Road congestion in cities and a push for sustainability means that recent years have seen a growing momentum for greener transport options. Cycling is one of the most sustainable and eco-friendly ways of getting around, plus it’s fun and offers extra health benefits for riders. This makes it a popular choice, and as such, the demand for bike rental services and bike sharing is expected to continue growing faster and faster.
With the future looking bright for bike rental managers, now is as greater a time as any to put together your own fleet. If you’re considering your own bike rental shop, then like any business, the key to success is planning. Whether you’re already a bike shop owner or completely new to the scene, read on to learn more about how to get your own bike rental business up and running.
Step 1: Put together a business plan
Putting together a comprehensive business plan will help make sure you stay on the right track by detailing the steps you need to take. This should give you a full overview of your goals, where you see your business heading in the future, and how to get there.
So, what should your plan include?
Business description
Bike rental businesses come in a variety of shapes and sizes, so decide what it is you want to offer your clients. Think about your business’ purpose and what it aims to achieve, focusing on what makes it unique and how you can offer your customers value.
First, think about your venue. Will you be based in the city or a forest park? If you want to offer cycling holidays, then will you focus on round trip routes or work out the logistics for one-way tours? You might also want to consider long-term rentals for local commuters, or if you’re targeting tourists, then perhaps you’re going to offer guided tours or sell maps for added value.
Market & competitor analysis
If you want to make the most of any opportunities, make sure to do your research. First, analyse the market to validate why now is a good time to set up your bike rental business in your chosen area. Places are constantly changing and getting investment, so look out for any upcoming developments, increases in tourism or new cycling lanes which could indicate that there’s a market.
This analysis will not only give you the confidence you need to move forward but will also help identify your target demographic. It’s critical that you do this early on, as the profile of those you are targeting will affect everything from your inventory and booking system to prices and marketing strategies.
Once you’ve identified a potential target market, check out the local competition. Overly crowded places could put you at a disadvantage, but if there are one or two other shops around, this will confirm that there’s a demand for your services. You can then look at how they run their business to identify any areas that you could improve on, pinpointing your USP.
Choosing your base
As well as considering the competition, it’s also important that your base location is easily accessible. Make sure there’s enough parking, the address is easy to find, and that it’s close to wherever your customers will want to cycle. If it’s too much of a hassle to access, then customers might be put off from visiting.
Work out your costs
Whether you have an investor or you’re looking at getting a bank loan, you’ll need to work out how much setting up is going to cost you. This will vary depending on what you want to offer your customers, as well as other factors like location. Renting out e-bikes in London will likely cost more than offering mountain bikes in Scotland.
Once you have an idea of what it will cost to set up your business, you can work out how much you can charge for each rental. Most managers also find bike rental businesses to be seasonal work, so make sure to account for off-season running costs as well.
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Inventory
For bike rental businesses, your inventory is your income, which means your fleet and any related gear is going to be your main cost. You’ll want to make sure you invest in quality bikes that are safe, durable and easy to find spare parts for. It might be tempting to buy poor quality bikes for less, but if they need constant maintenance or break beyond repair, then they could end up costing you more in the long run.
You’ll also want to invest in safety gear like helmets and locks, as well as anything you can upsell for added value, such as GPS trackers, waterproofs or first aid kits.
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Repairs
If you’re concerned about any potential damage that might happen to your bikes, you can set up security deposits or have waivers for customers to sign. This will encourage riders to treat your equipment like they would their own, reducing potential damages and helping protect your investment.
However, your fleet will still need regular maintenance to keep each bike in tip-top condition. This means you’ll also need to factor in costs for cleaning, servicing, punctures and general wear and tear. By keeping up with these repairs, your investment will last longer and you’ll be able to reduce the amount of depreciation when it comes to reselling your bikes.
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Fixed costs
Fixed costs are things like rent, liability insurance, utility bills and salaries—everything you need to pay regardless of whether you have customers or not.
A smaller place might cost less and be more tempting when first starting out. However, if you’re planning to grow your business, then try to rent somewhere that’s as big as you can afford. Remember that your base needs to have enough space for storing your entire fleet and any additional gear, as well as room for carrying out essential maintenance work.
Step 2: Day-to-day management
With your bike rental business all set up, the next thing you need to do is focus on managing it. It’s best to set out with clear processes in place for each area of the business, as this will help streamline your tasks and ensure that you stay on top of your to-do list. This will give your business a professional and well-organised image, having a positive impact on the overall customer experience.
Marketing strategies
Once you have your inventory and base all set up, you’ll need to attract visitors with a targeted marketing strategy. By now you should have a clear idea of who your ideal customer is, which will help you choose the right strategy for your business.
Digital marketing is a really cost-effective way of reaching potential riders quickly. There are a wide range of tools available, both free and paid, which can help build brand awareness while connecting you with customers. To help get you started, we explored 5 digital marketing strategies for bike rental managers here, looking at websites, social media, blogs and paid ads.
The key to digital marketing is to offer your customers valuable content. Don’t just focus on your services, but instead try talking about topics that interest your audience like tracks you would recommend and any local events.
It’s also important to consider how you’re going to keep customers coming back for more, and the best way to do this is to ensure that every rider has a great experience. Not only will they be more likely to return, but you can also ask them to post reviews on sites like Trust Pilot, Google and TripAdvisor. These positive reviews will then help build trust among new customers, further promoting your bike rental services.
Online bookings
When using digital marketing strategies, you can streamline the customer experience by using an online booking system like yoyo. This means that when your target audience discovers your paid ad or social media account, they can quickly and easily access your booking portal. This removes any hurdles, making the most of your marketing efforts.
Our online booking system also helps streamline the booking process, allowing customers to book 24/7/365. This means that no matter when or where your customers find you, they’ll be able to make their reservations independently while leaving you and your staff with more free time to focus on the business.
When making their reservations, customers automatically get shown your availability. The booking is then updated on your user-friendly dashboard, which can also be updated manually if you have walk-in reservations. This makes your business completely accessible to your customers with no risk of double bookings for a friction-free booking solution.
Bike maintenance
Keeping on top of your daily bike maintenance is an essential part of running a bike rental business. Not only will this ensure you get the maximum life span out of your investment, but it will also help keep your customers safe and protect your business’ reputation. Squeaky breaks or loose bike handles could spoil the fun for your customer, but by keeping on top of your bike maintenance, you can make sure you deliver top-quality bikes for a great riding experience.
If you’re not sure where to start, then check out our basic checklist for regular maintenance. To help you stay on top, our bike rental management software also features a handy maintenance log that keeps track of when each bike is due its next service. A reminder then pops up on your dashboard to make sure you don’t forget.
Get your bike rental business rolling with yoyo
As well as our online booking system and handy maintenance log, yoyo is packed with features like add-ons, real-time reports, inventory and more. Our whole system has been designed to help streamline the day-to-day running of your business and increase revenue, leaving you with more time to focus on growing your business.
And if you’re just starting out with a small fleet of 10, then you’ll be happy to know that all these features are completely free! We believe in making life easier for bike rental managers and this is just our way of helping you get started. As your business grows, our flexible plans are available all the way up to 150 bikes with multiple venues to give you the full support you need.
Setting up a bike rental business is an exciting adventure and we would love to help. If you want to learn more about yoyo or need advice on how to set up your business, then feel free to reach out to our support team. Good luck!