If at first you cannot beat them, then join them! This seems to be the mantra that ridesharing service Lyft has taken with their latest high-end service which is known as Lyft Premier. Described by Lyft to provide customers with a "more stylish arrival for business trips and special nights out," it fulfills a need -- or rather, a request that many customers of Lyft have put forward in the past. At least this is a sign that the company does listen to its customers and will accommodate them accordingly.
If Lyft Premier does sound familiar to you, that is because it is now the equivalent of UberBLACK, an option that provides a deluxe riding experience on the way to your destination. Of course, with both products being marketed to target the luxury market, what is the main key difference between the two?
Lyft claims that commuters who decide to ride with Lyft Premier will be able to save a whole lot of time. How is this made possible? Lyft intends to synchronize the booking of Premier rides efficiently, which is in line with what it did for its traditional service a couple of months ago where scheduled rides are concerned. Lyft customers can place a request for a ride up to 24 hours ahead of time. Pretty useful when you know the exact details of your big night out, or perhaps to take a ride to a nearby airport, don't you think so?
Being a unique business model that benefits not only the passengers but also the drivers, David Baga, Lyft's chief business officer, did reiterate that Lyft is the "first and only [service] to offer same-day pay for drivers."
Such a same-day driver payment scheme might be the dangling carrot that could see more drivers make the jump over from Uber over to Lyft, with the former being hit by a class-action suit over drivers' working conditions. Back in April this year, Uber had to fork out up to $100 million to its drivers to settle such claims. Surely with a same-day driver payment scheme, it will help to negate the possibility of a class-action lawsuit to a certain degree, even more so in such economically challenging times.
Poaching of staff in any industry is not new at all, so we are far from surprised to hear that Lyft has reportedly poached Uber drivers as part of their Lyft Premier efforts. Business Insider claims that internal data has revealed that Lyft recruiters have been hailing rides from Uber, which is a pretty decent strategy of providing an opening for recruiters to pitch a proposal for the Uber driver in order to make the jump to Lyft Premier.
Those who are currently with Lyft and have an impeccable record, and also have the ability to own a high-end vehicle will be able to be part of the luxury service. Such rides under the Lyft Premier program will include the likes of the Audi A6, BMW 5 Series, Lexus ES and Cadillac Escalade.
Right now, Lyft Premier is available in New York City, San Francisco and Los Angeles, but other cities will have to be patient in order to enjoy the service. Rates start from $2.66 per mile, but that's the price to pay to arrive in style.
