You may be the best delivery driver out there, but are you also capable of getting more customers’ tips? Most drivers are skilled by they can find themselves overwhelmed by the complexity of the tipping process. There are a lot of great ways to bring in money without sacrificing your dignity. One of them is the rule that you can’t outright ask for tips.
Tips for some drivers were considered a lifeline. A driver may break down his truck, and his tips are the only option that may allow him to repair it and still stay in the black. So, how do you get those much-needed tips? This is the question that most drivers still can’t seem to find the right answers to. In this article, we have compiled some practical tips for earning more gratuities.
1. Don’t Take Things Personal
Some customers can be terrible. However, drivers learn swiftly that when communication goes poorly, there’s no use to brood over it. Sometimes when customers don’t give you a tip, you feel bad about it and get your feelings a bit hurt, especially when you’re getting tired during the day. But this won’t help you out! If you hold on to that anger, it might affect your interactions with the next customers throughout your shift, giving bad tipping energy. You need to let it go if you don’t want your tips to suffer for the rest of the night.
2. Direct Your Customer’s Needs
Address your customer’s needs before they need to add it to an ongoing delivery. Doing this will give customers that enjoyable and appreciated the delivery experience. In return, you’ll surely get an excellent review and a good tip.
3. Try Your Best Not to Make Mistakes
As a delivery driver, especially in the food industry, it’s crucial that the customer’s order is always correct. So before you leave the restaurant having the customer’s order with you, always double-check to ensure that everything is there and adequately packed in the take-out bags. Don’t forget to ask for extra condiment packages, including hot sauce, ketchup, mayo, napkins, and plastic utensils.
You can nicely point out these extra items to your customer when you make the delivery. In this way, you’ll get rewarded for your extra efforts with more tips!
4. Inform Your Customer of Your Arrival
It’s necessary to text your customer through the app to inform them you’re on your way with their order or item. This will help them be ready for your expected arrival. It will also help finish the delivery faster, so you don’t have to waste precious minutes to wait around for them to answer the door.
Remember that the more deliveries you can finish in an hour or less, the more delivery fees, and positively, tips you’ll be receiving. Verify if the customers have gate codes or special parking instructions. They will appreciate it more when you’re not interrupting them to open a gate or asking where to park when they’ve already told you this information beforehand on the delivery order.
People always want their food to get to them quickly and no problems getting in their way. It should be as hassle-free as possible! If customers see this type of fantastic service, you’ll most likely get a tip.
4. Try to Look Younger
Most of the time, when drivers are clean-shaven they get more tips. You know why? When drivers deliver their order to college students and they thought you are younger (because of having no beard), they’ll think that you are a student too, young, and hard-working! Yes, this a secret! You’re welcome.
5. Their Dogs Can Help You!
Dogs actually work. Drivers’ chat topics usually involved hit movies, booze, sports team, and anything that they think clients would be interested in. Of course, their dogs. If you see your customer has a cute dog, compliment them! This really works. You can even go down the floor and play with your customer’s pooches. They might give you a nice five!
6. Use the Receipt Trick
This trick works most of the time to customers. At the end of the delivery interaction, when your customer pays with his credit card and needs to sign the receipt, the tip line is usually left blank. The trick here is to turn back to your customer and tell him: “Sorry, my boss needs you to fill out the whole thing!” Make sure to say it a positive way so the he will be encouraged to do it. After that, we’re sure you’ll get the tip.
7. A Smile Can Go a Long Way
This is probably the easiest thing to do and it’s for free! Once you arrive at the customer’s location, you must greet them with a warm smile and address them by their name. Treat them like you’re a great friend doing them a favour. You can also read the order to them so they are informed what you’re delivering is correctly what they order.
8. Accept As Many Orders As You Can
One of the keys to receiving more tips to accept plenty of delivery orders even if the weather is not okay or if there’s a big sporting event, etc. Remember that people can be too lazy to leave their homes to pick up food outside during lousy weather or when they don’t want to miss a great game they’ve been waiting for. This is a big favor for them, so you’ll probably get a pretty decent tip.
