As a delivery driver, you are required to spend a significant amount of time behind the wheel. Your goal is to ensure that every delivery goes as smoothly as possible, resulting in happy merchants and customers.
Not only does this allow you to continue to do what you enjoy, but it also helps you earn more tips, increasing your profits each time you head out the door.
Whether you are new to the gig or you have been a delivery driver for years, the following top ten tips will help you optimize your role as a driver.
1. A Happy Driver Creates a Happy Customer
One of the best ways to ensure that you have a happy customer at the end of each delivery is to bring a positive attitude to your job. When you are happy, you are more likely to provide outstanding customer service.
This is where choosing the right platform to drive with is critical. If you aren’t pleased with the money you are making, or you are frustrated by the performance of the platform you are using, your frustrations will spill over into your work. Pick a platform that makes your job easier and allows you to make good money. The happier you are, the happier your customers will be.
Not only that, but an efficient platform will allow you to deliver items on time, which can also help you increase tips and customer satisfaction.
2. Keep Your Vehicle Maintained and Clean
One of the most important tools for a delivery driver is their vehicle. As such, it’s important to keep your car or truck in tip-top shape. Make sure to schedule routine maintenance, such as oil changes and tire rotations, to keep your vehicle operating efficiently and safely. It’s also worth investing in a bi-annual inspection from a mechanic to ensure that your brakes, steering, and other components are all operating well.
Each day, take the time to also clean up your vehicle. Remove any trash or leftovers from deliveries. Keeping your vehicle clean will make it easier to work efficiently when making deliveries and ensure that you don’t mix old items with new deliveries. A clean vehicle also showcases your level of professionalism, which can help as you establish relationships with various merchants and vendors.
3. Be Kind to Merchants — They Are Trying to Make a Living Too
When you arrive at a merchant’s location, make sure to treat the employees with respect and kindness. Just like you, these businesses are trying to make a living.
Each time you stop into a place to pick up a delivery, take the time to say hello, introduce yourself if it’s your first time there, and build relationships with the people who work there. This can help you build a quality network of contacts and ensure that everyone taking part in the transaction is happy with the process.
Make sure to pay attention to any requests the merchant has as well. For example, if they have established a specific parking area for delivery drivers, make sure to use that parking space. By treating each merchant with respect, you can create a better experience for everyone involved.
4. Find a Platform You Like, and That Pays You to Refer Your Friends and Family
The platform you use to track orders and pick up new jobs will play a big role in how easy your job is. As you choose a platform, look for ease of use. You want to be able to navigate the platform without hassle. Pay attention to how easy it is to get a hold of customer support as well. And look for a platform that offers flexibility in scheduling and work.
Also, make sure the platform you choose offers you incentives to share it with friends and family. This is a great way to earn an extra bit of cash or cut down on overhead costs.
5. Focus on Picking Up and Delivering on Time
One of the best ways to earn better tips and keep customers happy is to ensure that you always pick up items on time and deliver them on time.
While many factors are outside of your control — such as a highway pile-up — you can focus on things that are within your control.
- Give yourself ample time when leaving for a pickup and delivery. Don’t try to push things to the last possible minute.
- Learn the best routes to get around town. This is where your GPS can help you out, giving you a heads up when there are accidents on the road or backups.
- Choose jobs that make sense for your location. If you are across town and it’s impossible for you to get to a merchant quickly enough, don’t pick up that job.
6. Avoid Platforms That Take a Percentage from Your Delivery
Most delivery platforms on the market will charge you anywhere from 20% to 40% of what should be your driver earnings. Since you are already responsible for paying for your own gas, vehicle, insurance, taxes, and maintenance, this can eat away at your ability to make a good living.
Choose a platform that allows you to keep your delivery fees and tips in full. It’s far better to pay a small monthly fee to use a platform than pay a percentage of each delivery. When you keep delivery fees and tips on every delivery made, you can easily increase your earnings simply by working more.
7. Invest in Delivery Gear to Make Your Life Easier
Having the right gear can make it easier to deliver to customers on time and ensure that any temperature-sensitive items are kept at the right temperature.
Some ideas include:
- An insulated delivery bag to keep warm foods hot and to prevent anything from spilling in transport
- A cooler to keep cold items chilled
- A divider with built-in compartments to keep items upright in transit
- Labels to help you keep track of items
- Comfortable clothing and shoes that makes it easy to hop in and out of your vehicle when making deliveries
8. Make Sure You Accept Closed Packaging and Keep It Safe
When you arrive at a merchant to pick up food or other deliverables, make sure that you accept items in closed packaging. This will help ensure that what you deliver is satisfactory to your customer.
Make sure that as you transport items, you keep them safe. For food, ensure that everything is kept upright and that nothing spills. For fragile items, make sure you have the right setup in place to keep things from banging around your vehicle in transport.
Bonus Tip: When you arrive to pick up items from a merchant, take time to double-check the order. If you notice anything missing, let the merchant know. This will help ensure that the customer is happy and can help you strengthen your relationship with the business.
9. Choose Orders You Want to Do
The beauty of being a delivery driver is choosing your own schedule and the work you want to do. Use a platform that allows you to schedule orders around your life. If you prefer to drive long distances, pick gigs that enable you to make long-distance deliveries. If you enjoy making numerous trips in a smaller area, make sure to create a workflow that allows you to stick to a small area.
10. Practice Safe Driving
As a delivery driver, you will often be in a hurry to pick up orders and deliver them on time. However, no matter how much of a rush you are in, never sacrifice safety for speed. Make sure to practice safe driving every single day.
Use these tips to help keep you safe on the road:
- Never drive when tired. If you need to, pull over and take a break.
- Never break the speed limit, even if it means a delivery is later than anticipated.
- Park in designated areas to ensure you are not blocking the road and to protect you from being hit.
- Make sure to plan for inclement weather. Always have an emergency kit on hand in case you are stranded.
Sign Up to Try the Ally Platform
If you are looking for a new platform to earn more money while driving less and in less time, we invite you to sign up to use Ally software. With the Service Ally app, you can work whenever and wherever without any penalties for not accepting an order. Not only that, but with this unique software, if the customer pays $10 for delivery and leaves a $2 tip, you keep the full $12. You only pay a small flat fee of $100 for months where you earn $1,000 or more. If you don’t hit $1,000, you pay nothing. Register today to give the platform a spin.