Looking for some guidance
Discussion
Hi all
Long term reader, new poster.
I believe I have a reasonably good idea for an app related to the rideshare market, specifically aimed at the drivers. I drive Uber myself and manage approx 30 hrs a week.
One of the biggest issues I see and read about is a driver’s hourly earnings and how best they can boost it. My idea certainly isn’t ground breaking but as far as I can tell, no one has provided what I am looking at doing. In a nutshell, I think I can make a driver more efficient and thus more profitable by analysing their data.
However, whilst the idea sounds great in my head, I have not a clue how to implement it as I have zero development skills or know how. I don’t even know if what I am asking can be curated from the data.
Is there anywhere I can go to pitch my idea to an app developer and see it’s plausible and cost effective? I’ve also asked a rideshare specific forum if they’d be interested in the app if one were available to try and gauge market feedback.
Any comments/suggestions are welcome.
Long term reader, new poster.
I believe I have a reasonably good idea for an app related to the rideshare market, specifically aimed at the drivers. I drive Uber myself and manage approx 30 hrs a week.
One of the biggest issues I see and read about is a driver’s hourly earnings and how best they can boost it. My idea certainly isn’t ground breaking but as far as I can tell, no one has provided what I am looking at doing. In a nutshell, I think I can make a driver more efficient and thus more profitable by analysing their data.
However, whilst the idea sounds great in my head, I have not a clue how to implement it as I have zero development skills or know how. I don’t even know if what I am asking can be curated from the data.
Is there anywhere I can go to pitch my idea to an app developer and see it’s plausible and cost effective? I’ve also asked a rideshare specific forum if they’d be interested in the app if one were available to try and gauge market feedback.
Any comments/suggestions are welcome.
good luck 
what is the size of your market
what % take up might there be
how will you monetise the app
how will you pay for the app to be developed
what is to stop uber killing your business (either by matching what you do / banning it)
if you are in a position to fund development and have a plan for payback through the % of people who will use it - then crack on...
if you are expecting to find a development company who will produce it on spec. in the random hope that you / they will make money from it - good luck!
what is the size of your market
what % take up might there be
how will you monetise the app
how will you pay for the app to be developed
what is to stop uber killing your business (either by matching what you do / banning it)
if you are in a position to fund development and have a plan for payback through the % of people who will use it - then crack on...
if you are expecting to find a development company who will produce it on spec. in the random hope that you / they will make money from it - good luck!
Before you speak to developers, you need to speak to drivers. Would they be interested? How much would they be prepared to pay? You can do this informally by speaking to as many drivers as you can to get a feel for demand and the likely price point that would sell. From this you can then calculate the various financial scenarios based upon user numbers and from this, the budgets you then need to apply to get the thing up and running.
You will need to speak to people so you should afford yourself a modicum of protection. A patent will be costly and lengthy so initially, simply write down the idea and post it to a solicitor with instruction to time stamp it and then keep a note of who you spoke to.
App Developers are inundated on a daily basis with proposals for the 'next big thing' and a share in the business in leu of the fees that would normally apply so don't expect many to jump through hoops to help you. And in any case, the stronger the business case, the more likelihood you have of securing the funding to launch and you then retain ownership of more.
Initially, just write a brief for what you want and send to developers and from these, you'll get an idea of the processes and costs involved.
You will need to speak to people so you should afford yourself a modicum of protection. A patent will be costly and lengthy so initially, simply write down the idea and post it to a solicitor with instruction to time stamp it and then keep a note of who you spoke to.
App Developers are inundated on a daily basis with proposals for the 'next big thing' and a share in the business in leu of the fees that would normally apply so don't expect many to jump through hoops to help you. And in any case, the stronger the business case, the more likelihood you have of securing the funding to launch and you then retain ownership of more.
Initially, just write a brief for what you want and send to developers and from these, you'll get an idea of the processes and costs involved.
akirk said:
good luck
what is the size of your market
what % take up might there be
how will you monetise the app
how will you pay for the app to be developed
what is to stop uber killing your business (either by matching what you do / banning it)
if you are in a position to fund development and have a plan for payback through the % of people who will use it - then crack on...
if you are expecting to find a development company who will produce it on spec. in the random hope that you / they will make money from it - good luck!
Uber are notorious for keeping data very close to their chest and as such there is no hard figure in terms of drivers. However, a figure of roughly 4 million has been mentioned several times from various senior employees. This is purely Uber and doesn’t account for other rideshare services such as Lyft or Didi.what is the size of your market
what % take up might there be
how will you monetise the app
how will you pay for the app to be developed
what is to stop uber killing your business (either by matching what you do / banning it)
if you are in a position to fund development and have a plan for payback through the % of people who will use it - then crack on...
if you are expecting to find a development company who will produce it on spec. in the random hope that you / they will make money from it - good luck!
The app would be a per annum basis but that could form a monthly sub or a one off, those details have yet to be discussed.
Uber could squash the idea overnight as their access to data is unmatched and they have countless parameters and datasets but given they’ve not remotely come close to releasing what I have in mind, I feel fairly safe for now. In terms of them blocking it, that, I believe, would be hard to do.
I have some capital I would invest into the idea so I’m not pitching to any developer in hope of a free ride. I’m more after whether the idea is feasible and doable at this stage.
Thanks for the comments.
RiseUp said:
akirk said:
good luck
what is the size of your market
what % take up might there be
how will you monetise the app
how will you pay for the app to be developed
what is to stop uber killing your business (either by matching what you do / banning it)
if you are in a position to fund development and have a plan for payback through the % of people who will use it - then crack on...
if you are expecting to find a development company who will produce it on spec. in the random hope that you / they will make money from it - good luck!
Uber are notorious for keeping data very close to their chest and as such there is no hard figure in terms of drivers. However, a figure of roughly 4 million has been mentioned several times from various senior employees. This is purely Uber and doesn’t account for other rideshare services such as Lyft or Didi.what is the size of your market
what % take up might there be
how will you monetise the app
how will you pay for the app to be developed
what is to stop uber killing your business (either by matching what you do / banning it)
if you are in a position to fund development and have a plan for payback through the % of people who will use it - then crack on...
if you are expecting to find a development company who will produce it on spec. in the random hope that you / they will make money from it - good luck!
The app would be a per annum basis but that could form a monthly sub or a one off, those details have yet to be discussed.
Uber could squash the idea overnight as their access to data is unmatched and they have countless parameters and datasets but given they’ve not remotely come close to releasing what I have in mind, I feel fairly safe for now. In terms of them blocking it, that, I believe, would be hard to do.
I have some capital I would invest into the idea so I’m not pitching to any developer in hope of a free ride. I’m more after whether the idea is feasible and doable at this stage.
Thanks for the comments.
I would be concerned about any business which could effectively be closed down / put out of business at any time by another company - when you are that reliant on one other business and they have that level of power, then it is quite high risk. for it to work you will need to keep costs as low as possible and get it into operation as fast as possible - maximise the money you can take to minimise risk.
Back again and looking for some feedback...
I'm parking the above idea for now as it's incredibly labour intensive due to the way Uber restrict how you can access the required data. It's possible but takes hours upon hours to manually do.
However, I've had what to me seems like a fantastic little idea and naturally friends and family think it has some merit. Granted, I should be asking on a specific rideshare forum but most have extremely strict rules regarding asking for feedback on an idea.
My idea is this: create a rideshare driving league with a weekly/monthly leaderboard which leads to cash prizes. As mentioned above, over 65% of drivers would like better pay. The goal is to score as high as possible thus getting a high ranking. From the small feedback I have had, the formula or algorithm to produce the 'score' is absolutely vital to it remaining fair and achievable for all drivers regardless of hours driven. It can't simply be based on weekly earnings as that would put off the average part time driver. Neither can it be an hourly rate. I have several ideas of how to create a fair value which can be looked at later.
I envision it being based on each major city ( I live in Australia with only a handful of major metro areas). It could then lead to state v state and there are endless possibilities for enhancing the experience. The critical part is signing up drivers. More drivers equals better prizes. I'd want a low entry point ($2 p/week).
For me, it'd be a great way to earn potential extra income and it'd make the week a little bit more interesting seeing how you fare against fellow drivers. Whilst there is obviously a random nature to rideshare driving, there is a skill to it in learning where the hotspots are, best times, do you sit and wait for a trip or do you drive around etc.
So, what do you think? Any merit or complete nonsense?
I'm parking the above idea for now as it's incredibly labour intensive due to the way Uber restrict how you can access the required data. It's possible but takes hours upon hours to manually do.
However, I've had what to me seems like a fantastic little idea and naturally friends and family think it has some merit. Granted, I should be asking on a specific rideshare forum but most have extremely strict rules regarding asking for feedback on an idea.
My idea is this: create a rideshare driving league with a weekly/monthly leaderboard which leads to cash prizes. As mentioned above, over 65% of drivers would like better pay. The goal is to score as high as possible thus getting a high ranking. From the small feedback I have had, the formula or algorithm to produce the 'score' is absolutely vital to it remaining fair and achievable for all drivers regardless of hours driven. It can't simply be based on weekly earnings as that would put off the average part time driver. Neither can it be an hourly rate. I have several ideas of how to create a fair value which can be looked at later.
I envision it being based on each major city ( I live in Australia with only a handful of major metro areas). It could then lead to state v state and there are endless possibilities for enhancing the experience. The critical part is signing up drivers. More drivers equals better prizes. I'd want a low entry point ($2 p/week).
For me, it'd be a great way to earn potential extra income and it'd make the week a little bit more interesting seeing how you fare against fellow drivers. Whilst there is obviously a random nature to rideshare driving, there is a skill to it in learning where the hotspots are, best times, do you sit and wait for a trip or do you drive around etc.
So, what do you think? Any merit or complete nonsense?
I'd guess that any sort of 'league' where drivers are in competition is going to lead to the assumption you're encouraging them to drive faster and/or cut corners, rightly or wrongly.
Sounds like a glorified spot the ball competition with a lot of work/hassle added. To develop the idea and secure enough users to make it worthwhile you're not going to have any time to drive your Uber at all.
Sounds like a glorified spot the ball competition with a lot of work/hassle added. To develop the idea and secure enough users to make it worthwhile you're not going to have any time to drive your Uber at all.
Gassing Station | Business | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff