Prior to becoming a Door Dash driver, I was a pizza delivery driver for Domino’s Pizza. Working with Domino’s Pizza, I learned so many tricks to making more deliveries, earning more tips, and making my deliveries more efficient. Combining what I learned with Door Dash, I came up with a solid strategy that earned me an average of $21/hr with some days earning as high as $45/hr. The following are my top 10 Dasher hacks.
- Schedule your Dash ahead of time. Those who scheduled their dash get more deliveries assigned than those who join the Dash that day.
- Choose a highly populated suburb in what is considered a “nice” area. While it’s busier downtown, you will come across traffic and parking tickets along with higher risks of theft. In a premium and highly populated suburb, you can earn more in tips and easily find parking.
- Figure out the peak times. I scheduled all of my dashes from 10:30am-1pm and 5pm-9pm because otherwise, business was dead. Certain days are busier than others. I found that people order more food Thursday through Sunday. Mondays and Tuesdays were always my slowest days.
- Dress well. In an age of Pandemic contactless deliveries, this has become less important. However it can still get you a better tip.
- Be kind. The customer is always right. Make sure you are respectful in your communication with the customer and take photos of all of your deliveries for proof of delivery, just in case. I had a customer have an issue with the app and I contacted customer service on their behalf, even though drivers are not expected to do that at all. I also had a customer complain that they never received their delivery, prompting an investigation with Door Dash.
- Give your customer updates. Call or send a text to the customer when you arrived at the restaurant. Let them know if there is a delay and let them know when you are 5 minutes away.
- Carry a handheld Spot Light. It is VERY difficult to see addresses at night. I carry a rechargeable handheld spot light so I can see address numbers on houses and mailboxes from my car. I highly recommend this rechargeable and reliable long battery life spot light that you can charge with your USB cable – STANLEY FATMAX SL10LEDS Rechargeable 2200 Lumen Lithium Ion Ultra Bright LED Spotlight Flashlight with USB Power Charger.
- Learn your routes and choose your Dash wisely. You will eventually know what restaurants have the longest wait times, or what is the best route to get to the restaurant or the customer’s home, saving you precious time in making deliveries.
- Screenshot names and addresses. Unfortunately the app does crash for up to 2 hours at a time. What if it crashes while you are in the middle of a delivery? It happened to me. I didn’t know the customers address so I had to hold their food for a couple of hours.
- Document your miles. When it’s time to do your taxes, you can get back $0.58 per mile, significantly lowering how much you owe. Track your mileage, taxes, and fuel costs with the Dasher Tracker.
