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Uber rolls out in-app tipping

washingtonpost.com

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Re: Uber rolls out in-app tipping

#191

Post by snowwrestler »

losteverything wrote: post #175

Tipping helps people who need it. It is simple. Voluntary. Binary. A $1 or $2 tip may not seem like much, but if it gets saved (which often tip receivers do) it adds up. Like found money. Do uber drivers make a lot? Could $1 $2 $3 help them? It is not about guilt. It's not about service quality. It is not about greater things. It is about helping someone who most likely needs it. You could get on a high horse and mak…

I wish this comment was higher.

I think it's a bummer to see developers who make way over the national median income complain they "don't want to think" about maybe giving a couple extra bucks to people who could use it.

Re: Uber rolls out in-app tipping

#192

Post by snowwrestler »

mrslave wrote: post #165

I have gleaned - from such authoritative sources as TV - that tipping appears to be a large part of customer service culture in the USA. (Though I wouldn't be surprised to learn that it varies by region. Because the USA is just New York and California, right?) I think this will have a negative effect on the experience of both driver & rider in countries where tipping is unusual, due to the increasing ambiguity of the…

Uber obviously knows where its drivers and customers are, and can show or hide in-app tipping based on that if they want to. In fact the article says they are rolling it out in only 3 U.S. cities to start.

Re: Uber rolls out in-app tipping

#193

Post by ilaksh »

They were winning by just screwing the drivers out of tips -- it was never actually factored into the fares. I have no car and always use Uber so this is not good for me but it is less unfair to Uber drivers.

Re: Uber rolls out in-app tipping

#194

Post by smt88 »

cocktailpeanuts wrote: post #183

It is sad that companies like Uber are being pressured into making these stupid decisions because of "social justice". For me the main benefit of using Uber (as well as all other on-demand services like Doordash, Caviar, etc.) was that everything is included and I don't have to think. Companies like Uber should be focused on building a product that consumers want and nothing else. These decisions are nothing more tha…

Uber is building a product consumers want. That product must have a brand that consumers don't find repugnant.

You seem to want a free market, but not a market that prioritizes things (e.g. tipping) that you don't care about.

You can't have it both ways. The market has spoken and Uber has responded.

Re: Uber rolls out in-app tipping

#195

Post by z6 »

whiddershins wrote: post #184

I am so unhappy about this change. I tip well everywhere it is expected, restaurants, bars, cabs etc. I hate the system but it is factored in to the price and there's nothing I can do about it. What I loved about Uber when it started was there was no ambiguity. Prices were predictable, as were wait times. Zero cognitive overhead. No guilt or internal debate. Over time every little thing I loved about Uber was taken a…

I don't think raising the fares would have any impact in the drivers' desire to have a tip option. Tips are free money and widely acceptable in the US, so who wouldn't want that.

Since Uber lost a recent lawsuit wrt tipping, I've been on multiple rides where the driver has a tip jar. So I much prefer the in-app tipping compared to having a physical tip jar in the car.

Re: Uber rolls out in-app tipping

#196

Post by tpeo »

throwaway055 wrote: post #162

Posting on a throwaway because of tipping stigma. I take close to 1,000 Uber trips per year. The biggest disappointment about this change to me is that I won't be having conversations with Uber drivers anymore. Uber drivers will now be obligated to make pleasant conversation with me. I have no interest in speaking to somebody who's obligated to make pleasant conversation with me. When you add tipping, you're essentia…

Never thought about the economics of tipping before, but if having the customers being able to punish unhelpful staff increases the odds of having returning customers, that would increase the likelihood of Uber drivers being better paid under competition. The only issue is whether Uber drivers have a comparable outside option.

As for the bit on sincerity, can't say much as nowadays I just find it totally alien. People gotta live somehow, be it with others or just with ourselves. So getting hung up on the porcupine's dilemma and whether every interaction we make with another person is like a hundred tiny knifes running across their face is a great way to miss the point: sometimes their words hurt me too. But I don't show it, because I want to drop it and go back to the point.

Although I reckon this is more of a "honest" fakeness rather than the giddy fakeness which is sometimes found in customer service.

Re: Uber rolls out in-app tipping

#197

Post by adrianmonk »

pfarnsworth wrote: post #149
justboxing wrote: post #143

I don't use Uber or Lyft, but if I was, this would drive me away from Uber. From what I hear from my friends who use Uber, 1 reason they love it is because all the charges are through the app and there is no "obligation" to tip, so it's 1 less decision them have to make, i.e. calculate how much to tip, keep wondering if you tipped the driver too much, or too little, what's a "fair" tip for the ride etc etc.

There's still no obligation to tip whatsoever. After your ride, when you next open the app (which could be days later) you are presented with a screen asking you to rate your driver (this already occurs). I think if you give a 5 star, then the option to give a "compliment" is given, which is similar to a badge or a Facebook like. As well, now, a tip button is also presented. You don't have to click on it if you don't…

Yes, there is an obligation. A social obligation.

If you think this is not a real obligation or doesn't have real consequences, then you have no experience with tipping.

Re: Uber rolls out in-app tipping

#199

Post by lukaslalinsky »

losteverything wrote: post #175

Tipping helps people who need it. It is simple. Voluntary. Binary. A $1 or $2 tip may not seem like much, but if it gets saved (which often tip receivers do) it adds up. Like found money. Do uber drivers make a lot? Could $1 $2 $3 help them? It is not about guilt. It's not about service quality. It is not about greater things. It is about helping someone who most likely needs it. You could get on a high horse and mak…

When I use Uber, I want to get from A to B and the driver is paid for doing exactly that. I have no problem tipping people who do something outside of their duty, but I don't see why should I decide how much extra to pay for what Uber should already be paying.

Re: Uber rolls out in-app tipping

#200

Post by orblivion »

bpicolo wrote: post #2

Why not just raise the prices a bit again? Now I'm worried I'll get down-starred for not tipping on Uber, which is just kind of annoying. I feel like not requiring a tip is Uber's biggest differentiator

What if they had a default auto-tip you could set? And then if you had an exceptionally good or bad ride you could adjust for that case.
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