Traditionally, people saw the act of buying a motor vehicle as a private expense, a bit like a holiday. In buying a car, you handed over your money to a dealer. Then, in return, you got “transport services” for however long the vehicle lasted.
But innovations are changing the dynamic. A car is no longer just some deteriorating piece of machinery that sits on your drive. It’s a money-making asset – like a factor or stocks and shares. You can generate positive returns from it.
Granted, we’re still very much in the early stages of this megatrend. Still, it is likely to accelerate in the future. Companies like Tesla are looking for ways to help people monetise their cars. They envision turning them into little wage earners that provide their owners with a second stream of income, besides their primary job.
Ridesharing
The most obvious way to make money from your car is to set yourself up as a driver on a ridesharing platform. Uber, Lyft or any of the many others out there are all viable options. People want taxi services, but they don’t want to pay taxi-like prices. There are, therefore, massive opportunities for people with half-decent cars to get into the market.
You’ll need the right vehicle, though. Uber and the others have so-called minimum standards that you have to abide by. So you’ll want to go to a dealership like Georgesons Cars to grab a qualifying car.
Advertising On Your Car
Companies need to get the word out about their businesses in any way they can. Billboards, TV commercials and PPC banners are expensive and eat into their budgets enormously. They’re always looking for alternatives.
Putting advertising on the side of a vehicle is one of the best ways to get noticed if you want to sell something. But, interestingly, you don’t have to be affiliated with the company at all to advertise its wares. You’re mostly just a mobile billboard, passively displaying their branding as you drive around town.
You won’t get paid a lot of money for this, but it usually translates to around £100 a year – which is enough to knock a bit of your insurance renewal.
Carpool Schemes And Apps
People are always looking for new ways to save on their morning commute to work. It is a daily cost that they can do without.
Carpools, therefore, are becoming increasingly popular. Here, multiple people share the same vehicle, cutting fuel and depreciation expenses.
Setting up a carpool is easy. Plus, the amount of money that you save can be staggering over a year, especially among people who spend more than forty minutes communicating per day. It is estimated that a trip from Leeds to London, for instance, could cost as a little as £21 per person.
Of course, there are downsides to all these ideas. You have to put in a bit of effort. But once you get into a routine, the payoff is often worth it. Innovators are making it easier to curb and offset travel expenses.
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