Driving jobs have been around for decades, and even before the era of the automobile, people were employed to deliver items by whatever means were available to them, whether that be horse-drawn cart, canal boat or railway carriage.
A career as a delivery driver is appealing for a number of reasons, so let’s examine just some of the motivations that might push you towards it, and how you can start down this path in the first place.
Pay prospects are solid
While the average salary for a delivery driver may not be especially head-turning, it is the prospect of being able to reliably earn a decent living because of the job stability and growth within this industry which makes the pay prospects particularly attractive.
Even with the rise of automated delivery technology, human drivers are in greater demand than ever before, and there is also the opportunity to earn tips from customers to top up your basic salary.
Flexibility is achievable
Another of the most attractive qualities of becoming a delivery driver is the ability to choose your own hours and work in whatever way best suits the other responsibilities of day to day life in your situation.
More and more drivers choose to get their work via apps, effectively operating as freelancers rather than being permanently employed by a single business.
From Uber Eats to Amazon Flex and beyond, there are lots of ways to embrace a flexible approach to delivery work, rather than sticking rigidly to a 9 to 5 schedule.
Flexibility also applies to where you work. You can choose to deliver within a specific area, only focusing on last-mile package drop-offs for online orders, or pick up delivery jobs that encompass longer distance jaunts, across the state or the country.
Anyone who doesn’t want to be tied to an office desk, stuck working from home or put through the wringer physically by a manual labor role will see becoming a delivery driver as an excellent alternative.
Variety is available
There are different types of delivery driver experiences to consider as well, and you can mix and match if you stay freelance.
You might work delivering fast food orders to people in your area to make extra cash in the evenings or when you have a spare few hours.
You might choose to help fulfill e-commerce deliveries for local and national retailers alike, collecting packages from distribution hubs and taking them to their final destination.
Whatever the case, this variety ensures that delivery driver jobs are never boring, so you won’t be itching for a change when you are up and running.
Entry requirements are low
When it comes to the career path of a delivery driver, getting in at the ground floor is a relative breeze.
If you are going to work as a freelance courier, then it is simply a case of signing up for the apps you want to use, providing information on your background, and waiting for approval before picking up jobs.
You will of course need access to your own vehicle to work contracting roles, so bear this in mind before you apply.
Some people are entirely content to keep working as delivery drivers throughout their career. But if you want to move up the ladder, you could always transfer to duties like fleet management, dispatching and more, which is usually better achieved through full time employment at a business.
As you can see, becoming a delivery driver is both desirable and straightforward, so whether you see it as a stopgap or a full-blown career, now is the time to strike.