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The big issue with the product is that after the first transaction, no-one has any incentive to use your marketplace. There is a company in my country doing th

The big issue with the product is that after the first transaction, no-one has any incentive to use your marketplace. There is a company in my country doing this. They are probably not worth zero tbf but they have a massive issue with people just cutting them out after the first transaction. And what is the problem with just building a brand? I employ a bunch of dog walkers, I do checks on them, I build a trusted brand...the $300m is a solution without a problem.

bobloblaw45 7y ago
People have told me their Uber/Lyft drivers offer to be their personal driver for the trip when they pick them up from airports. Not sure how common this is. Back in the day I used to drive a shuttle and once in awhile I'd get pressured into taking a passenger that wasn't related to the business I was employed by. It's pretty harmless but still a big no-no since you're technically breaking some laws since there are certain loops you have to jump through to take on fares like that (got screamed at by towncar drivers when I arrived at the airport. I'm sure they were thrilled when Uber became a thing). Anyways the passengers paid 40 bucks for a 20 minute drive. That was the going rate they were used to paying back in 2008. There's a LOT of incentive to cut out the middle man.
jetrink 7y ago
I watch dogs through Rover and they do have mechanisms to lock you in. The primary one is that your rank in the search results is strongly affected by repeat transactions and the number of repeat customers is listed prominently in your profile as an indication of your trustworthiness. Once I hit a certain threshold, I had to raise my prices to 30% above the area average in order to keep the number of requests down to a level that I was prepared to accommodate. The second is that Rover actually does provide a service to its sitters. They have great support that has helped me through a few crises (including a dog dying in my home from a heart attack) and insurance coverage.

bobloblaw45 7y ago

People have told me their Uber/Lyft drivers offer to be their personal driver for the trip when they pick them up from airports. Not sure how common this is. Back in the day I used to drive a shuttle and once in awhile I'd get pressured into taking a passenger that wasn't related to the business I was employed by. It's pretty harmless but still a big no-no since you're technically breaking some laws since there are certain loops you have to jump through to take on fares like that (got screamed at by towncar drivers when I arrived at the airport. I'm sure they were thrilled when Uber became a thing). Anyways the passengers paid 40 bucks for a 20 minute drive. That was the going rate they were used to paying back in 2008. There's a LOT of incentive to cut out the middle man.

jetrink 7y ago

I watch dogs through Rover and they do have mechanisms to lock you in. The primary one is that your rank in the search results is strongly affected by repeat transactions and the number of repeat customers is listed prominently in your profile as an indication of your trustworthiness. Once I hit a certain threshold, I had to raise my prices to 30% above the area average in order to keep the number of requests down to a level that I was prepared to accommodate. The second is that Rover actually does provide a service to its sitters. They have great support that has helped me through a few crises (including a dog dying in my home from a heart attack) and insurance coverage.