Let’s say you get a 4 passenger trip that ends up costing $5. All 4 passengers grab a water and some candy. If you actually do the math, you may end up losing money. It’s just not worth it to me. The hassle of restocking, the cost, the greedy people who take an extra water and stuff a handful of candy in their pockets, etc. It may be cool for novelty purposes but it just doesn’t make sense, especially for a cheap trip.
Dollar Stores rule for a good variety of goodies. Keep up the awesome service and amenities. I love it. You have to distinguish yourself from the rest to keep getting ahead.
Although I dont provide extras, I do believe in good service. Everyone has their own method of providing it. This leads me to my newest. Has anyone been deactivated based on rating?..
I provide gum (extra since it’s individually silver-wrapped) and clif bars and water. Nobody takes the clif bars, except in early mornings, but people appreciate that I have them. I’ll charge if people ask (the two-port Lyft adapter is handy).
I also have a 400w inverter stuffed under the front passenger seat of my Passat, if I get a ride with someone actively working on their laptop, I’ll ask them if they want to charge up a bit (since it’s likely they have their charger with them)
Cost me $20 from Newegg… Works great
I was rated at a 4.6, but since I’ve added airheads and water I only get 5’s. I bought the cheap 3.00 water from Save a lot, and the airheads were about 3 dollars per package. Spent about 12 bucks and people seem to enjoy the treat.
You should be driving for Lyft. You make a killing in tips. I offer water and soda that I keep in a cooler with ice packs. I also offer gum, candy and mint. I honestly think they help quite a bit in generating additional tips.
A passenger last weekend told me her previous Lyft driver had two file boxes full of books and other things for passengers. She said it in a way that conveyed moderate rating damage if I didn’t produce something similarly impressive.
By pure luck I have a second cigarette lighter adapter in the back, but for everyone else, most people beyond the most ill-tempered millenials will just be happy to let the phone sit and get a charge while they are driven. (Just make sure they don’t leave their phone.)
I kinda hate it when a passenger starts talking about how amazing their previous Uber ride was. It’s like a lover bragging about her last boyfriend. Makes me feel inadequate.
providing these extras, you are faced with the extra burden of being sure that the remains of these “extras” are not strewn over your back seat before the next rider gets in. If it is a slow night, then this seat check isn’t a problem. If its a busy night, then it becomes more problematic.
I provide the low-cost stuff: water in 8oz bottles tucked under the seat cushion, chargers for 4, 5, and Android (as I have an Android tablet and previously owned a Galaxy S before the battery finally gave up the ghost).
I used to have a bag of candy in the backseat, but then the drunks would get a hold of them and scarf down 4-5 fun size bars each, then leave the wrappers all over the floor. (It also got problematic when we needed the middle seat and they’d smash the candy in the bag.
I’m using the 8oz water bottles from Costco $6.99 for 70 ($5.49 right now with an instant rebate) and very inexpensive candies and gum. Everything looks more impressive in this thing and almost every rider comments on it whether they take anything from it or not.
If I bought a phone charger for the rear AC jack, someone would undoubtedly steal it every forty rides or so. Wouldn’t you need iPhone 4/5 cords as well? As good as gone. Bottled water only works if I leave the A/C+engine on all the time to cool it, which I cannot afford to do as an UberX driver.