Back in September we covered examples on both sides of the Atlantic of social carpool matching sites that link drivers with passengers. PickupPal, which just launched last month, is now offering a like service on a global basis.
Like Zimride, GoLoco and isanyonegoingto, PickupPal also uses a social networking component to ease consumers' fears about sharing a car with a stranger. When users join the site, they create a profile with information including their picture and an "about me" description; over time, that information gets supplemented with ratings from those they have travelled with on trips through the site. Users planning to make a drive can tell PickupPal to see if any passengers (or packages) need to go there too; conversely, they can also request a ride to a particular place. PickupPal informs drivers about potential pick-ups, allowing them to make an offer for the trip based on how much they want to charge and the passenger's feedback ratings from previous trips they have made. Passengers, meanwhile, can choose from among the drivers that have made offers based on prices and their ratings on the site. Once a match is made, PickupPal issues a "ticket to ride" to both parties with all the necessary information. At the end of the ride, the passenger pays the driver, who pays a 7 percent commission to PickupPal. Both sides are also asked to rate the other for incorporation into their profiles.
PickupPal uses a GIS-based software application that sorts and matches rides anywhere around the world. Currently the Barbados-based site is available only in English, but it has already begun working on translations into French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and Dutch, it says. And a good thing, too: with gas prices and carbon footprints the focus of increasing global concern, demand for services that help consumers use cars more wisely will continue to be on the rise.
Website: www.pickuppal.com
Contact: john@pickuppal.com
Spotted by: Sarah Vogel
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Share rides with strangers who charge you? No thanks!
The owners of PickupPal obviously see their site as fulfilling a service currently not catered for. I'm afraid that after visiting the site, I'm immediately reminded of frustrating sites such as schoolfriendsreunited.com. For those that are unaware of this site, payment blocks at every stage made the site infuriating to use. The site administrators attempted to carefully protect their revenue streams. In doing so, all email addresses and other contact details within user profiles were monitored and deleted. To contact somebody, a membership fee was needed. The end result was that users stayed away in droves and the revenue model has now been reviewed and changed to a free model.
Despite PickupPal being ten minutes old, they are already up to the same tricks. The forums moderators make it clear that members are unable to use the forum to look for rides, or advertise rides. "That's our livelihood thank you very much. Please register as a user and pay us our 7%!"
This is where the problem lies. A central resource to aide car pooling could be a sustainable idea. However, PickupPal will not be the preferred site of potential poolers. This should ultimately be a government or not-for-profit initiative. If local or state governments do not offer this service in the near future, then a copycat "free provider" inevitably will. (Perhaps revenue will be based on advertising?)
Despite what the sites creators may think, PickupPal will simply not prosper under a paid user model.
Glenda Robbins | April 2, 2008 7:21 AM