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POP CULTURE & PERCEPTION OF TRUCKING
POP CULTURE & PERCEPTION OF TRUCKING
Hallie FisherSenior Vice President, Trucking and Transportation
Craig MartinSenior Executive Vice President,Account Service
© The Adcom Group, Inc. – This work is copyright protected by The Adcom Group, Inc.
THE TRUCKING INDUSTRY IS HAVING A GOOD RUN
Class 8 truck salesGraph courtesy FTR
Prior Year 2017
Current Year 2018
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
SOURCE FTR, Truck OEMs – Total N.A. CI. 8 Orders (U.S./CAN/MEX/EXP)
AND, THERE’S A LOT OF BUZZ…
Electric trucks
Driverless trucks Blockchain
Data-driven
CHALLENGES
Annualized driver turnover at large carriers (>$30mil)
Average age of a commercial truck driver (aging out)
Reported life expectancy of a commercial truck driver
94
5561
%
YRSOLD
YRSOLD
AND IT’S NOT JUST THE TRUCKING INDUSTRY
Workforce Needs are Up
*Bureau of Labor Statistics for July 20181 The Street America's Massive Truck Driver Shortage May Triple by 2026 - July 16, 2018https://www.thestreet.com/markets/truck-driver-shortage-may-triple-by-2026-analysts-say-14650452
7,100,000 299,000 (4%) 51,000
OPEN POSITIONS
ALL INDUSTRIES TRANSPORTATION TRUCK DRIVERS
* * 1
CHALLENGES
EVERYONE IS CHASING THE SAME PEOPLE
GRE/ VOCATIONAL MILITARY WOMEN SECOND
CAREERSECOND CHANCE
THE INDUSTRY IS LOOKING FOR NEW SOLUTIONS
DRIVE-SAFE ACTCALL FOR UNITY, COLLABORATION
FROM ATA
DRIVER TRAINING INITIATIVES
AND THERE SEEM TO BE A LOT OF INCENTIVES
HOWEVER, PEOPLE STILL AREN’T ENTERING THE INDUSTRY.
WHY?
WHERE HAVE WE BEEN SINCE DRIVING A TRUCK WAS A SOUGHT AFTER MIDDLE CLASS JOB?
1970s CULTURAL PEAK OF TRUCKING
TRUCKING USED TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH:
TRUCKING NOW IS ASSOCIATED WITH:
THEN TO NOW:DREAM CAREER TO LAST RESORT
WHAT HAS CAUSED THIS SHIFT?
Deregulation
Longer hours
More government
Decreased wages
Increased health concerns
Pop culture? Modern media
“I gained 60 pounds because it's a sedentary life.” — Donna Penland
THIS NEGATIVE CONTENT FORMS AN IMPRESSIONABLE NARRATIVE
THE YOUTUBE EFFECT
More reach than any TV network
Second largest search engine
More than 1 billion mobile views per day
HOW IS MODERN MEDIA INFLUENCING THE NEXT GENERATION OF DRIVERS?
WE WANTED TO FIND OUT
WHO DID WE TALK TO?
Nationwide | Ages: 18-26 | 600 Responses
30%FEMALE
*
75% Reported Under $50K HHI | 70% High School / Vocational-Ed or Lower
WHO DID WE TALK TO?
Fleets (Small, Medium, Large)Trucking Schools
Vocational Educators
More likely than average consumers to:
2018 Gfk MRi
In which direction do your perceptions of the truck driving profession lean?
75%FAVORABLE
76%WOMEN
Who / what has influenced your personal view on the truck driving profession?
54%
FAMILYFRIENDSINDUSTRY POP CULTURE
0 1 0 0
FAVORABLE
Who / what has influenced your personal view on the truck driving profession?
TEACHERCOACH/CONSELOR
FAMILYINDUSTRY FRIENDS
LEAST INFLUENTIAL
38%
POP CULTURE
UNFAVORABLE
0 1 0 08%
Why do you have a favorable perception of the truck driving profession?
“It takes a certain skill set to drive a truck. Not a lot of people would be able to drive the hours required. I think it is admirable.”
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Admiration and respect for the work
Friends and family lineage
Hardwork
Importance of the work
FAVORABLE PERCEPTION
“My father was a truck driver; my grandfather owned a trucking company. It’s a good way to make a living.”
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Admiration and respect for the work
Friends and family lineage
Hardwork
Importance of the work
FAVORABLE PERCEPTION
“Truck drivers provide a service that is otherwise difficult to perform, and therefore, and therefore is an important and necessary profession I admire and respect.”
KEY TAKEAWAYS
FAVORABLE PERCEPTION
Admiration and respect for the work
Friends and family lineage
Hardwork
Importance of the work
“Hard workers that provide America with what it needs.”
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Admiration and respect for the work
Friends and family lineage
Hardwork
Importance of the work
FAVORABLE PERCEPTION
Why do you have an unfavorable perception of the truck driving profession?
“People with low qualifications for those jobs.”
KEY TAKEAWAYS
UNFAVORABLE PERCEPTION
Uneducated Drugs Friends/FamilyStereotype Obsolete
“Usually for the uneducated.”
“Seems like its for people without a college education.”
“I relate it to isolation and drug addiction.”
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Uneducated Drugs Friends/FamilyStereotype Obsolete
“I hear a lot of truck drivers have drug habits.”
UNFAVORABLE PERCEPTION
“When it comes to the thought of being in that role it just doesn’t seem desirable; mainly because of the stereotype.”
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Uneducated Drugs Friends/FamilyStereotype Obsolete
“It seems like a sexist business with long hours.”
“It seems like people aren’t moral citizens.”
UNFAVORABLE PERCEPTION
“My father and brother are drivers. They get worked too hard and not enough pay. Always away from home.”
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Uneducated Drugs Friends/FamilyStereotype Obsolete
“Every friend of mine who is a truck driver is very unhappy.”
UNFAVORABLE PERCEPTION
“I think it will be replaced as new shipping technologies become available.”
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Uneducated Drugs Friends/FamilyStereotype Obsolete
“It’s going to be unnecessary soon.”
UNFAVORABLE PERCEPTION
Which aspects of a career in truck driving have shaped your impression?
58%
SALARY
46%
JOB CONDITIONS
40%
LIFESTYLE CAREER GROWTH
31%
0 1 0 0
53%
JOBCONDITIONS
28%
SALARYINDUSTRYREPUTATION
19% 54%
LIFESTYLE
FAVORABLE
UNFAVORABLE
What types of media have shaped your view on the trucking profession?
0 1 0 0
38%38%
SOCIAL MEDIA
34%32%
ENTERTAINMENT
NEWSONLINECONTENT
40%37%
SOCIAL MEDIA
31%29%
ENTERTAINMENT
NEWSONLINECONTENT
FAVORABLE
UNFAVORABLE
In what ways have movies, TV shows or publications influenced your impression of truck driving or truck drivers?
“I think TV shows actually create a negative impression of truck drivers. They usually come off as fat and lazy.”
“I have seen various documentaries and tv shows about how tough truck driving can be for people and how important it is for the country.”
Would you consider a career in truck driving?
42%OVERALL RESULTS: YES
Would you consider a career in truck driving?
42%OVERALL RESULTS: YES
53%FAVORABLE: YES
Which of the following careers would you consider?
OF JOBS AVAILABLE
*Bureau of Labor Statistics for July 2018
MANUFACTURING
TRUCK DRIVING
GENERAL CONSTRUCTION
OIL AND GAS FIELD WORK
HOSPITALITY AND FOOD SERVICES
37%
18%
17%
12%
17%
OF JOBS AVAILABLE
OF JOBS AVAILABLE
OF JOBS AVAILABLE
OF JOBS AVAILABLE
Which of the following benefits appeals to you most about a career in truck driving?
44%WELL PAID
32%FREEDOM/ADVENTURE
9%ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Which of the following terms best represents why you wouldn’t consider a career in truck driving?
45%• LONELY/AWAY HOME
• DEMANDING/STRESSFUL
• DANGEROUS
What about industry
competitors?
SALARYBONUSTUITION
BENEFITS
What messages are we prioritizing
in building consideration?
9-5 HRSSAFETY
LESS STRESS
SALARYBONUSTUITION
BENEFITS
Have you researched a career in truck driving?
66%OVERALL RESULTS: YES
How or where did you research a career in truck driving?
Company websites: 63%Career websites: 58%Family and friends: 48%Someone in the business: 45%School counselor: 28%
What might change your mind about pursuing a trucking career?
41%SALARY
OVERALL
40%BONUS
OVERALL
35%TUITION
OVERALL
34%BENEFITS
OVERALL
Why are you not converting to the truck driving profession?
What roadblocks, if any, did you run into during your pursuit of a truck driving career?
SURVEY:
Age restrictions
Process of obtaining CDL
Length of training
Cost of training
Realization of time away
Access to schools
FLEET LEADERSHIP:
Age restriction myth
Perception gap on starting salary
Don’t want to work hard
Parents do not encourage/allow
Checkered background
What can the trucking industry do to increase your interest in becoming a truck driver?
Lift age restrictions
More schools
Improved personal safety
Paid training
Single parent friendly
Technology in trucks
Raise awareness of the positive aspects of the profession and promote new realities of the negative barriers
EMOTIONAL vs. FINANCIAL COMPENSATION
SUPPORTIVE CULTURE
PRIDE OF INDUSTRY
PRIDE OF COUNTRY
WHAT NOW?THERE IS WORK TO DO
1. BE WHERE THEY AREDIGITAL, SOCIAL, MOBILE
2. LET “EMOTIONAL” MOTIVATION TRUMP “PRACTICAL” BARRIERS TO ENTRY
PURPOSE, PRIDE OF INDUSTRY, PRIDE OF COUNTRY
3. DEVELOPING DRIVERS VS RECRUITING DRIVERS: SMART PARTNERSHIPS LEAD TO LASTING RELATIONSHIPS,
LESS COMPETITION
BRAND + WORKFORCE INITIATIVES + FLEETS
4. DON’T UNDERSTIMATE THE POWER OF BRAND AND CULTURE
DIFFERENTIATE ON MORE THAN FINANCIAL INCENTIVES
5. FOCUS ON CONVERSIONBE PREPARED TO OVERCOME KEY BARRIERS/MYTHS
IN YOUR MESSAGING
6. WHO WILL STEP UP TO BRING BACK THE SWAGGER?
BRAND + COLLECTIVE INDUSTRY DIGITAL CONTENT AND INFLUENCER STRATEGIES
CONCLUSIONS
• Be where they are• Focus on emotional reasoning• Bring new driver candidates in• Leverage the power of culture• Focus on conversion• Bring back the swagger
QUESTIONS?
© The Adcom Group, Inc. – This work is copyright protected by The Adcom Group, Inc.
