GRAB continues to introduce a series of technology features aimed at improving its driver-partners' productivity, and in turn, boosting their overall earnings.
The e-hailing app is focused on improving two key areas: maximising every minute that driver-partners spend on its app, and allowing them to accept and complete bookings seamlessly.
Head of product-fulfillment Prashant Kumar, said: "Maximising our driver-partner's productivity has been an ongoing priority for us at Grab. Last year, we saw a 3.5 per cent reduction in average idle time for driver-partners and a 10 per cent increase in average earnings per online hour compared to the year before."
MAKING EVERY MINUTE COUNT
Among its new time maximisation features are the heatmap, hotspot navigation, personalised alerts, zones and shared fleet.
The heatmap predicts high-demand areas across the city, displaying the average waiting time for bookings in each region. Armed with this data, driver-partners can proactively position themselves in optimal areas to secure more bookings.
The hotspot navigation, currently piloting in Singapore, takes real-time demand data and guides driver-partners to nearby hotspots, increasing their chances of receiving bookings.
Offline driver-partners in high-demand areas will also soon be able to receive push notifications for any earning opportunities.
The zone feature, also currently piloting in Singapore, carries a list of predefined geographical areas that driver-partners can sign up to drive in for a minimum of three to a maximum of five hours. This allows driver-partners who have signed up to only receive bookings within the area.
During off-peak hours or slow periods, driver-partners will be able to make use of the shared fleet feature, which allows them to look for non-transport-related earning opportunities on the super app.
SEAMLESS DRIVING EXPERIENCE
Grab's commitment to a seamless experience extends to its navigation services.
GrabMaps, a newly integrated feature across all of Grab's service verticals, is a comprehensive map solution that is continuously updated with new roads, pick-up points, back alleys and narrow side streets.
This allows driver-partners to head to the right pick-up points, reducing unnecessary time spent looking for passengers. GrabMaps will also provide an accurate estimated time of arrival as well as ensure the best and most efficient route to complete rides.
Meanwhile, the Share Live Location feature enables passengers to share their location, facilitating smoother pick-ups. This feature helps to improve efficiency and contribute to better customer satisfaction.
Other features are the Back-to-Back Bookings and Auto-Accept features, which automatically identify and accept the next booking before the current trip ends, minimising idle time and maximising earning potential.
Grab now allows driver-partners to swap bookings on the app, which will assign the closest driver-partners to passengers. This helps to save time for both passengers and driver-partners, and reduces the time needed for driver-partners to complete each booking.
For driver-partners waiting at airports to pick up passengers, Grab is introducing an upcoming feature that allows them to join a real-time queue with an estimated waiting time. This will allow them to make informed decisions on whether to continue waiting in the queue or look for ride bookings elsewhere.
Lastly, all estimated toll prices will now be included in the final fare owed to the driver-partner.
PUTTING DRIVER-PARTNERS FIRST
Grab has always emphasised driver-partner satisfaction. The app now offers the My Destination feature, which enables driver-partners to indicate their desired destination, thus, only receiving bookings that will lead them closer to their destination.
In contrast, the Locations to Avoid feature allows them to avoid picking up passengers in certain areas, which can be modified at any time.
COMPREHENSIVE SUPPORT
Grab is committed to ensuring that its driver-partners can get the most out of the e-hailing super app.
On top of improved productivity and maximised earnings, the Grab ecosystem for driver-partners extends to benefits, protection, financial solutions, safety, recognition and engagement.
Learn more about Grab's driver-partner benefits here.
