Secrets 1 and 2 – Getting the Biggest Bang for the buck
It once was thought that limo service was affordable to only the most affluent and discriminating clientele and for some time that was just case. In the past decade we have seen the growth of new Limousine Companies and new and improved limo service offerings. Two such new service platforms are shared rides and multi-load rides.
The secrets of picking the right limousine company – Getting the biggest bang for the buck
Secrets 1 and 2:
It once was thought that limo service was affordable to only the most affluent and discriminating clientele and for some time that was just case. In the past decade we have seen the growth of new Limousine Companies and new and improved limo service offerings. Two such new service platforms are shared rides and multi-load rides.
The Shared Ride is typically regulated to high volume corporate opportunities. The Shared Ride product allows dispatch to combine two or more individual airport transfer reservations into one trip. This grouping of orders affords the corporate account a significant value proposition for each individual traveler. Share ride rates are based on a per traveler charge.
The Multi-load Rides is very similar to shared rides product. The Multi-load product is used for large scale airport returns and is typically restricted to corporate accounts or large scale meetings. The multi-load service is priced per vehicle with the most appropriate vehicle being selected based on number of travelers.
The combination of Shared Ride airport transfers for the inbound leg of any meeting or event combined with the multi-load ride for the airport return or the outbound leg is a fantastic way to keep transportation cost low while maintaining the reliability, elegance and professionalism of using a qualified Limousine company. The problem is finding the limo company that will offer these affordable limo services.
In short, the shared ride product is almost exclusive to the Chicago limousine market place and by default the premium national service provides do not offer such a product. Therefore the national companies only offer have of the cost saving equation – they only offer the multi-load airport return.
The independent operator (one car and one owner) and small Mom and Pop limo companies do not have the economies of scale to provide either service completely. For my selection, these small players in the market cannot deliver the desired bang for the buck.
The mid level service provider has the economies of scale and fleet size to offer both shared rides and multi-load rides, however the shared ride product is an endangered species. The reason is simple, whereas the share ride is always a positive margin product for the limo company, the management of the product can lead to financial loss for the individual chauffeur. As a result many of the mid level service providers are opting to eliminate the product instead of taking advantage of new and exciting technologies that actually improve the occupancy of a shared ride trip.
Don’t give up. There are still Limousine companies that offer both shared rides and multi-load rides. Look for them. Find them. They will save you and our company money while maintaining the service level you desire. Please share this with your traveling friends and corporate travel managers.
