Private micromobility models: Launching a bike and scooter-sharing network at hotels
As world travel begins to open up, so do opportunities for enhanced (and safe) hotel experiences involving electric scooter and bike rentals. We’re continuing to explore lucrative and oftentimes untapped B2B schemes as part of our private micromobility model blog series, and this week we’re checking in with hotels and resorts.
A hotel-based shared system eliminates the headache of sourcing hardware, setting up a rental and payment system, worrying about tracking vehicles and having to employ people to watch it all happen. For third-party operators, hotels provide built-in riders ready to rent, one centralized pick-up/drop-off point, reliable revenue streams and no competitive permit process. In other words, say goodbye to city lobbying and hello to hotel lobbying.
According to P&S Intelligence, the global micromobility market is expected to reach US$9.8 billion in 2025, tripling from US$3 billion in 2018. The industry’s tentacles will start to reach the hospitality sector, and e-scooter/bike rentals will inevitably become an expectation among guests. With trans-Atlantic leisure travel likely to be restored in many markets by this summer, providing this value-add is a timely pursuit. Whether you’re managing a hotel, managing a fleet that can be leased to a hotel or just managing your next business venture, here’s how to get going in the hospitality space:
First, fill that vehicle void
It’s safe to say that most travelers want to explore their surroundings. For hotels and resorts, being able to fulfill the ability of providing eco-friendly, safe and low-cost transportation is a serious value-add for guests. So what’s the starting point? In order to launch a rental scheme, you first need to assemble your fleet. Depending on your location, budget and occupancy, you can start with anywhere from 10 to 100 vehicles. Joyride has exclusive buying power with the world’s leading e-scooter, e-bike and smart-lock manufacturers, meaning we can help with initial vehicle selection as well as fulfillment, shipping and setup on your hotel grounds. Read more about our top vehicle recommendations in Joyride’s 2021 Micromobility Hardware Guide.
Get connected with a software system
Once vehicles are sourced and set, they’re not fully functional until they’re synced with an IoT device and user-facing app. This is done through the creation of your own hotel-branded app and backend dashboard management system. Your white-label user app offers guests the ability to select multiple vehicles for rental (and pay for them at the same time); accept promotional offers; receive email and SMS notifications; pay for their trips based on duration; extend rentals for days at a time using Joyride Keep functionality; provide instant ID verification; and more. As easy as it is to host in-house, hotels may outsource the entire shared fleet process to independent contractors or established businesses that will handle the logistics using our backend. Click here for a demo of how our software platform works in either scenario.
Let riders rejoice (and ring in more revenue)
Once your fleet is established and connected, guests can download your rider app to locate the nearest vehicles and scan their QR codes to begin their trips. All scooters, e-bikes, mopeds and traditional bikes are tracked using Joyride’s backend dashboard, and any payment is also accepted through the app. You’re able to set GPS parameters and dedicated trip zones, and you’ll receive instant alerts should you need to address a vehicle issue. The backend system does the work for you without having to hire a team to manage the program or oversee the rental process, meaning operating costs are very minimal. In terms of additional revenue, your hotel should expect to produce up to about US$8,500 per month based on a 20-vehicle fleet. This is based on the revenue assumption of roughly US$14/day per device in a 30-day period. It’s the gift shop that just keeps on going…
Just like managing a food delivery-based micromobility system, offering hotel guests accessible scooter-sharing and/or bike-sharing opportunities is possible without doing much legwork — or using anyone’s brand but your own. Contact us here for more details on how to get started.
Disclaimer: This article was originally published on April 29, 2021 on the Joyride Website.
