flow and how it works, you’ll be ahead of a lot of your peers.

One way to do this is to ensure that you have emergency funding in savings to cover unexpected costs like major vehicle repairs or time off due to illness or injury. Then be sure that you have sufficient operating capital for your weekly and monthly expenses for at least a few months in the bank. If for any reason your income is interrupted, you’ll still be able to operate your business normally.

Work with Fellow Route Owners and Drivers

It is important to remember that fellow route owners and drivers are not your competition but your colleagues and even collaborators. It is especially important to get to know drivers with routes adjacent to yours or even overlapping. You can trade stops, do pickups and deliveries for each other, and make both your routes run even better.

The more you work with other route owners and drivers, the more likely you will be to succeed with your FedEx Route. Other drivers can also teach you things about running a route even if you have more experience than they do. Be open to advice and change, and work with your co-workers and you’ll both benefit.

Take Care of Yourself

One of the most important aspects of FedEx route success is self-care. You need to take care of yourself, and not just because you are the primary driver of your route. As a business owner, you want to maintain a work-life balance, avoid burnout, and ensure that you are healthy both mentally and physically.

Get the rest you need, arrange to take your vacation days whenever possible, and keep your workload reasonable. Split your route or hire help if it gets too large. During peak, hire runners and offload packages to temporary workers when you need to.

Whether you are a seasoned route owner or one just getting started or considering purchasing a FedEx Ground route, success can be yours. Just follow these seven keys to keep yourself and your route on track.

Looking to buy a FedEx Ground route or purchase a second or third one to expand your FedEx Ground business? Contact us at Route Advisors today. We’d love to be with you every step of the way.