How often does this scenario happen? You accept an offer that's the right amount of money in a safe area of town but you can’t get any offers to get back to a hot zone. Follow these rules and you won't have to worry about having your Uber account disabled.
This is the advantage of knowing where you work and working where you know. I preach this all the time. It is one more major advantage when it comes to time management. It is a key weapon in the drivers arsenal to maximize earnings during peak earning hours.
You have to make the choice on where each run is going to leave you. Consider a pool player. The good ones always shoot for position. Position is where the cue ball is going to be after the shot is made. For instance: the skilled player wants to shoot the seven ball in the side pocket and wind up in position after that to make a shot on the six ball in the corner pocket. They line up the shot and shoot harder or softer, left, right, up or down to get the cue ball to hit the other ball in whatever direction they need it to go.
Likewise, this needs to be your strategy while driving. You need to end deliveries where you’re going to get offers as soon as you drop-off orders. Remember...an empty car equals a zero balance, and a empty moving car means a negative balance because you’re using gas and not getting paid for it. Drivers working the periphery are less likely than drivers working the heart of the zone to get offers. The ideal is to work areas that have attached hot zones.
Don’t be overcome with greed while looking at city zones. It's true the population is denser and there are more orders. Carefully consider the issues that come with city driving…primarily parking and traffic. These are issues on both pick-ups and drop-offs. They're a time suck. It’s kinda like a busy restaurant with an all you can eat special, only the wait staff doesn’t come around because they’re busy so it’s impossible to get all you can eat. You can literally spend an hour or more and not go a block. Just know what you’re getting into.
I highly recommend that partner teams do the city work. One drives while the other goes to pick-up or drop-off. Someone always stays with the car and drives around the block or parks and waits.
However you want to do it but be aware of the towing policies of the city you’re operating out of or you could have a very bad day. There are folks that do the city deliveries by themselves and I have much respect for them. They’re some of the best drivers out there and they deserve every penny they get.
If you stick to beginning with the end in mind on every offer, you will find yourself making more and maxing your dollars per mile.
Happy Trails