It was late September 2001, and it seemed as if everything to do with the motorcoach business had come to a grinding halt. Charter buses sat idle and new coaches seemed to be stacked like cordwood on manufacturers' lots.

That afternoon, as coincidence would have it, I made back-to-back phone calls to two nearly identical charter bus lines. Each was midsized, had immaculate equipment, good drivers and all the earmarks of a well-run company.

The owner of "Btfsplk Bus Line" was apoplectic. "The phones have stopped ringing, everyone has cancelled their trip and wants their deposit back. We're doomed." A little black cloud hovered over the whole conversation.

But at "Shmoo Lines," company president Ari was too busy to talk. He was calling all his customers booked to New York and Washington (then perceived as "destinations of death") and asking if they'd like to go somewhere else. Then he was going to search his records to find groups that had gone to other venues and see if he could encourage them to go again ... now.

The contrast was startling. I'm not sure how effective Ari's strategy was, but at least he HAD one.

If we're lucky, we may never again see such a disaster. In the aftermath, many companies failed but others learned valuable lessons that helped them survive, then thrive.

There are those who believe we're approaching an economic downturn, and that these lessons may need to be dusted off. In effect, it doesn't really matter. If the economy doesn't slow now it will cycle down eventually. It seems like a good idea to point out some operators' ideas in the hopes at least one or two may be helpful.

The most obvious was to downsize (we manufacturers HATE that). The upside is that many companies analyzed, for the first time, exactly how much business they had, and where it came from. 9-11 gave everyone an excuse to tighten belts without appearing to be a failure.

A few operators took an additional step.

They evaluated their customers in terms of who was willing to pay for quality, and who was a bottom feeder. They reduced their fleet to accommodate only the customers worth keeping, and worked hard at serving that clientele. The "fired" customers ended up occupying competitors, without adding to their bottom line.

One small bus line took out a Yellow Pages ad. Until this point, hed relied on his home phone number, and did a huge amount of overflow work for a nearby carrier. But the small operator quickly figured out that, in slow times, "Big Bus Line" was going to use its own buses first, and he'd better get a grip on his own destiny.

He was the only bus line I knew that was too "thrifty" to have a Yellow Pages listing, but certainly not the only one to put his fate in others hands.

You simply can't do that because, when bad times come, the other guy must take care of himself first. Even in good times, he is controlling your pricing.

A number of operators did some soul searching, in an effort to decide where their real strengths lay. One family operation came to the conclusion that, because they were savvy at coach repair it didn't make sense to buy new equipment.

Ignoring their bus salesman's pain, they took advantage of a depressed used coach market and havent purchased a new coach in years. They remain a pre-eminent carrier in their region.

Another carrier looked at his shops skill set and decided that, if he turned equipment over at the right time, he could save a ton on maintenance and overhead. He buys nothing but new buses and thrives.

They're both right because they adapted their equipment strategy to their unique strengths.

Surviving in tough times demands a bit of ruthlessness, and the first victim needs to be our own egos. Buying used equipment is not a step down, if it's a wise use of skills. Paring back overhead that looks good, but doesn't contribute, is smart, not demeaning. Downsizing to a rational size and shedding unprofitable customers is both wise and satisfying.

Operate as the market, not pride, demands. Buy that Yellow Pages ad, and whatever else you REALLY need to control your future.

If you're in a market that demands new buses, suck it up and buy them. Trim mercilessly elsewhere to make it possible because, ultimately, the part of your business that creates revenue is your coaches. A sexy garage is fun, but contributes little.

Both "Shmoo" and "Btfsplk" remain in business. "Shmoo" is thriving and "Btfsplk" is surviving. And anyone who can use the words "sexy" and "garage" consecutively, in the same sentence, is slipping badly.

Dave Millhouser is an account representative for ABC Companies. Contact him at: dmillhouser@abc-companies.com.