By now, you’ve probably realized there’s not a ton of loyalty in the rideshare industry. Drivers typically work for who ever is paying the most and sending them the most number of rides, and passengers just go for the cheapest option. Today, I’ll be interviewing the founder of Bellhop, a company that aggregates all the rideshare and different mobility options (like bikes and scooters) into one app, allowing consumers to save money, time and hassle.
If you’d like to read a transcript of this podcast, please click here.
Intro
- As a driver, it’s important to stay aware of rideshare trends and stay up to date on the latest passenger apps, making sure you maximize your time on the road
- Today’s guest, Payam Safa, is an expert in consumers
- He’s created a rideshare aggregating app called Bellhop, and in this episode he’s going to share what Bellhop is, the trends he’s noticed over the years, and what’s in store for mobility in the future
Interview with Payam Safa
- Payam is the founder and CEO of Bellhop, the US’ leading rideshare aggregator
- Initially, the concept for Bellhop came about because of need: need for aggregation across food and entertainment
- Started working with Lyft to integrate them into a concierge app he was developing at the time
- Saw the need/demand in the transportation space and followed market momentum
Developing Bellhop for the Transportation Space
- Pivoted to transportation from concierge because of direct market feedback and data
- People were using the transportation part of the concierge app the most
- For passengers, Bellhop allows them to input their pickup and destination address, then Bellhop shows them all the ride options across all providers available to them based on their location
- Users can pick and choose and then book either within the app (Lyft) or directly with Uber
What are Passengers Looking for?
- At the end of the day, consumers are price sensitivity. They’re looking for the most cost effective and efficient way to get to their destination
- Bellhop is like what Kayak and Sky Scanner are for finding flights – also has filters to allow passengers to search for luxury vehicles, vehicles with car seats, etc.
- People in general are getting more accustomed to using one site/app to do multiple searches at once, and that’s a trend Bellhop is seeing as well
- Bellhop’s goal is to provide transparency on the cost of fares by using historical data
How Does Bellhop Make Money?
- The traffic that Bellhop sends to Uber/Lyft/other mobility apps – Bellhop has built relationships with those companies
- Consumers never pay for this, however
- Bellhop is at a stage where a company like Kayak is, for example. The transportation industry is evolving how the broader travel industry evolved
- Partnering with car manufacturers/car sharing networks in the future
How Do Bikes and Scooters Fit Into This?
- Depending on the city you’re in, you could have 4+ different apps for bikes, scooters, etc.
- People don’t want to download and have their credit card info on that many apps – Bellhop is aggregating for the bike/scooter space now too
- The addition of bikes and scooters in the mobility space has made it interesting for companies like Bellhop – want to make sure consumers can make informed decisions about what options are out there (rideshare vs. scooters, for instance) + the time it will take them using rideshare vs. scooter + the price of rideshare vs. scooter
The Future for Bellhop
- Expanding to work with car sharing networks
- Working with public transit authorities
- Eventually, expand globally
Outro
- Big thanks to Payam for coming on, I’m excited for a future where consumers save more time and money by using aggregation services like Bellhop
- I hadn’t thought about it until now, but being able to use a bike or scooter to get out of a high traffic area is a great idea – could be a way to minimize traffic especially in big cities, during big events, or during rush hours
- Bellhop provides good information to drivers as well – you can use it to understand trends, leverage that for your own driving habits, and share Bellhop with your passengers
Show Notes
- Bellhop – the app is free to download and use
- Contact Bellhop: support@bellhop.app
- Subscribe to iTunes and never miss an episode!
- Connect with me on Twitter
If you’d like to read a transcript of this podcast, please click here.
