Hello my fellow drivers! As promised, here are the pieces of advice that might just help your earnings a bit, or a lot! These recommendations are not taken off any rideshare website or platform, and I am not being paid by any company to share these with you. For any common questions or legal issues, you should always consult your rideshare company platform.

So, without further ado… let’s get to the unsolicited advice!

Advice #1: Keys, Wallet, Cellphone, Identification (ID)?

When I pick up a rider on their way to the airport or train station, I always ask “Do you have your keys, wallet, cell phone and Identification (ID)?”. These are all things that we need now days in order to travel and enjoy a trip anywhere. In the early days, I would not ask these questions, and a rider forgot something and had to go all the way back, causing them to be late for a train, bus or plane.

By asking this, it will help them double-check before the ride starts, as well as help them remember something else they might need for their trip. A few riders over the years forgot things like a bag, important USB drive, or other item. So, by asking these questions, it will save you and the rider the stress of having to go back where you picked them up.

Advice #2: Always Look Behind You After A Ride

Over the years, I have of course had occasions where a rider left something in my car. I always take a few seconds after every ride to double, and sometimes triple check my back seat for anything left behind. However, depending on the color of your seats and interior, you may not always see things like ear pod cases, cell phones, or other objects left behind. So, I always take a good look around my back seat; especially when I drop off at the airport.

Advice #3: Having Water, Gum Or Other Amenities

When I first started driving in 2015, it was recommended that I carry in my car things like gum, bottles of water, and stuff like that. However, it was not long before I realized that these things were not only not asked for by the riders very often, but that these things led to me getting a few bad ratings for cleanliness. Some riders that saw packets of gum I had displayed in the back seat would take one but then leave wrappers and other debris in my car seat pockets (located on the back of the front two seats) or beverage holders in the back doors.

I would not always see these pieces of debris, and it cost me a 5-star rating a few times. This also probably resulted in me not receiving a good tip as well. Obviously, not all riders leave things behind. But me seeing just a few instances of debris being left behind quickly led to me no longer offering such things to riders. Having just a few bottles of water tucked away is always good for an emergency or on hot days when a rider might be dehydrated.

Advice #4: Cover Door And Back Of Seat Compartments

To help prevent objects of any sort being left in your backseat area, I suggest covering the door beverage holders in your car, if you have them. That, or put up signs reminding riders not to leave containers or debris behind. Beverage holders are of course a convenience for cars, but they are also sometimes a way to get a bad rating should your next rider notice objects in them.

Advice #5: To Wear A Mask Or Not To Wear A Mask?

Since the beginning of the Covid pandemic, I have always worn a mask when taking riders. Though the requirement for them is not currently in place, I still feel better wearing one. Sometimes I will get riders that get in and have a sneeze, cough or sniffle going on. Rolling down windows is not always the best nor the most comfortable thing during a ride. So, wearing a mask is still something I would recommend, no matter what your personal beliefs of them might be.

Masks of course do not prevent everything, but they do help you and sometimes the rider feel safer and more comfortable. Having spare masks for riders that do not have one but want to respect your decision to wear one is always good to have available. It goes without saying that keeping yourself healthy will decrease days you have to take off from driving. Wearing a mask will assist in that goal.

Advice #6: Help Support And Promote Your City Or General Area

Being a driver, you know riders from out of town who may not have ever been to your area or city, will ask for places to go, eat, drink, etc. If you are a driver that really knows the area in which you live or travel around to, it is important to help riders go places. In other words, show off and promote your city and surrounding areas.
If you are in a place like Portland, where I live, there are many places to see and experience. Beautiful sights, good food, and many places to drink and just enjoy your city. I cannot tell you how many times over the years I have done this and have gotten such a good review, bigger tip, and/or a thank you! Riders like it when a driver knows their city, town or state/country.

Making your own person brochure or a simple typed list of places to go, eat, drink, explore, see, and so many other things is a great way to help you show off your city. I recently started working on a brochure for my riders that will help me promote my city and state of Oregon. It will also help me to not have to do so much remembering; fore sometimes I can’t remember all the places I would recommend to a rider or just do not have the time to during the ride.

Even if you are not an outgoing driver who likes to talk; making a brochure is a good way to help a ride enjoy the area you live in, enjoy the ride, and be more motivated to leave a good or better tip. That is the overall point of this piece of advice… getting riders to feel more welcomed by you and motivate them to tip you better, as well as leave a good review of you as a driver and hopefully a 5-star rating.

Advice #7: Show Compassion To Others

In my city of Portland, like any other city, we have a homeless population. Though we have made a lot of good progress to address the issue, there are still many people here without a home, food or water. I see it every day and try to help where I can. On several occasions when having a rider in the car, I stopped and helped a homeless individual with food and water that I have with me in the car.

Though giving money does help those who genuinely need it to buy food or water, it can also be used for illegal substances. Giving food and water helps a person stay alive, in hopes of improving their situation somehow. So, my advice is to give food or water to a person in need when you can.

This not only shows a rider your humanity and goodwill towards others; it also may just motivate them to do something similar, in addition to giving you a good star rating and a tip for helping others. I have had several riders that thanked me for doing a good deed; such as giving to those who need a bit of help to survive.

Advice #8: Utilize The Cruise Control

Throughout the years I have always tried to follow the speed limits in any area. However, I have unfortunately gone over the limit a bit too much at times. This has led to me receiving a few lower than five-star ratings and most likely no tip for the ride in which it occurred. Most riders do not pay attention to such things during a ride; but others do.

I watch my ratings often and try my best to not repeat any negative notes left by a rider. So, to help myself not speed accidentally on rides that involve a longer time on freeways or long stretches of road, I utilize the cruise control. This helps ensure any rider that might just be watching your speed or glancing over at your speedometer, that you are doing what you can to drive within the speed limit. Doing so can help maintain the possibility of getting a good rating and a tip.

Advice #9: Suspicious About Your Luck?

I am a big believer in the suspicion of knocking on wood to change my luck. There have been so many times that I have been talking to a rider about whatever, and the words “Knock on Wood” have come up. In the beginning, I had no way to satisfy this suspicion of mine with an actual piece of wood in my car to knock on.

So, to help with this, I made a small wood piece to mount on my car dashboard. Ever since doing this 10 years ago, I have gotten many good responses from riders. They expressed how they have never seen a block of wood in a car to knock on for luck. Almost every time this occurred, the rider(s) laughed and sometimes took a picture to share. This experience creates a better, more interesting ride for everyone in the car. I highly encourage any driver that has this superstition to put a block or decorative piece of wood in your car and see the reactions you get from your riders! Doing so, might just lead to a good or better tip and even rating for you.

Advice #10: Add A Bit Of Humor To The Ride

If you are a driver that likes to interact with riders or are generally and genuinely an outgoing person; adding appropriate humor to a conversation really makes a difference. I myself am a somewhat outgoing person. I like to make jokes or puns when I see an opportunity, but also try to keep it appropriate as possible, as to not offend.

For example; here in Portland we have Mt. Hood. Many riders observe the mountain and comment on how beautiful it is. I tend to often comment something like: “Look at what Bob Ross painted today!” or “That is Mt Hood… she’s a beautiful old gal. And look, she has her makeup (covered in snow) on!”. Harmless little jokes that are only meant to make a rider laugh, as well as show off the scenery of Portland at times.

Many riders from Portland or visiting the area saying how much it rains here in Portland. Some like the rain, others do not. To this, I most often jokingly remark that “Whenever in rains, I get a free car wash!”. This leads to so many laughs and most of them agreeing with me.

I believe sometimes humor can help riders have a good ride, relax a not so good mood they might be in, or just make a conversation you might be in with them better. Obviously, you need to judge when and if a joke is appropriate, but I have found humor to help so many times in good and not so good conversations during rides.

Advice #11: Don’t Leave A Passenger Stranded

There has been a hand full of times when a passenger has requested a ride to a place that does not have many or any drivers within a reasonable range of the drop-off point. Two examples that are the case here are Multnomah Falls and Woodburn Premium Outlet Mall. These are locations that are far enough from Portland that the fare for taking them is good, but there are not many ways to get back to the city, or wherever they get picked up from.

Knowing there are not many rideshare drivers near these areas, I always inform my riders of this fact before I start driving towards them. Doing this gives them a chance to either research ways to get back (tour bus, shuttle bus, etc.) or cancel the ride all together. Showing that you care for their safe return can be a good way to get a good rating and tip. Most importantly, it is just the right thing to do.

Advice #12: Strong Car Air Fresheners

It is a bad idea to use air fresheners for your car. I recently had a rider say that they were in a rideshare earlier in the day, and the driver had a strong air freshener that made the ride unpleasant. They expressed relief that they got into my car and it did not have a strong smell. This made me infer that their driver from earlier either regularly smoked in the car or had a pet of some kind. Neither of these things are bad of course. However, they can lead to the need to mask those odors when transporting riders.

It is important to maintain a good-smelling car. But, I have myself found car air fresheners to be too strong for comfort. You should also keep in mind that some riders might have sensitivity to smell or allergies. So, I would recommend using a brand of “New Car” scented sprays. I used these in my early years of driving because I had a job as a pizza delivery driver at the time. They really can help eliminate odors but not be overpowering in terms of smell.

Another way to help with keeping your car smelling fresh is to use lightly scented sanitation wipes. Orange or lemon scented ones are the best, and do not leave a strong scent. Not to mention, they just help keep your car clean and disinfected after taking a lot or a few riders throughout the day. Wiping down as many surfaces as possible (doors, dashboard, steering wheel, etc.) helps in this way as well.