IAM2867 – DoorDash and Uber Eats꞉ 5 Tips to Earn More

The Portfolio Approach to Gig Execution

A frequent mistake made by those entering the gig economy is depending entirely on a single platform for their revenue stream. Relying solely on one application leaves your income incredibly vulnerable to unexpected technical outages and slow market periods. In this episode, pulling directly from real-world execution that generated over $10,000 across ninety days, we break down why modern delivery drivers must adopt a sophisticated multi-apping framework to maximize their structural opportunities. By running multiple platforms simultaneously, you gain ultimate control over your workflow, ensuring you never have to accept an unfavorable order just to stay busy.

Working Smarter Through Strategic Selection

True efficiency is never about working longer hours; it is about working completely smarter. Instead of trying to force a rigid operational schedule that conflicts with your baseline family commitments, high-leverage drivers learn to capitalize on alternative operational windows, such as lunch breaks or sudden calendar openings.

This requires a strict commitment to a target financial metric—such as aiming for a $2 per mile guideline—and maintaining absolute selectivity regarding where you shop. Choosing properly labeled, highly structured retail locations over unorganized storefronts completely optimizes your time-per-delivery ratio and protects your day from unnecessary logistical drag.

Engineering a Premium Customer Experience

The core takeaway for any independent operator is that while anyone can physically transport an item, true profitability comes when you turn a basic delivery into a highly personalized experience. As part-time builders looking for maximum efficiency, we must actively stand on the shoulders of giants by borrowing proven strategies from successful veterans rather than learning every single bottleneck the hard way.

By implementing meticulous over-communication, integrating custom thank-you touchpoints, and deploying digital tools like dedicated QR codes, you build an immediate competitive advantage that translates directly into increased client tips. Ask yourself this critical question: “Are you treating your delivery schedule like a random block of time, or are you strategically cherry-picking the specific opportunities that protect your margin and eliminate burnout?”. Running your own race and creating memorable human connections is the definitive blueprint to consistently winning in a crowded market.

Previous episode: https://iamceo.co/iam2866-the-importance-of-environment%ea%9e%89-how-to-build-the-place-people-become-better-in/

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Transcription:

Gresham Harkness 00:00
I've earned over $10,000 using DoorDash and UberEats over the last 90 days. 60 days for UberEats, 90 days for DoorDash. And I'm not claiming to know everything, but I've learned a lot in a short period of time. So whether you're just getting started, looking into earning more, or just kicking the tires, I have five tips plus a bonus if you listen to the intro.

If you're building something meaningful, you're in the right place. This is the I Am CEO Podcast. I'm gresh, and for over a decade I've had honor and the privilege of Learning directly from CEOs, entrepreneurs and business owners just like you on how to build after recording more than 1600 episodes, one thing has become clear. Success isn't about following someone else's blueprint. And as I like to say on the show, if you run your own race, you can't lose, even when you feel the journey should be a straight and linear path. What I've come to find out is success is a lot more like a plate of spaghetti. So in this special segment and episode, I'm starting to curate and share some CEO hacks and CEO nuggets that I've been dying to share. Drawn from thousands of episodes with phenomenal guests that have provided awesome value on the show, but also my 10 years of business experience as well too. These lessons are designed to strengthen the foundational principles that every business is built on and guided by a simple equation that we always go back to with our content. Visibility plus resources times connections equals success. This is practical wisdom you can apply almost immediately, so be sure to check out the show notes for more resources and next steps on how to level up. And of course, enjoy this special episode of the I Am CEO podcast.

Gresham Harkness 01:40

I've earned over $10,000 using DoorDash and UberEats over the last 90 days. 60 days for UberEats, 90 days for DoorDash. And I'm not claiming to know everything, but I've learned a lot in a short period of time. So whether you're just getting started, looking into earning more, or just kicking the tires, I have five tips plus a bonus if you listen to the Engine. Tip number one multi app. When I first started, I only used DoorDash while I was getting my Uber Eats account approved. It made a huge difference when I added on UberEats. Reason simple opportunities. More opportunities. When one app is slow, the other one might be busy. It also would have saved me. Fortunately, it was getting approved when DoorDash had a major outage I was literally delivering, couldn't mark the item as completed and delivery as completed. So I had to go home and I didn't make any money. You don't have to take on any orders that you don't want to take on. When you have more options, you can use both at the same time. But I recommend not taking two deliveries exactly at the same time. Take one and if once you're completed or near completion, you can take on another. But having multiple options gives you more control and more opportunity. Number two, Work smarter, not longer. One thing I've learned is that timing does matter tremendously. Dinner time is usually the best at the busiest time, five to eight. But that's also my family time, so that doesn't necessarily work for me. I have been out less than a handful of times during dinner time. So instead of trying to force a schedule that doesn't fit for my life, I look for other opportunities. I drive during lunch when I can, between meetings or potentially if I have a cancellation on my calendar. The other part is I try to be very selective. Not every order deserves your time. This is something that has spilled into my business as well too. Has made me a lot more selective with what I'm doing there as well. One thing I didn't like around Amazon Flex is it just gives you a block. You don't get to decide, am I going to take this or I'm not going to take it. You had to take it. This allows you the opportunity to be a lot more selective. So if I take an order and I know I need to pick up my son, I'm not going to take an order that won't allow me to do those things. So that's where I love this because it fits into whatever it is that I'm trying to do. It makes sense. Aim for $2 per mile. Not a hard rule, but it's a guideline that's worked well for me. I try to target orders that are at least $2 per mile. I found that shopping at places like Wegmans, Giant Safeway, Target, where things are a properly labeled than other places makes a lot of sense. Aldi Dollar Tree. Not as great Dollar tree. I've even had issues where I've lost WI fi service and not being able to kind of complete things because I didn't have service. Another hidden gem has been Home Depot. A lot of these items will tell you exactly where they're located and that makes that shopping experience better and allows you to serve your clients customers better. Number four is cherry picking, especially if you're part time. I'm not doing this full time and I think differently than someone that is trying to do this full time. If I was, I might try to focus on Platinum Dasher and the status within Uber to try to be that gold status. But as a part time driver, I'm looking for efficiency. I know I have only a certain period of time so I have to maximize that time. So I only need those, I only need and will take on those orders that fit that schedule that I, that I, that I have. And with financial sense, that's a different game than trying to stay busy all day. And frankly, I also have to make sure I'm creating more space so that I don't get burned out too. Such a huge thing tip 5 stand on the Shoulders of Giants One of the best decisions I made is while doing this, especially when I was getting started I pumped in and listened to so many different YouTube videos. Frankly I still do of people that are doing it much longer than me. Learned about acceptance rates, shopping orders, peak time, multi apping all those things. Instead of learning everything the hard way, I learned and borrowed from the people that had already figured it out. Whatever you're doing, whether we're talking about this or we're talking about anything else, find people that are successful, learn from them, make it your own and go from there. Tip number six I kind of touched on this and I say it often, if you run your own ratio, you can't lose. Make this your own. This has probably been the most fun part for me. Everybody can deliver food, not everybody creates it and makes it an experience. I tend to over communicate with customers. One thing I told my older son when he went out with me once is that people love hearing their own name. So sending personalized messages with their name is such a huge thing. I also have a thank you card that I created and I think you page with a QR code and I found out that one third of the people that I delivered to did actually scan and go to that website. These are simple things that are huge things as customers have told me. Nobody has ever done that and I always see that there's a little bit more of a tip that I get as a result of doing that. So think about what works well for you, what helps you stand out and make sure that you lean into that. Run your own race because you can. And just like that, These are the five tips plus one bonus that have worked for me during the first 90 days of delivery driving. I'm still learning every day, but hopefully one of these ideas helps you to earn a little bit more or makes the experience a little bit easier. Let me know what's work what works best for you. I'm always interested and excited to learn from other drivers as well.