Every weekend thousands of people descend on CA's Napa Valley. Driving from winery to winery isn't always folks' first choice, particularly after a long day of wine tasting. That's where Lyft comes in. So yesterday I drove, wanting to learn from the experience.
First ride was pretty standard-- a group of four who'd just had a great time at Tres Sabores and needed to get to Whitehall Lane Winery. They chose Lyft because they'd had a bad customer experience with the others guys. Huh.
Second one came with a twist. It was a couple celebrating their anniversary, heading from Mumm Napa Winery to RH's amazing restaurant. But the guy was clearly miserable. "Is there a gas station along the way?" he asked. "Why? Do you want to put gas in my Tesla?" "No, my allergies are killing me."
I ended up driving them to a supermarket and waiting while he ran in. "Need me to add this as a separate destination?" "Nah," I said. "I know a guy."
BTW, they chose Lyft because of a recommendation from their hotel who told them: "Lyft's usually your best option around here." Great! I'll be sending them a thank-you note.
Final ride was for a brand ambassador headed to Far Niente Wine Estates for the afternoon. He uses Lyft and the other guys regularly when he travels. "But Lyft tends to treat me better." That's the goal!
This was a surgical strike: I only had 90 minutes, and was lucky enough to get three rides nearly back-to-back. Riders paid a total of $48.05; my total earnings were $29.10 + $13.54 in tips, which would equate to $19.40/hour excluding tips or $28.40/hour all-in. (Obviously those are gross earnings-- we've published a paper that details drivers' expenses like fuel, maintenance and depreciation.) https://lnkd.in/gyrnj_kj.
For Lyft's part, the company received $7.96. That goes to running the machine that recruits and vets drivers, negotiates insurance on behalf of drivers to the tune of about $1M/ride, markets to riders, matches rider and driver millions of times each day, takes payments and pays the credit card fees, makes sure drivers get paid weekly or on-demand, handles customer care when things go wrong, deals with fraud, etc. Not a high-margin business, which is why customer obsession matters so much. More rides = better!
Obviously I drive to learn, not to earn, and your mileage may vary. But I came away with even more appreciation for the driving experience.
Thanks for reading-- and thanks to the incredible team who builds and operates Lyft's platform, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with excellence!