Owning a car is not something to take lightly because, let’s be honest, it’s quite expensive.
However, did you know that your car could potentially work for you and make money?
But How? You ask…
Turo is the magic word you need!
Indeed, you can make money with Turo! Read on to know more!
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What is Turo?
Turo is a car sharing service that allow it’s member to pick the perfect car at the location that they need it when they need it.
As such, as a car owner you can register your car and other member will be able to rent it for a price.
It’s much like Airbnb but for cars!
Turo says that the average member car owner will be able to pay the monthly car payment by renting the car only 9 days a month. However, it’s always dependent on the rented car availability.
Looking at it from the other side, you can rent someone’s car when on vacation. Turo is often a good and cheaper alternative than a traditional car rental company.
Turo in Numbers
Founded in 2009, Turo, previously known as RelayRides, is described as a car rental marketplace where you can rent cars of the make and model you want, when you want it and wherever you want it.
Car owner can rent their cars when they are not using it, making them some money on the side.
Here are some fantastic statistics about Turo:
- More than 10 millions members;
- Over 350 000 vehicles available;
- Available in over 5500 cities across the globe;
- Available in 56 countries around the world;
- More than 850 models available, most with a delivery option;
- An average of 500 USD per month for owners;
- Over 3000 USD per month for owner with more than 3 cars; and
- Car insured for over 1M USD.
Its a fact that Turo has seen a rapid growth in the last decade. Originally, only available in the US, it has grown to include Canada, the UK and Germany.
Two Sides of the Same Medal
The appeal for such a service on both side is obvious: One side, the owner, wish to make money when they are not using their cars and the other side, the other members want to save money by renting a car through the service.
Some people, even some of my friends, find it quite destabilizing to rent a car, or a house, directly from a owner and not a company.
However, sharing is caring and it has been shown countless time that the model works these days. What more, it seems that sharing is becoming another section of the economy and it can be applied to pretty much anything.
Turo Vs Uber
It’s to be noted that a lot of person are looking at both Turo and Uber to put their car to use. However, you need to understand that it’s two very different way of making money.
With Turo, your car does all the work, as such it’s much easier for most car owner specially when you have more than one car.
Driving for Uber is much more involved than Turo because you need to drive people around but with a single vehicle it might get you more money. If you are interested in making some extra money with Uber, look at this guide.
Turo, how does it work?
Using Turo is fairly easy. Making money with Turo is easy. The registration is different for the two types of person using Turo:
- Owners listing their cars; and
- Member who rent cars.
Let’s focus on you as a owners listing your car.
The first step is to create an account on Turo website.
It’s fairly straight forward.
Car Listing
Then comes the listing of your car.
You simply need to fill out the information required upload some picture of your car and Voilà!
Althought Turo has guidelines on pricing, the final charge is up to you.
Also, don’t forget to create and update your car’s availability calendar. Otherwise, people won’t be able to book your car.
Here is a list of items you should or need to include in your car listing:
- High quality picture of the car’s interior and exterior. Show it to sell it;
- Number of seating;
Car Damage and Stolen Car
People tend to report and create reviews mostly when something bad happens, it’s human nature to complain in those time.
Also, for all services you will find, there will be poor reviews, that’s the nature of the beast, there will always be people who don’t care of other’s belonging. That’s why there are a lot of stories of stolen and/or stolen Turo’s car.
However, most of the time owner’s don’t have any issues with their car. Also, Turo has a very good insurance and you might want to look at all it offers.
If you still have bad dreams that your car might be stolen, you can invest in a good car health monitoring and tracker, for some extra peace of mind.
Turo, How Much Can You Make?
Directly on their homepage, Turo has a neat calculator that will help you estimate the amount of money you can potentially earn based on the car, the location and the number of available day per month. As such, you will be able to know pretty much how much money you will make with Turo.
How to Optimize your Turo experience.
Talking with some friends who experienced both sides of Turo, making money with Turo and renting with Turo, and also doing a thorough review of comments I have come up with a list of steps/habits/good practices that you should be able to put into place to increase the amount of money you make while sharing your car with Turo.
Turo Listing
Here are some tips that can be useful to maximize the people that view and ultimately select your car when you create your listing
- High end professional looking picture of the exterior and interior of your vehicle;
- Keep the automatic pricing, as Turo will change it based on availability and demand keeping a balance between earning and occupation;
- Don’t forget to list your cars options that renters would care and love (luxury options being very important);
Turo’s Extras!
Turo actually gives car owner the opportunity to “give” some additional extras. Extras might entice potential renters to select your car instead of someone else’s.
For example, someone might not want to be looking for a gas station before returning the car. Another one might be traveling with kids and/or a baby, so you could include baby and kid seat and even a stroller in your listing if you have them.
And, you might want to include the cleaning option, for those who don’t want to clean it before returning it.
Some other options are available and you might want to consider them to maximize your booking:
- No delivery fee;
- 24 hr availability for pickup and delivery;
- Automatic Booking; and
- Flexible delivery location.
Keep in mind that these option are very good for your potential renters but you need to be able to make good on your promises.
Process optimization and automation
Based on comments here are some optimization you might want to implement to both improve reliable delivery and security for your car. *Clean the car, or get it cleaned. A clean car is always more inviting. A monthly plan to a car wash might be a good idea!; *Top off fuel; *Deliver car to agreed location. A closed secured lot is a good idea, specially for airport parking lots;
Flexibility is the key
For the pickup, to enhance flexibility, you can opt for a hands off strategy.
A friend of mine is using a similar strategy with his kid: Use a magnetic key holder to keep a door key on the car. He always keep the actual key FOB to start the car inside the car. Yes it has the potential to be dangerous if someone breaks in your car, but you do have a tracker installed, no?
However, instead of keeping it all the time in the car, just use it when you drop off the car into the secure lot.
When the renter is on site, you can ask him to prove who he is either with Skype, Facetime of a live selfie.
Once his identity is confirmed, give him the location of the key holder and the actual code.
Don’t forget to vary the location of the key holder and the code to avoid nasty surprises!
Reduce expense
Your car is not at a secured location close to the airport or maybe train station, but you so need to go back home.
You should use the least expensive solution, every dollar used to return home is a cut into your income. As such, a good idea is to use the public transportation system, if it is available that is.
Sometime, you could even take a long walk of use a bicycle! The solutions are numerous.
Reviews
Most sharing and peer services are riding on reviews. If you want to make any money with Turo, you will need reviews.
The more positive review you get, the higher the chance to get a booking, the more money you will make with Turo.
Would you book an hotel with bad review? Me neither…
As such, it is really important to try to get as much positive review as possible from your renters.
Here are some ideas to increase your positive review:
Professionalism
Stay professional all the time.
Customer service is not easy, and you will get weird request sometimes. Stay polite and professional in all of your communication. Even if the renter is acting like an a******, stay calm and polite, always.
Communication
Communication is at the base of any relationship. You might not notice it, but you are actually building a relationship with your potential renters. It’s important to communicate adequately with them and to respond to their question in a short amount of time.
Add-on items
Water Bottle.
Why am I saying that?
Because this cheap item can make a difference. Much like if you were Driving for Uber, offering a complimentary bottle of water will go a long way to get you good reviews.
Also, nothing prevent you from adding a little thank you note, much like some hotels and cruise lines are doing.
There are numerous other inexpensive items that you can offer to your renters, a pack of gum, small snacks, etc.
The important concept is that it’s unexpected and act as a small gift/surprise. Everyone love a little gift once in a while!
Asking for the Review
Although you shouldn’t be asking for a positive review, there is nothing preventing you from telling your renters that you will be reviewing them and if they are good renters that you will give them a 5 star rating. At the same time, you can ask them to give you a great review, if they want.
Final Words
Turo is a great peer lending car service that has a lot to offer, both for car owners and for renters. Also, it’s a good side hustle that can bring you an additional income, specially if you are not using your car all the time. And, if you live close to an airport or train station, a location that get a lot of tourist activity, you will have a good chance to book your car more often and will be able to get a substantial income from it.
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