MIAMI BEACH, Fla. — We’re seeing two macro-tendencies emerging among operators as transportation network companies (TNCs) shake up the ground travel sector. I say tendencies, since it’s too soon to call them trends.
First, I’ve noticed and talked to operators joining on- and near-demand apps, such as Blacklane, GroundLink, and Uber Black, as a way to gain business and smooth out fleet usage. More operators are admitting that tech drives the runs.
Secondly, an industry technology solution seems more a matter of getting competing systems to interact, instead of everyone joining one micro-managed tech platform under one brand. No one seems to want a “Ma Bell” of ground transportation.
Third Rail
Those themes seeped in during a technology panel I hosted at the LCT Leadership Summit in May and at a related one the previous day. I told the attendees upfront that we would be stepping on the “industry’s third rail,” given the vehemence and passion the subject of apps and TNCs elicits among operators. A consensus point was that tech platforms and providers must find a way to connect while preserving brand integrity and data security.
Let’s face it: Why should one player dominate? It smacks of a monopoly. Even in the consolidated airline and hotel sectors, you still have competing companies, although hotel chains subdivide into distinct brands or tiers. A Courtyard Marriott, for example, contrasts with a Spring Hill Suites. Eventually, small to medium-sized fleet operators choose to handle runs from among several app companies, ventures or providers, and give their clients an on-demand option.
For example, a 10 to 15-vehicle fleet operation could have a software system that connects to companies on other systems, allowing them to see each other’s vehicles and farm in/out in real-time without sharing confidential back-end data. That same company could still draw upon a core local clientele accessible via website, phone and mobile device; pick and choose to take runs from a tech-driven ride app, such as Blacklane or GroundLink during down times; and offer a co-branded white label app, either on its own or with a handful of other local limo services that want to provide on- or near-demand service in a defined region. Throw in dynamic, tiered pricing and you get a real, flex-time limousine company, both nimble and traditional, depending on the client and the connection.
Such diverse fleet options in a fractured, multi-gen client base would empower more business and operational models. In this issue, we feature a company I visited, VIP Global of Miami, taking the counter-intuitive approach in a TNC-disrupted market. They put every positive attribute of limousine service on steroids. From fleet vehicles, to technology, to customer service, VIP is all high-end. And the owning operator relishes the challenge of combining his high-end service with on-demand tools. He knows if he and others like him don’t do it, or at least participate in it, others will.
Tech Conquers All?
Like the five panelists I hosted, two other technology entrepreneurs I spoke with for this column reiterate the need to cooperate and connect.
“It’s important that we do unify and all limo companies come together to service consumer demand, but they need to find a way without forcing everyone to switch back office systems out,” said Nadav Ullman, co-founder and CEO of Dashride of New York. “For this industry to compete, a few things need to be taken into account: By no means is the answer, ‘Let’s all go under same company or same brand.’ The answer is to empower each of the brands with the best tools, while in the background connecting them.
“We all have to be able to come together and share rides back and forth, farm in and out, and work on becoming on demand and near demand, becoming larger and larger,” Ullman said.
Another tech software and app platform entrepreneur, Sid Forougi, owner of Midnight Express limousine service in Laguna Niguel, Calif., says the industry needs a cloud-based integration engine that offers flexible, voluntary participation in a nationwide network of available fleet vehicles.
“Our industry needs to unite operators,” Forougi told me. “The problem we have is fragmentation. I voiced it a long time ago to big companies. If we could address the fragmentation, we could solve the problem. One can have their own network, and connect with however many other networks, that could be on the cloud. You have it subscription based, able to deliver to anyone, and operators can choose who to network with.”
At least industry technology leaders are talking amongst themselves and to operators. Look for good things to bubble up soon enough.
On a hopeful note, during another panel talk an attendee praised the industry for the good story it can tell about its safety, duty-of-care, reliability, and luxury service. Such qualities put limousine companies far ahead of the TNCs. Every operator has the tools to tell that story, now.
Keywords
Blacklane Dashride Editor’s Edge Blog GroundLink industry education LCT editor LCT Leadership Summit Martin Romjue mobile technology Nadav Ullman on-demand service Sid Forougi staying competitive vehicle apps
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