Year 1 target
Targets from the 10-year projection. Assumed: 20 drivers per company, 2% monthly churn, 84 paid sign-ups in year 1, A$22.75 per driver per month ex GST.
Market facts
| Road freight businesses (ANZSIC 4610), June 2025 | Count |
|---|---|
| All actively trading | 65,225 |
| Non-employing (mostly owner-operators) | 40,759 |
| 1 to 4 employees | 19,739 |
| 5 to 19 employees | 3,633 |
| 20 to 199 employees | 1,019 |
| 200 or more employees | 75 |
By state: VIC 20,939, NSW 19,309, QLD 12,103, WA 7,143, SA 4,135. Source: ABS Counts of Australian Businesses, data cube 2, as compiled at bookkeepingpros.com.au. Check the figures in the ABS release before quoting them publicly.
76 companies is about 1.6% of the 4,727 businesses with 5 to 199 employees (calculated from the counts above).
The ATA's member associations include NatRoad, ALRTA (900+ companies), QTA, Road Freight NSW, VTA (800+ members), SARTA, Tasmanian Transport Association, NTRTA, WATIA (replaced Western Roads Federation in July 2026), AFRA and Transport Women Australia.
20 to 23 May 2027, Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, run by HVIA. Truck Week 27 runs 17 to 23 May.
Dates and location not confirmed yet. The 2026 event was 3 to 5 June on Hamilton Island.
VTA lists a State Conference 22 to 24 Mar and the Australian Freight Industry Awards 5 Sep. Confirm the year and whether suppliers can attend.
The NHVR register listed 13 approved electronic work diaries on 22 Oct 2026. Hubfleet charges A$14 + GST per month for a single driver.
Target customer
Local and regional general freight, tippers, distribution depots. Owner runs the office, still on paper runsheets, texts and spreadsheets.
Need the live map, forms and export reports across depots. Longer sales cycle, bigger accounts.
Pay the A$99 minimum (4 drivers at A$22.75 is A$91). Mostly self-serve trial, light touch.
Pitch in one line: runsheets, pre-start checks, hours, fuel and messages on the driver's phone, and one simple dashboard for the office. Simple mode is the hook for non-tech-savvy owners.
Channels
| Channel | What to do | Share of leads (assumed) |
|---|---|---|
| Direct outreach | Build a list from Google Maps and association directories; call, email, then LinkedIn. 50 touches a week to start. | 35% |
| Google search and local SEO | Google Business Profile, pages per use case (pre-start checks app, digital runsheets, driver app for trucking), a small search ads test. | 20% |
| Two short posts a week from the founder's own profile: pilot results, product clips. Connect with transport managers. | 15% | |
| Associations and expos | Join one state association as a supplier member, attend VTA and Brisbane Truck Show as a visitor, write for newsletters. | 15% |
| Referrals from the pilot | Case study, testimonial and three intro requests. No discounts or credits, since the only offer is the 30-day trial. | 10% |
| Partnerships | Truck dealers, transport accountants, insurance brokers, fuel card resellers, compliance consultants. | 5% |
Funnel and monthly targets
Assumed conversion rates: lead to demo 20%, demo to trial 60%, trial to paid 50%. Trials started in one month convert the next month (30-day trial). Replace these with real rates after the first 20 trials.
| Month | Leads | Demos | Trials | New paid | Companies | Drivers | MRR (A$) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 26 | 35 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dec 26 | 50 | 10 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 39 | 892 |
| Jan 27 | 70 | 14 | 8 | 3 | 5 | 97 | 2,212 |
| Feb 27 | 100 | 20 | 12 | 4 | 9 | 174 | 3,951 |
| Mar 27 | 120 | 24 | 14 | 6 | 14 | 288 | 6,547 |
| Apr 27 | 135 | 27 | 16 | 7 | 21 | 419 | 9,538 |
| May 27 | 150 | 30 | 18 | 8 | 28 | 568 | 12,914 |
| Jun 27 | 170 | 34 | 20 | 9 | 37 | 733 | 16,669 |
| Jul 27 | 185 | 37 | 22 | 10 | 46 | 914 | 20,795 |
| Aug 27 | 200 | 40 | 24 | 11 | 56 | 1,111 | 25,284 |
| Sep 27 | 200 | 40 | 24 | 12 | 66 | 1,324 | 30,129 |
| Oct 27 | 220 | 44 | 26 | 12 | 77 | 1,533 | 34,877 |
Year totals: 1,635 leads, 327 demos, 194 trials, 84 new paid. Companies apply 2% churn each month; the model ends at 77 (76.6) companies and about A$34.9K MRR, in line with the projection.
Paying companies (modelled)
Month by month plan
| Month | Focus | Main actions |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 26 | Launch ready | Close Stripe items, support email, onboarding. Agree pilot conversion date. List of 300 target companies. |
| Dec 26 | Go live | Start charging. Pilot becomes paid client 1. Google Business Profile and 5 SEO pages. Outreach light over holidays. |
| Jan 27 | Outbound engine | 50 outreach touches a week. LinkedIn twice a week. Publish pilot case study. |
| Feb 27 | Associations | Join one state association as a supplier member. Start a small search ads test. |
| Mar 27 | Events | Attend VTA State Conference if suppliers can. Raise outreach to 75 touches a week. |
| Apr 27 | Partners | Pitch 10 partners (dealers, accountants, brokers). Prepare Brisbane Truck Show list and demo kit. |
| May 27 | Brisbane Truck Show | Walk the show 20 to 23 May, book demos on the spot, follow up within 48 hours. |
| Jun 27 | Follow up | Convert show leads. End of financial year message. Ask every paid client for one intro. |
| Jul 27 | Proof | Three more case studies. Improve trial activation from what the data shows. |
| Aug 27 | Partners live | First partner referrals. Reuse best-performing SEO pages and ads. |
| Sep 27 | Retention | Call every client: usage review, churn risks, missing features. |
| Oct 27 | Review | Compare actuals to plan. Set year 2 targets and conversion rates from real data. |
Before charging real money
- ✓Stripe billing code live
- Real webhook signatures verified in live modeOpen
- BECS direct debit turned on and testedOpen; most AU trucking firms pay by direct debit (assumption)
- Stripe Identity decided: turn on or dropOpen
- Trial end to first charge tested end to end with a real cardNot confirmed
- Failed payment emails and retries set upNot confirmed
- Tax invoices show ABN and GSTNot confirmed
- Support email live with a reply time promiseOpen
- Onboarding: setup checklist, 5-minute Simple mode video, first-week check-in callOpen
- Terms, privacy policy and cancellation steps on haulvo.solutionsNot confirmed
Status as of 30 Oct 2026. Items marked not confirmed may already be done.
Weekly metrics
| Metric | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Outreach touches and new leads | Top of funnel against the monthly lead target |
| Demos booked and held | Lead to demo rate (assumed 20%) |
| Trials started | Demo to trial rate (assumed 60%) |
| Trial activation | Share of trials with a driver doing a runsheet or pre-start in week 1 |
| Trials converted to paid | Trial to paid rate (assumed 50%) |
| Paying companies and drivers billed | Progress to 76 and 1,510 |
| MRR | Progress to A$34K |
| Churned companies | Against the 2% monthly assumption |
| Failed payments | Billing health once live |
| Support tickets and first reply time | Onboarding quality |
Next 7 days
- Fri 30 Oct: list the open launch items
One list with a date for each: webhook signatures, BECS, Stripe Identity, support email, onboarding.
- Mon 2 Nov: verify live webhooks
Check real signatures in live mode and test trial end to first charge with a real card.
- Tue 3 Nov: payments and support
Turn on and test BECS direct debit; decide on Stripe Identity; set up the support inbox and auto-reply.
- Wed 4 Nov: onboarding
Write the setup checklist and record the Simple mode video. Prepare questions for the pilot conversion call.
- Thu 5 Nov: pipeline setup
Build the first 100 target companies, set up Google Business Profile, and start the weekly metrics sheet.
- Through the week: drafts only
Draft outreach email, call script and pilot case study. Do not send anything until billing is ready.
Sources
- Road freight transport: ABS business countsbookkeepingpros.com.au
- Counts of Australian Businesses, Jul 2021 to Jun 2025abs.gov.au
- ATA member associationstruck.net.au
- ATA members (VTA, WATIA)truck.net.au
- Trucking Australia 2027truck.net.au
- 2027 Brisbane Truck Show datesbrisbanetruckshow.com.au
- HVIA eventshvia.asn.au
- VTA upcoming eventsvta.com.au
- NHVR electronic work diary registernhvr.gov.au
- The 13 NHVR-approved EWDsrigradar.com.au
- Hubfleet pricinghubfleet.com.au