How to make more money driving with Uber and Lyft?
- RMI-INSPECTIONS
- Nov 15, 2020
- 7 min read
Most drivers sign on to their app, drive around and wait for a request to come through without any type of strategy or creative planning to try and maximize their earnings. The fact of the matter is, as a ride share driver, you are an independent contractor meaning you are your own boss. You drive on your schedule and operate your business the way you see fit.
It is important to have the right perspective and mindset when starting your ride share business. You are the one in charge. No one is going to push you to make more money or come up with new strategies to make more money while driving. It is your responsibility and up to you if you want to succeed or just kind of get by. We want you to thrive!
In this article we are going to provide you with those tips, tricks, and strategies to maximize your ride share earnings and turn your new business into a money machine. But remember, with anything that is worth while it takes hard work, determination, and consistency to be able to thrive in the ride share industry. So commit and you will succeed!
Tip #1:
Many new driver's have concerns about not making enough money.
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But when asked to be honest about when they drive and how often, their response is: "inconsistently" or "not enough."
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The key to success in this game is consistency, commitment, and discipline.
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You literally are your own boss. No one is going to tell you to get to work. You have to set your hours and stick to them everyday without quit.
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If you do this you will earn money that you will be happy with. But, YOU HAVE TO DRIVE CONSISTENTLY!
Tip #2:
If you want to increase efficiency and make the most money with your time
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Then driving with both UberEats and UberDriver on at the same time can cause efficiency problems
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From our personal experience and the experience of other drivers, we have found that using both features at the same time ends up actually wasting time, and for ride share drivers time is money
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Stick to one
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Try for yourself, and see if you make more money with one feature on rather than both at the same time
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You may be surprised by the results!
(With covid happening and less people feeling comfortable with getting in a car with a stranger, it might be better, given the current situation, to have both UberEats and UberX on together. But in a normal climate, having UberEats on with UberX causes an algorithm problem in the Uber app. Before covid, Uber was struggling to get enough people doing UberEats. For example, if you were a driver with both UberX and UberEats on in the same area as another driver with just UberX on, the algorithm will give the UberX requests to the driver with only UberX on because they want to reserve UberEats requests for the rider with UberEats on. You will end up getting a ton of UberEats requests and no UberX rides because they are all going to the other driver with only UberX on even though you also have UberX turned on.)
If you do not know how to turn on or off UberEats in the UberDriver App, follow the video link to see how: Click Here
Tip #3:
To maximize your earnings, time, and gas, don’t go after the surge
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Go to consistently high demand areas
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That’s how you win!
Tip #4:
Nothing puts a dent in your ride share business like not being prepared for a drunk passenger.
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The cleaning fee, the smell, the time wasted...
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Be prepared, if you are driving evenings, make sure you have a barf bag or barf bucket ready to go.
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You won't regret it!
Tip #5:
It is essential, especially for those full-time drivers who can sit in a car for up to 9 hours, to find public bathrooms with free parking
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This can be hard to find in downtown areas
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Places like Whole Foods, Sprouts, suburban Starbucks, will be your best bet with free parking and unlocked bathrooms
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Of course, every area will have different options, but make sure you know what’s around before you desperately need to use a restroom
Tip #6:
When you’re going to be on the road for hours, it’s important to make sure you have everything you need to be comfortable
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Make sure you have snacks and water in your car — but not for passengers
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keep yourself well fed and hydrated while you’re working, so you don’t have to waste time and money on takeout
Tip #7:
Racing to a surge fare area never really works out
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Other drivers head to that area as well, and the surge pricing period is be over by the time you reach it
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But try this tip for those looking to capitalize on surge pricing:
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Log out of the driver app and log into the passenger app until you reach the surge area, then log out of the passenger app and back into the driver one
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Why does it work?
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Uber calculates surge fares based on the ratio of people with the passenger app open to the driver app in an area at any given time
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This hack sways the system a bit, letting the app think you’re a passenger looking for a ride instead of a driver ready to offer one!
Tip #8:
Driving around in circles in an attempt to get to an area where Uber will ping you to pick up a fare isn’t going to do much more than add wear and tear to your vehicle
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Stick to a central area and avoid the suburbs if possible
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If you’re driving miles and miles to reach someone, there’s a good chance you’ll drive much further to meet them than you’ll wind up taking them
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This usually means drivers end up losing money on a far-away fare
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Also, If you’re driving a long way to pick someone up, they may get bored and cancel the ride or find another way to get to their destination.
Tip #9:
Partner up with a local business that you like
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Ask them if they are willing to give you a commission if you refer customers to them
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Then print a little card with the business information and your name or custom discount/promo code
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Or you can place an ad for the business in your car and get a monthly payment from the business
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Get creative!
Tip #10:
By maximizing your deductions, you will save money on your taxes
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There are a lot of expenses you can deduct on your tax returns as a ride share driver
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We have put together a free Tax Guide that explains exactly how to do your taxes, the best company to use, and how to maximize your tax deductions
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It’s yours for free, Click here for your free Ride Share Tax Guide!
Tip #11:
Here is a list of some reliable Mileage Tracking Apps:
Stride Tax Mileage
Hurdlr
TripLog 2.0
MileIQ
QuickBooks Self-Employed
Everlance Mileage
Rydar
SherpaShare
It is essential to keep track of your miles as that will be the biggest deduction on your taxes. If you do not want to use an app you can do a manual mileage log but a lot of the times people forget sometimes to log their miles and an app will do it automatically!
Tip #12:
Every day is a new opportunity to learn something new
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You can learn tons of new things by sparking up random conversations with people -
I know, the more you drive, the more difficult it is to stay motivated to talk to people
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But...
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You never know, that one person out of the hundreds of people you talk to can be the key to a big break.
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Plus, the better your conversation skills become, the more tips you will receive!
Tip #13:
The key thing to keep in mind is that all these tips are a starting point
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I can’t tell you what to do since everyone’s situation and location is unique, but if you apply this type of thinking, you’ll start to notice patterns and put yourself in the position to make more money more frequently
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Keep experimenting and trying new things and see if you notice an increase in your earnings
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There are lots of pockets and times/places you may find that meet the criteria above and will help you make more money!
Tip #14:
You can make more money driving for Uber by selling things
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SELL SNACKS- A great way to display products for sale on the back of your seat. Put drinks and snacks right in front of your passenger
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SELL SEASONAL GEAR- You can buy and sell rain ponchos when a rainstorm comes out of nowhere and catches everyone unexpected.
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USE CARGO VENDING MACHINE- Cargo is a startup that sends you a car vending machine with snacks FOR FREE. You just pay them when you sell the snacks.
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SELL PORTABLE PHONE CHARGERS- Portable phone chargers always come in handy. If someone asks if you have a charging cable for their phone, offer them a portable charger instead
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SELL HANGOVER CURES- Everyone hates to have a hangover. So when you’re picking up someone from a bar late at night, ask them if they’d like to buy a hangover cure and a bottle of water.
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This is your business, if you really want to make more money get serious about it, think outside the box, and hustle.
*Also, here’s a little secret, you can buy a lot of cheap things in bulk on AliExpress
Tip #15:
Ask some basic questions about your city and its market
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What months do you have the most travelers passing through your port?
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Are there seasonal peaks and valleys? What airlines dominate your market? Is it Alaska, United, Delta or others?
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Does your city have a port that services international flights? Is your city a major international hub like San Francisco or Seattle or simply a starting point for points beyond?
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Also you really need a daily flight schedule to begin to understand what I call waves of opportunity
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There are many websites where you can gain access to your airports daily flight schedule, use this to understand the wave of flights coming in as a great way to maximize airport ride opportunities
Tip #16:
It seems like a simple suggestion, but think about the last time you were in an Uber?
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Was your driver dressed to impress?
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Or did they look like they just jumped out of bed?
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Professionalism will go a long way. Make the extra effort to wear professional clothing when you drive
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I guarantee you will make a lot more tips if you “dress to impress!”
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