Will Preston

by Will Preston on November 1, 2019 61 Comments

Uber Testing Airport Pre-Match and Re-Match

Harry here. Have you noticed airport queues getting longer? If so, it may be because pre-match and re-match have come to your city. Today, RSG contributor Will Preston explains what this program is, how it works, and how it will affect drivers if and when it arrives in your city.

In some cities, airport First In First Out (FIFO) queues are taking much longer than they used to. If you’ve been wondering why, it’s because Uber and Lyft are both testing some new programs that have to do with airport pickups. Uber calls it pre-match and re-match and, depending on how you look at things, these features make airport pickups better or worse. However, whether you like the features or not, you are definitely going to want to alter your airport strategy once they come to your city.

As we know, Uber recently launched ‘180 days of change’, and while the first chapter focused on earnings, Uber says there are many more improvements to come. This could be one of them, since we noticed that Uber was testing a cancellation timer, which it eventually rolled out to all drivers. If you see any new features being tested, please let us know so we can look into it!

If you need a refresher on how airport queues work, please read this airport guide for drivers.

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by Will Preston on July 4, 2019 Leave a Comment

How Much Did I Make Driving for Uber and Lyft on the 4th of July?

Last year, RSG senior contributor Will Preston had his best night ever driving with Uber. Will 4th of July, 2019 hold up to be one of the best Uber and Lyft driving nights of the year? Let us know how 4th of July Uber driving works out for you this year in the comments below!

In this throwback Thursday/holiday article, Will shares his strategies to maximize your time on the road during the 4th of July and holiday weekend – plus, how much he ended up making driving for Uber during the 4th of July!

I grossed $355 ($326 from Uber and $29 from Lyft) driving the afternoon and evening of July 4th, which is now the most amount of money I believe I’ve made per hour ($35) since I started driving about two years ago. While San Diego is a busy town with mid-range Uber rates, it has minimal surge, so for drivers in my town, this is a lot of money!

In this article, I’ll share the strategies I used to maximize my earnings during the July 4th holiday, plus the mistakes I made that kept me from making more.

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by Will Preston on March 8, 2019 Leave a Comment

Should You Rent a Car with HyreCar to Drive for Uber?

Don’t have a car but want to drive for Uber and Lyft? Hyrecar wants to help you out. We sent senior RSG contributor Will Preston out to sign up, try out and report on what it’s like to rent a car as a rideshare driver through Hyrecar.

Interested in signing up with Hyrecar? You can sign up with HyreCar here using our affiliate link, and for a full list of vehicle options, head to our Vehicle Marketplace here.

After Paula described her experience renting out a vehicle via HyreCar, RSG decided to look at the experience from a different angle – what it’s like to use the service as a driver. I can say the overall experience was a positive one, but it started out very negative. More on that later.

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by Will Preston on December 31, 2018 Leave a Comment

Driving For Uber in Los Angeles – Tips & Tricks I Learned

How hard could driving in a new city be if you’re a veteran rideshare driver? Senior RSG contributor Will Preston asked that question, and learned the hard way, when he drove for a weekend in Los Angeles.

This site has more than one article that talks about how driving rideshare is so much more than just turning on the app and going where it tells you to go. I’ve always known that, but it wasn’t until a few weekends ago that this fact was driven home. I live in San Diego but recently I found myself in the suburbs of Los Angeles on a Friday evening and decided to give it a whirl. I’ve got several thousand Uber and Lyft rides under my belt – and even a few dozen Bounce rides – so I know what I’m doing. Turn on the app and just go where it tells me to go; how hard can it be?

It turns out, it’s pretty hard. I underestimated the degree to which my familiarity with San Diego’s layout affected my ability to be an effective rideshare driver. I only drove for a few hours, but it didn’t take long for me to realize I just needed to set a destination filter for San Diego and head home.

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by Will Preston on December 19, 2018 Leave a Comment

Bounce Driver Review – Top Tips To Know Before Joining Bounce

Recently, we covered a new rideshare company called Bounce, and many of you had questions about how busy Bounce rideshare is and how much drivers with Bounce can make. Today, senior RSG contributor Will Preston covers that, plus an interesting conversation he had with one Bounce rider.

Imagine trying to compete with one of the biggest companies in the world, and you’ll have some idea of what life must be like for the founders of Bounce. With all of Uber’s challenges – not the least of which is turning a profit at some point – it has been successful enough to be synonymous with rideshare. Uber has joined Xerox, Frisbee, and Kleenex as a company whose name means the thing it does. Many of my Lyft passengers say “I’m in an Uber” when they’re on the phone with a friend.

However, the founder of Bounce seems to have seized upon a few things about Uber and Lyft that might allow Bounce to attract both passengers and drivers. Bounce tells passengers that everyone pays the same fare; there’s no pricing based on where you live, where you’re going, or how busy it is. Bounce tells drivers they get a piece of the company and residual revenue based on helping the company grow.

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