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What DoorDash pays, after expenses, and what’s happening with tips

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Re: What DoorDash pays, after expenses, and what’s happening with tips

#221

Post by abandonliberty »

OrgNet wrote: post #11
paxys wrote: post #6

An interesting nugget in this otherwise okay article is the suggestion that DoorDash is still indirectly keeping customer tips, because orders with low/zero tips are more likely to get rejected which means that they will have to keep increasing the base price till a driver accepts it. As a customer I suppose I should start adding tips only after the order is finished rather than when I place the order.

Why would you tip before getting service anyways? that never made sense to me

Tipping after service only is a simple, effective standard rule. Can't reward something you haven't received.

All those hipster restaurants where you need to go up, order, and pick up your own food?

Re: What DoorDash pays, after expenses, and what’s happening with tips

#222

Post by [deleted] »

chii wrote: post #131
wnoise wrote: post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you weren't dependent on the vehicle to be able to travel, sure. Or as a backup home if you get evicted.

And this is why working under this scenario, the vehicle is a money losing asset (where every dollar you earned driving costs a dollar in vehicle depreciation, even with a tax deduction, it's still a money losing asset). The deliverer has to be able to earn $1.15 (at least) per dollar depreciated from the vehicle for the work to be "worth it".

[deleted]

Re: What DoorDash pays, after expenses, and what’s happening with tips

#223

Post by baddox »

TAForObvReasons wrote: post #211
Sevrene wrote: post #175

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is just a natural outcome of the way venture capital funding works at the moment. When you care more about speculation than what's actually fundamentally occuring, you're going to get businesses funded that are not even able to survive on those basic fundamentals. If it weren't backed by large capital, it couldn't exist. This isn't always a bad thing, but on a whole, it does distort the market. At some point you…

I thought the plan was Dumping https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dumping_(pricing_policy) Step 1) Use VC money to subsidize the price so that the market price is below cost Step 2) Continue to use VC money to subsidize while competitors, who don't have the same cash, lose customers and eventually contract or die off Step 3) Once you are the only real player, use your dominant position to raise prices

Does the strategy even go that far? I thought it was more like

1) VCs invest money in companies hoping that some of them grow very fast

2) some of them do grow fast, so more VCs invest more money

3) the really really big companies IPO and the VCs make a lot of money

All of this can happen way before your step 3.

Re: What DoorDash pays, after expenses, and what’s happening with tips

#224

Post by baddox »

arcticbull wrote: post #193
CaptainZapp wrote: post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ahh, what you lose on every transaction you make up in volume. Got it!

What you lose on transactions today you make up on transactions in the future, when the volume reduces your cost basis to the point of profitability :)

It’s not clear how that would ever happen with last-mile delivery, unless we’re talking about something like drones or self-driving cars, and of course, those problems seem like they would be better solved by drone companies and self-driving car companies.

Re: What DoorDash pays, after expenses, and what’s happening with tips

#225

Post by baddox »

abandonliberty wrote: post #216
savanaly wrote: post #176

Earlier quoted context omitted.

None of all of what you wrote addresses how those folks between a rock and a hard place will be better off not having the option to work for a given service at all.

There's something wrong with this statement because prostitution can be substituted as your suggested service.

Sex work should not be criminalized and those workers should have protections too. Nothing’s wrong with these statements.

Re: What DoorDash pays, after expenses, and what’s happening with tips

#226

Post by halfjoking »

bobloblaw45 wrote: post #2

I drove for DoorDash for about a month. What killed me was the wait between deliveries. I think it was like 45 minutes on average and when I did get a delivery it was like a tiny $7 delivery. There would be 2 hour stretches of times pretty often. But then once in awhile I'd get a string of maybe 3 or 4 runs that paid like $12. over 2 or 3 hours.It was too inconsistent. Had no idea if I ever got tips, from my understa…

When I used Doordash I always saw they sent the delivery driver to the restaurant immediately. The driver would arrive 2 min after the order was placed. Didn't matter if it was at a nice restaurant that takes a long time to cook orders, they'd send the driver immediately and make them wait. Other services don't seem to have that problem.

I'm not saying that's why wages and prices suck - because it's pretty much the same for all the apps.

Every time I order from one of these apps I'm paying $40 for something I could have paid $20 at the restaurant. For the 10 min car ride that seems like everyone involved should be making a killing so I don't know how people aren't getting paid. If it wasn't 10 degrees outside or I had a car I'd just bike/drive the 3 miles myself. Unfortunately having a car where I live would mean I'd be paying $400 for parking, so might as well order $40 food delivery 10 times a month instead.

Re: What DoorDash pays, after expenses, and what’s happening with tips

#227

Post by jiofih »

smt88 wrote: post #123
chii wrote: post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> you basically just "borrowed" money from your vehicle. so wouldn't it then make more sense to just sell the vehicle for $10003, then place that money in an interest earning asset like a bond, rather than "borrow" from the value of the vehicle?

Most Americans can't manage daily necessities (groceries, childcare, doctor's visits, etc.) without a car. Then maybe you ask why they don't have a cheaper car. Generally, a cheaper car costs far more to maintain. The total annual cost of ownership of a 2-year-old Camry is far lower than a 10-year-old Camry. But to get that lower cost, you have to temporarily convert more of your money into that car asset. End result…

This whole economic trap is so undeniably American, it’s hard to deal with the urge to laugh mixed with drear for the people subjected to it :/

Re: What DoorDash pays, after expenses, and what’s happening with tips

#228

Post by jopsen »

sschueller wrote: post #207
dmode wrote: post #160

Why can’t we have normal businesses where you employ your workers and charge your customers the real cost of the transaction ? If that is not viable, don’t start the business to begin with. Let’s just go back to first principles, can we ?

We can, stop using and supporting these predatory companies. Never use Uber, Lyft, Doordash, Uber Eats, AirBnB etc. No exception irregardless how easy or cheap it may be. It's a small sacrifice but can and will make a difference. Using these services to me is like asking a waiter to pay for part of my meal. When it comes around to paying the bill are you able to face someone and ask them to pay for part of what they…

Taxis, restaurants, relocation assistants, fast food, online shopping, ...

If you live in the US, you have to give up a lot of services if you don't want to buy from people who are underpaid..

Re: What DoorDash pays, after expenses, and what’s happening with tips

#229

Post by lwhi »

sombremesa wrote: post #170
dmode wrote: post #160

Why can’t we have normal businesses where you employ your workers and charge your customers the real cost of the transaction ? If that is not viable, don’t start the business to begin with. Let’s just go back to first principles, can we ?

Because these companies are still finding enough labor after lowering what they pay out drastically. It's the market in action. You're right that as a society we have a duty to step in with policy here, as we do with minimum wage, but this isn't a violation of "first principles".

The market needs to be regulated more stringently.

Re: What DoorDash pays, after expenses, and what’s happening with tips

#230

Post by [deleted] »

cc439 wrote: post #83
burlesona wrote: post #67

What I struggle with is why anyone would deliver for Door Dash if the pay is so bad. The article closes with a statement that they want $15/hour plus expenses for drivers. The obvious problem is that I can’t see customers paying that much for delivery - ie. at those wages Door Dash can’t exist. The fact that people choose to do the work makes me think there are people who find it worthwhile, and I can explain a few s…

"The obvious problem is that I can’t see customers paying that much for delivery - ie. at those wages Door Dash can’t exist." I am 100% ok with DoorDash and that entire market not existing. We somehow managed without it just 3-4 years ago and it's not like Americans need another ridiculously unhealthy eating option provided with even greater convenience.

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