Startup Monday: Lyft

Startup Monday is ABCey’s weekly post that features some of the best and brightest companies in the Bay Area. They are often companies that we have our eye on or have worked with in the past & would like to share with friends and followers of ABCey Events.

The life of an event planner can be really hectic at times. On top of all the meetings, to-do lists and site visits, we are often on the go. The only difficult thing about traveling, especially in San Francisco, is finding a great, affordable way to get to your destination. Thankfully Lyft is here to help!

Lyft is quickly rising up to be a successful startup founded on a simple idea. Their goal is to set up everyday car owners with people who need rides. Lyft is great because it does not require users to flag down cars or call a taxi company. Instead, it simplifies everything through it’s mobile application where users can create an account and add their personal credit card information. They can then link to their Facebook or LinkedIn accounts.

Once a ride is requested, it show users a picture of the driver, but also of the car that will be picking them up. Cars usually have a hot pink mustache attached to the front, so that they’ll be easy to spot! Once the car arrives, passengers are encouraged to sit in the passenger seat to help build a reputation with the driver. At the end of the ride, donations are suggested but not mandatory.

There are a few other ride-sharing companies out there, such as Uber, however there are some major differences. Lyft is said to be more laid back with a fleet of compact cars, and drivers are even said to give their passengers a fist-bump when they first get in! Uber on the other hand is more reserved (passengers sit in the backseat). Lyft drivers can receive donations whereas Uber automatically adds a 20% tip.

Next time we do a site visit, we will definitely give Lyft a try. It would also be great for our event attendees, since we all know how limited parking is in San Francisco. What do you think about this ride-sharing service? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook or Twitter!

Startup Monday: Stripe

Imagine being a couple of young 20-something’s trying to make a difference in the e-commerce industry. Now, imagine taking on one of the biggest companies in the online payment industry, PayPal. It’s sure easier said than done. However, it’s exactly what Stripe co-founders John and Patrick Collison are trying to accomplish!

Shortly after moving to San Francisco, the Collison brothers realized that taking credit card payments requires way too much work – you would either need a merchant account, PayPal or Google checkout account. Why not make things easier? The brothers realized if business owners embedded code into their website, they can start running credit card payments on their own. This company’s new technology is really great because it allows for payments to be distributed to multiple bank accounts. This is currently a big issue for other start ups like Lyft, which tries to pay drivers with different accounts.

What’s really great about Stripe is that it allows you to do more than a one-time charge to a customer’s card. You can set up a subscription that will charge the card a specific amount at any interval. It also safely stores credit card information so that customers don’t have to enter it every time they visit the website.

This company has already gotten so much attention in a short span of time. It’s even gained a number of high profile clients, like Foursquare, Shopify, and the Museum of Modern Art. Although it’s still in its early stages, Stripe is definitely set to change the face of how businesses work.

What do you think of Stripe? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook & Twitter.