Choosing Car Features

Tips For Cab Companies To Compete With Ride-Sharing

In some localities, the rising popularity of ride-sharing is causing a decline in taxi customers. If your company is concerned about any decline in business, there are ways to market your assets to compete with ride-sharing.

Reduce Competitiveness With Other Taxi Companies

Although it seems counterproductive to reduce your competition with other taxi companies, it may help your taxi service to view them as allies. One of the major selling points of ride-sharing is the ability to use an app to find a ride within minutes and complete all of your transactions within the app. Your company might want to develop an app to appeal to mobile customers, but if there are multiple taxi companies in your area, customers will not want the hassle of using a different app for each one. Furthermore, it is difficult to compare which one will arrive faster.

Consider using an app as a hub where customers can order the closest driver, regardless of their company. This streamlines the process for mobile customers and reduces the lure of ride-sharing. When all payments are made through the app, it may attract people who would normally use ride-sharing. Typically, customers will have a credit card on file, but may be able to use other methods of payment, such as PayPal or Stripe. Your drivers can feel more secure when most payments are processed remotely, instead of carrying around cash. Another factor that makes ride-sharing more attractive is knowing the costs upfront. To compete, you will need an app that calculates the cost of the trip upfront.

Include Standard Marketing Tactics

There are aspects of being a taxi company that may give you a competitive edge over ride-sharing. One is brand recognition. Taxis are easily recognizable on the street and when there are several taxi companies in an area, they often have taxis of a specific color. Use this as an advantage when marketing your company. Promote the signature color of your company and remind customers there is a sense of security when you are being picked up by a taxi instead of someone in their personal vehicle. If your jurisdiction allows hailing of taxis, this is another advantage. Customers who happen to walk outside and see an available taxi can be on their way within seconds. This is something they cannot do with ride-share.

Brand recognition also extends to the subset of customers who have used taxis for years. Simply because ride-sharing might be more appealing to younger generations, does not mean there are not customers who are loyal to your company and have your phone number memorized. Make sure you are always appealing to your customers by having friendly, personable drivers, which can increase brand loyalty. Having a consistently positive experience with your company can make customers choose you over other options.

Use Regulations To Your Advantage

Each locality will have different regulations regarding taxi companies and requirements for drivers, which may differ from regulations for ride-sharing. Since these regulations often require taxi companies to make a considerable monetary investment, such as additional fees and licenses, use any regulations that are more stringent as part of your marketing. For example, if you locality requires more stringent background checks and training to be a taxi driver than a ride-share driver, mention this is any advertising without making any direct comparisons. You want customers to think about which type of transportation would make them feel more secure.

Regulations may be important if your locality mandates certain fees, vehicles, and dress codes for airport trips. This can prevent some ride-share drivers from being able to pick up or drop off passengers at the airport or they cannot wait by the entrance and see if anyone coming out of the airport needs a ride. If your taxi company meets any requirements to do airport trips, you should always have drivers readily available at airports. Additionally, include in your marketing that you are approved by local airports.

The increasing popularity of ride-sharing has caused concerns for some taxi companies. Fortunately, there are ways to show potential customers taxis remain an invaluable form of transportation.


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