As I've mentioned in previous articles, direct marketing is still one of the
leading methods of generating new business and being forever mindful of the
downturn in work since the events of September last, greater emphasis is to be
being made in that area. For the record, the regeneration and acquisition of
new business continues more or less on a par with pre-September figures and
with the exception of the Westminster home-to-school account, the retention of
our client base has held firm with credit due to all the staff in Sales as well
as the Customer Service department, DP, IT, Credit Control, Call Centre and of
course, the coverage given by you the drivers...
The old adage that success breed's success is very true, but
whilst it instils confidence and builds a platform for further success, one
must always be wary of complacency. Dial-a-Cab has been extremely
successful during the past few years and there is no reason why that cannot
continue. But it won't be easy, not since the licensing of private hire, the
on-going hostility towards the night charge and worse, competing against those
in the licensed cab trade who to the detriment of their members and ultimately
the trade as a whole, are prepared to buy work at any cost.
The other saying about 'getting to the top is difficult, but
staying there is harder' is also true. But, and I know I am repeating myself
yet again, for Dial-a-Cab to continue being successful it will need every
single one of you to play your part by: a) Hitting the accept button the moment
you are offered a trip b) Watching your run-ins, particularly at night c)
Understand that on the occasions a fixed price journey cost is below that which
you would prefer, it has been done so to retain the account d) Refrain from
airing your grievances or remonstrating with your passenger and last but
definitely not least, e)Complete the journey in a quiet, pleasant manner and
with an efficiency that will leave the client wanting to use Dial-a-Cab again.
Earning Success and Arsenal!
Success has to be earned and talking of success - particularly over
the opposition and sustaining it - gives me cause to compare it to a certain
football team not a million miles from Brunswick House. Arsenal, in fact,
whose manager reportedly said in answer to Alex Ferguson's claim that Man U
were the best team, "...every man believes he has the most attractive wife
at home." Pick up any trade paper and every taxi radio circuit
is claiming to be the most successful, including us. But at Dial-a-Cab, as with
Arsenal, figures don't lie. We have won the balance sheet league over the
last four years. Our state-of-the-art touch screen terminal still leads
the field in mobile technology. Our real-time booking system via the Internet,
which has been in operation for over two years, has still not been achieved by
our competitors. Our billing and MIS reporting facility via the Internet is
still on the drawing board of our competitors, as is our automatic call-out
facility. And last but not least, our soon to be introduced real-time credit
card booking facility via the Internet is another first that has not yet even
been considered by the opposition.
I am not gloating, I am not trying to upstage publicly our
competitors, everybody has worked extremely hard to put DaC at the top in our
profession and should be proud of our achievements. Ever since the emergence of
e-commerce and it became evident that greater emphasis on future development
was a necessity if we were to be a major force in the market place, it was in
technology that we aimed our resources. If what we have achieved since then is
being copied by the competition, then that can only be good for the cab
trade. I was going to say
'admired and copied' in the previous sentence, but
|
unfortunately
admiration is rarely forthcoming when associated with someone else's
success.
Casts and Values...
To those of you that suffer the occasional ear bashing from
American passengers complaining at the cost of using cabs in London, it
may interest you to know that in New York the average cost of a taxi ride
at present is $6.85 (approx £4.70) compared to London which is around
£8/12 depending on day or night.
Obviously you cannot compare the cost of taxis in London to
those in New York because of the differences in the cost of living, the
price and running costs of our vehicles and the archaic rules under which
we operate. Nevertheless it is an issue we often come across when we
deal with American companies and of course, as with everything foreign, we
must always be receptive to another's way of life and the reasoning behind
their opinions.
Another interesting fact is the value of a medallion
(equivalent to our badge) which apparently changes hands at over three
hundred thousand dollars. We've all heard the stories of what it's like
using their familiar yellow cabs with bullet proof interior windows,
drivers who can barely speak American English, hardly have a clue where
they are going and should you mistakenly leave anything valuable behind,
what the chances of it being recovered are. All of which makes it
understandable why we are admired throughout the world - yet strangely,
not in London?
Whist on the subject of our counterparts from across the
pond, I recently heard that Las Vegas cab drivers are up in arms over a
court order barring them from accepting tips from anyone other than their
passengers. In Vegas it has been a way of life for years for cab drivers
to get kickbacks from businesses such as adult night clubs, restaurants,
wedding chapels, tour companies, auto body shops, dance clubs, tattoo
parlours and outcall services (read into that as you will) eager to offer
gratuities. Even individual entertainers offer rewards such as free
tickets to cab drivers and monitory incentives for each customer they send
their way. In fact some adult nightclubs offer as much as $40 for every
client. However, all this is likely to end because it appears some
politically correct owner of a local massage parlour is moaning that high
tipping clubs are diverting passengers away from his joint and is calling
the practise kidnapping and extortion. I thought the loony left only
applied to the UK but obviously not. But nevertheless, we should take heed
because with Mayor Livingstone having an American as his close advisor,
what is happening in the American taxi industry today could well be
happening to our industry tomorrow.
Stress Free?
Since the start of our Stress Free driving program, several
articles have appeared in the trade press on the same subject, including
quotes from various governing bodies and a whole list of tips to help you
remain calm. For example plan ahead to avoid congestion, change your
behaviour ie let other motorists out at junctions, keep your hands on the
wheel so as to avoid the one-finger gestures etc etc. I could repeat the
whole list, but frankly I feel many of the tips would last as long as
first year resolutions when driving a cab in central London. In my
opinion, stress when driving a cab is more passenger-related than anything
else. When people voice their criticisms at me at the manner in which cab
drivers use the roads and relate examples, I always ask if the driver had a passenger in the cab and invariably the answer was
yes. Which makes sense, why else would questionable
behavior be necessary if the cab wasn't occupied by a passenger pressing
to get from one side of London to the other in 5
|
minutes?
What, I ask the critics, what would they do if the driver of their cab
made no effort to duck and dive through the traffic but instead put on a
bit of Mozart, lit up a panatela, sat back and let the traffic out at
every ruddy junction? Give the driver an ear bashing, that's what!
So as with everything in life- let common sense prevail. When
stuck in heavy traffic, don't let the piercing eyes on the back of your
neck from the passenger stress you out, pre-empt any hostile comments by
explaining the moment the passenger enters
your cab that it's bad all over and you will do your best. Drive sensibly,
don't waffle to the passenger or on a mobile and don't drive with the
impression you have all the time in the world. Be alert, if it is possible
to go up a bus lane, do so. If there is a better route but a longer
distance, offer your passenger the choice. You might think I'm
stating the obvious, but I talk from experience when looking at it from
the position of a passenger.
For example, there have been occasions when having got into
one of our cabs to go to an urgent meeting only to hear the driver say:
"Ah just the man I need to talk to." Now whilst being in a cab
is the ideal opportunity to hear what our members have to say, it isn't
easy for a driver to concentrate on what he/she needs to say and drive
safely, so invariably they drive slower, which can be frustrating when I'm
running late to see a client. Fortunately it doesn't happen to me
very often, because I make allowances for this in my journey times.
One final point on stress. Research at the University of
Texas reveals that people whose jobs involve little or no pressure are
more likely die sooner than those whose jobs involve stress. My
immediate thought after reading the study was that if the details were
true, those pushing a cab round London for a living should live forever!
Personally I have always enjoyed work, particularly when it involves
pressure. I find it stimulating, motivating and get a sense of achievement
when having applied myself to a task that I consider well done, no matter
what it is - be it getting a new client, designing artwork or getting a
passenger to a destination on time against all the odds.
Unfortunately, there are many who feel that driving a cab lacks
motivation, which is not true. Even a street cleaner can be
motivated by setting a level by which a street should be cleaned and then
improving on it. The same with driving a cab, it's how you apply yourself
to the job, taking stock of what you have compared to others, appreciating
the benefits of having a badge, taking pride in what you have to offer and
applying yourself to the best of your ability.
Finally, whilst in the mood for imparting little gems of
wisdom - particularly to those who have a fondness for drinking
Coke. Before you take your next slurp, it might interest you to know
that yet another report in the USA claims that Highway Patrols in many
areas carry two gallons of Coke in their trucks to remove blood from the
highway following accidents! A T-bone steak left in Coke for two days will
have totally dissolved. Lorries carrying the concentrate syrup have to
show warnings that they are carrying highly corrosive material and
distributors of Coke have been using it to clean their truck engines for
the past twenty years! Happy drinking...
Allen Togwell
DaC Marketing
allent@dialacab.co.uk
|