We have all read about Uber and Lyft drivers making extra cash selling products and services. We asked 20 self employed ride share drivers with formal sales experience how they carefully balance selling and keeping a 5 star rating.
#1 – Profile your passenger – Ultimately you can make a general assessment about your passenger based on their pickup, destination, and appearance. Asking questions is a great way to profile and “qualify” your rider as a potential customer.
#2 – Breaking the ice with questions: “Where are you headed?” “Where are you from?”. These are great ice-breaker questions to start a conversation while testing your rider’s willingness to engage.
#3 – Don’t lead with a sales pitch – Riders do NOT want to listen to a pushy sales person. Generally speaking, riders don’t want to be sold to either, so you need to be tactful and not annoy your passenger.
#4 – Listen and don’t interrupt – Not every passenger is a potential customer. For example, if you have multiple passengers engaged in conversation or someone pre-occupied on their telephone it does not make sense to spark a conversation about your product/ service
#5- Market and sell passively with in-vehicle advertising – Advertising is a great way to share your business and let your passenger initiate a conversation. An engaged passenger who is asking questions is more likely to become a customer.
Feel free to share your experiences in the comments section.
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