Are you looking to make money by using your referral code for new food delivery drivers? Why wouldn’t you? Sometimes food delivery brands like DoorDash offer huge sign-up bonuses for new drivers. And it can be tempting to want to refer as many drivers as you can to cash in on the bonuses.
But not so fast.
Referring lot of new drivers might not be the best thing to do.
There’s a much more innovative way to use your referral code. More on this later.
But first, let’s talk about why it might not be the smartest thing to refer a lot of drivers.
#1. There’s a payout limit
If you haven’t read the fine prints, most gig economy brands have changed their referral programs. You can’t make money off unlimited referrals anymore.
Brands place a limit on how much you can make a year through referrals.
Once you exceed that cap, going out of your way to refer new drivers is a waste of your time.
#2. New drivers compete with you
You can still refer drivers even after you reached the payout limit.
But this isn’t productive because if the drivers you referred are in the same market as you, well, now you got more drivers to compete with.
None of which, if they do well, will make you any bonuses. On the contrary, if they do well, that means less work for you.
And more than this, they also compete with other people you refer.
#3. Most referrals don’t pan out
But let’s face it. Most referrals don’t pan out.
The gig brands have set the requirements such that it’d be pretty hard to earn the sign-up bonus.
For example, DoorDash currently offers $900 for 290 deliveries over 60 days.
Let’s break that down.
Two hundred ninety orders over 60 days are about five orders per day (4.83).
This sounds doable. On weekends you can easily get ten orders a day. That’s the problem. It seems doable. So everyone signs up to do it.
Then no one can do it because they’re all competing with each other.
The Smarter Way
Have you noticed something? The Courier Hacker website doesn’t promote driver referral codes.
Why? Because there’s a more brilliant way to make more money with your referral code.
And here it is: instead of spamming it all over the place, refer a small number of drivers in your local market that you can mentor and team up with, long term.
Help them get the sign-up bonuses. Teach them where the hotspots are. Show them how to reject orders and where to position themselves. Help them hack the food delivery gigs. Show them what gear and tools to use.
Then go out and do deliveries during the same time with each other. Spread out and cover your market and communicate where you see demand.
For example, suppose I go to a Thai restaurant and see many bags of food waiting. In that case, I will notify my crew to move closer to this particular restaurant. But, on the other hand, if I see a long line of couriers waiting at the same restaurant, I’d tell my people not to accept orders from here.
Long term, this mafia-like collaboration makes food delivery communal, fun, and strategic.
It gives you more ‘eyes’ on the map and allows you to have intel at multiple locations in town. And this makes you more money—long term.
If you sign up a driver that you don’t keep in touch with, they’re just not very valuable to you after the sign-up bonus period is over. Once the sign-up bonus period is over, it’s over. That person might never do another delivery again. And even if they do, it doesn’t help you in any way.
But raise up a small group of peers that work together. You can help them get the sign-up bonus and form a team that helps each other out long term and makes more money on top of the sign-up bonuses.
Once a member of your mafia hangs up the food delivery gig and moves on to something else, you can then use your referral code and raise another one to replace them.
Here’s to forming your fleet.
Stay safe out there.
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