High profit margins are something that every business wants to see, but it is almost impossible to operate without any costs. Luckily for most businesses you can adjust your prices to accommodate rises in your costs, but for taxi drivers it isn’t so simple. With fuel prices increasing so quickly, and many cities adopting low-emission zones and fees associated with them, it’s time to think about how you can adapt your business in the long run.
You can increase your profits as a taxi driver or as a fleet owner; start by considering these top options:
1. Upgrade to a Hybrid or Electric
There are two costs that can eat into any cab business’ profits – fuel costs and any fees paid if there is a low emission zone in your area. Paying these high costs or trying to pass them off entirely to your customers can mean they look elsewhere. The better investment in the long run is to instead upgrade your taxi to either a hybrid or electric, depending on what type of trips you go on for your customers. Find for-purpose hybrids that are already fitted as proper taxis from CabDirect and start boosting your profits by reducing your fuel costs.
2. Upgrade Your Booking System
If you operate a taxi company or a private driver company, it’s time to improve your customer-facing features. By upgrading your booking system to at least offer what other top ride-share businesses offer you can immediately start to see more customers. Make it easy for them to select the type of car and service that they want as well.
3. Add a Carpool Option
If you want to increase profits, take on more passengers. There are those on a tight budget that are willing to share a cab with other passengers to pay less. Overall, however, each driver will make more.
There are a few things to consider when offering this option, and that’s efficiency. Don’t drive around with passengers for ages until you can pick up a second passenger. If the drive to the next passenger is greater than 10 minutes away, then it is too far.
Tip: Try booking these types of trips in advance. For example, if two or more passengers need to go to the airport and book in advance and want the carpool option you can then plan around the route so that the distance between each pickup is minimal and everyone gets to the airport on time.
4. Set Up Partnerships
There are big businesses that need private cars and services. Partner with them to become one of their go-to options. This way you can have a consistent income month-to-month. You will usually have a set number of hours you will work as part of that monthly price, and then any overtime if they go over that number.
This type of solution works for private individuals as well! If they need a regular cab service one day of the week because they work late those days, then they can hire you on a monthly basis for that trip. You can plan your rides around that route so that you can maximise profits and minimise your fuel usage.
