To capitalize on your on-demand rideshare business, it’s smart to be strategic and look beyond the daily rush hour for opportunities to make money. Driving gigs that fly under the radar such as large scale events, are definitely worth considering. In Austin, SXSW (South by Southwest) is a 10-day long conference with well over 70,000 people attending. That’s a big crowd moving around downtown Austin, nearly 24 hours a day, not to mention a lot of locals who will avoid taking their car into high traffic areas where parking is a nightmare!
The entrepreneur in you is ready to do a little hustling to make good money driving for the “events niche”. We have compiled a few tips to get you started in your city:
1.
Twitter is an easy way to promote your event specific services. You can use different tweets to target people attending the event or locals looking to bypass all the hoopla. Be sure to include your rideshare channel name if you have one and use hashtags that are clear and searchable so your tweets can be found by people following the event, for example:
I can help you #AvoidTraffic during #SXSW. Request rides by using #RideSharePlatform. Channel: @YourHandle #yourridesharenamehere
Or
Need a lift during #SXSW? Think #RideShare. Find me on #RideSharePlatform and I will get you where you need to go. Channel: @YourHandle
2.
Contact event organizers and hotels associated with the event to tell them about your rideshare platform, and the driving services you provide. Event hosts want every possible way to make sure their customers have a seamless stay. When taxis are hard to find, they are going to call you.
3.
Connect with other independent rideshare drivers in town to build a community and share strategies. There is power in numbers, and if you can show group presence during the event, you will find more riders and more income!
4.
Keep promoting. Sending out your message only once doesn’t cut it. Use your social media network to reach out and let people know which events you are driving for. As the event date approaches, send out daily scheduled posts to keep your rideshare service fresh in people’s minds. Let them know where they can download the rideshare app you use to schedule a ride.
5.
When the event is happening, make sure you stay within less than 5 min of the event location in order to get to your pickup point fast!
If you are looking to joining the gig economy and are on the hunt the best rideshare platforms that provide the best profit margins for drivers and fewer fees, check out Gett, Via, or RideConnect (which is completely free!)
Good luck and safe driving.