#109 – Ex-Nurse, BUILDS 7 TRUCK FLEET Operation In Under 2 Years!

Early life:

Melanie Patterson had a long road to rise above her lousy upbringing, having grown up in an environment linked with drugs and the mafia. She attended an alternative school. The wrong people linked up with her in her first days there, but she managed to graduate. Fortunately, Patterson’s principal was able to see that she was more than just a student. Through her initiative and support, she went to college, where she majored in business truck fleet management and administration. 

Patterson fell in love with nursing after a friend of her father’s suggested an internship in a hospital’s intensive-care unit for babies. Patterson left her career in truck fleet business to embark on a new career. She started as a nurse’s assistant and went on to get her bachelor’s degree in nursing. Patterson earned a master’s degree in science, and she is also licensed to practice medicine in her home state of Illinois. As a medical professional for seven years before joining the trucking industry, Patterson knows first-hand the importance of teamwork – both in the doctor’s office and on the road.

Patterson’s husband had a friend who was into trucking. The truck fleet kept telling Patterson he saw entrepreneurship in her and her husband. At first, she had been reluctant, but his persistence paid off when she saw firsthand how much money was to be made in the transportation business. So, Patterson and her husband put into action a business plan that worked pretty well.

Interaction with TN’H

  “Trucking has been growing, but you have to have a plan,” Patterson says in an interview with TN’H. Her company, Integrity Transportation, started with one truck that her husband drove; now, they have a fleet of professional drivers to transport goods. Patterson calls herself a business owner, and for a good reason: she handles all the groundwork from dispatching to negotiating. The company later added seven trucks and counting. The company also added government contractors to its already successful venture.

When TN’H interviewed Patterson, she recalled how she had to introduce its services to potential clients. She began by discussing the importance of branding for trucking companies: if a company branded itself in a caring and compassionate way, it would attract more customers. She also remarked on how to leverage one’s company. Patterson includes practical information on how she could find loads and customers. Dispatching can be an extremely lucrative profession for anyone willing to learn how to do the task. Patterson dispels some myths about negotiating a deal and gives out her tips to entrepreneurs. Starting a new venture can bring challenges, she explained in brief. The whole thought was followed by some wise advice about dealing with those challenges.

The trucking industry has had difficulty retaining drivers for the past few years. Patterson shared some of her ideas to encourage more drivers to stay with their companies. One of her suggestions was to raise driver’s wages. To anyone in the audience who’s starting a government contracting business, Patterson dispensed her hard-won wisdom on the topic. As trucking is a male-dominated profession, Patterson explained how she had experienced some of the challenges while working in a predominantly male environment.

Final thought:

The amount of wisdom that trucking business owner Melanie Patterson shared during her interview is humungous—not to mention the countless changes it will inspire. To her final thought, she concluded with the words, “Know what’s possible and make the most of each hour.”

For more information about Integrity Trucking and to watch the full episode, Please view the Video Below.

 

Episode Timeline

[skipto time=8:32] 8:32 – The transition to Trucking. [/skipto]

[skipto time=10:00] 10:00 – The strategies.[/skipto]

[skipto time=17:41] 17:41 – Scale your business. [/skipto]

[skipto time=18:44]18:44 – Retain your drivers. [/skipto]

[skipto time=29:05]29:05 – Know all about government contracting. [/skipto]

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About The Host

rahmel - how to start a trucking company

Rahmel Wattley

The creator & host of Truck N’ Hustle, is a renowned personality in the trucking & logistics industry who hosts podcasts with the reputed & successful trucking entrepreneurs to share the knowledge required to start & sustain the logistics business!

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Melanie Patterson

Melanie Patterson has scaled her company to 7 Trucks and counting also adding government contractor to her already impressive resume. Melanie is big one creating opportunities for herself and for her team.

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