Start a Moving Company

If you have enough money saved up to buy a box truck or if you can get a loan for one based on your credit, starting a moving business can be a great way to start making a good living as your own boss. In this section we will go over what you will need to start a moving or hauling business and some creative ways you can grow this business from scratch.

The first thing you will need to do when starting a moving business is to get your LLC set up. You can go back to our “starting a business” section and read exactly how to do this in your state. You will need this for setting up a business bank account, building business credit and getting insurance for your moving business in case a customer’s belongings break.

The next thing you will need is a box truck of course so that you can haul people’s belongings. You can find them used on Facebook Marketplace for between 10k-15k and when you are starting out you are most likely better off going this route. Remember that it is always smartest to keep your expenses as low as possible when starting out while still getting the quality equipment that you need. Once you start to see profits, that is when you can upgrade to nicer trucks and start hiring new employees.

Once you have a box truck to move people’s stuff it is time to get insurance for your moving company. Mover’s Choice is the most popular option for insuring moving and storage companies and they offer good rates. I suggest simply searching them up on google and giving them a call to see what insurance will cost for you in your state. It is very important to get this done before doing any work because one mistake with someone’s belongings could be a huge blow to your business.

Another step you can take if you have the extra money is getting a wrap for your box truck with your company’s branding. You can read all about creating a brand in the “building a business” section as well. When putting a wrap on a box truck the most important thing is that each side of the truck includes your brand, clearly visible phone number, and the services that you offer as well as a site if you have one already made. This will help with brand awareness, and you can also get new business from people sitting around you in traffic.

After you have all the equipment you need you should set pricing for your moving business based on the number of items you are moving and how many miles you will be transporting a customer’s stuff. I won’t give any specific recommendations on this because markets differ from place to place. I recommend searching for local moving companies on google and see what your competitors are charging. Call all of the movers in your area and get quotes for the same number of items and distance to get an idea of what you should be charging your customers. From there you can decide what you want to charge based on the quotes that you get. I recommend starting in the lower end of pricing when first growing your business with few reviews and all. You can always raise your prices later on as you grow your reputation in the area.

Now that you have all the essentials for starting a moving company it is time to start getting customers so that you can begin making money! In my opinion the best way to get business for moving companies is to team up with realtors in your local area that you can give a small commission to. I would search for all the realtors in your area (which are not hard to find) and give them a call. Tell them that you are a fully insured mover in the area and that you would love to partner up with them to gain business, and in return you will give them a commission which you can negotiate on. Realtors deal with people that will have to move soon every day so they have plenty of potential customers they can send to you. If you get just a few realtors that send you business frequently and are excited for the commission that you give them, that could be all you need to fill a large portion of your schedule and put you on track to getting more trucks on the road.

Another great way you can market your moving company is to go on Zillow and write down the addresses of all the homes for sale in your area. You can then go to these houses and introduce yourself and your company to the owners. You can say something like “Hey, I live right around the corner and I noticed you guys were selling, where are y’all moving to?” “Oh wow that’s exciting! I actually wanted to introduce myself because I own a moving company in the area. I know how expensive it can be and I would love to help y’all move when the time comes at a neighborly rate. This is my business card, I hope everything goes well with the sale of the house. Give me a call whenever the time comes to move.” If you do this in volume you will be sure to start getting some calls if you are personable at their doors.

Alongside knocking on houses that are for sale, sending mailers to for sale houses or just close by houses in general is another great way to gain awareness for your brand. You can print and mail flyers yourself or you can use a professional service like themailshark.com to do it for you. In volume the price is not much different and using a service can save you a ton of time. You can add an offer like first 10 miles free (50 mile minimum for offer) or anything that you think will grab a person’s interest that is about to move.

Buying moving leads is another way that you can gain new business as a mover. I recommend trying the other creative approaches first to save money starting out, but this is a for sure way to get in contact with people that truly need your services. You can simply search moving company leads on google and you will find plenty of companies that sell these leads. If you do not want to pay for leads you can also try using Facebook ads that are targeted to your specific area to get your own leads cheaper. I recommend looking on the web for good examples of moving ads and creating your ads based on those. If the company is reputable and successful chances are their ads are quality.

One you start getting some customers, a great way to continue growing your customer base is by asking for referrals from the people you help move. It is important to go above and beyond for your customers by doing the extra little things like cleaning and vacuuming floors after you leave, adding padding to furniture that is expensive, and simply smiling and giving customers a pleasant experience so they are happy to provide you with new customers. Always ask if they know anybody else that is planning on moving once the job is done. You can even offer them a small discount for your service before they pay if they can provide you with new customers. You may not get referrals on the spot but also be sure to send Christmas cards to past customers and as for business whenever appropriate to.

After you have followed these marketing tips and have gotten to the point where your schedule is booked, and you are turning jobs down it is time to buy more trucks and hire new workers. Always be careful not to grow too fast but when the time comes you should know it. You can post on Indeed to hire new workers or even as around on Facebook if anyone is looking for work. It is typically not too hard to find work for this type of job so you shouldn’t have much of a problem. I would advise you to run background checks for this type of work and avoid anyone with a history of theft since they will be working with people’s possessions. If you have made it to this point congratulations! You have a successful business that you can continue to grow and live off of or even sell for retirement when that time comes.