There’s no denying it, the sharing economy is a controversial topic. There are those who firmly agree with what it has done in the economy, and there are those who are strongly opposed to it. We’ve heard both sides of this argument. From the conflicting arguments revolving Uber’s reduction of rates to drivers, to Airbnb dodging regulations and “breaking the law,” to the everyday person facilitating the use of untapped resources. Whatever it may be, the sharing economy has done more good than it has harm, here’s why...
The sharing economy makes use of vacant or unused resources for profit: We all have an item or space we’ve used a handful of times and never made use of it again, as opposed to letting items sit idle, we now have the ability to make profit off of it and rent it out to someone in need. This is the idea behind the sharing economy: share your items, space, and time with people in exchange for a fee. Hundreds of peer-to-peer businesses have thrived off this business model, creating successful marketplaces such as TaskRabbit, Lyft, and Instacart.
The sharing economy allows you to be your own boss: The sharing economy is able to create these peer-to-peer businesses combining flexibility, and self-management. This allows those on the supply side to facilitate their personal time in return for a profit. Rather than committing to a full time job, or even a part time job, the sharing economy creates employment, while allowing for flexibility. For example, an uber driver can decide to work 2 days a week, for a total of 15 hours if they wanted to. You decide when you work, how many hours a day you’ll work, and how many days you’d like off. Bottom line: the sharing economy is creating employment whether you like to admit it or not.
The sharing economy promotes convenience: If you’re in a bustling city like San Francisco, you know your time is precious. With the long work hours consuming each passing day, the last thing you want to do is compete the daily tedious tasks such as grocery shopping, laundry, cleaning, etc. Luckily, with the sharing economy on the rise, there are now services for any and all of these tasks. There’s Washio, which provides dry cleaning & laundry services to your door, Instacart which delivers your groceries, Task Rabbit, which helps you complete daily tasks and chores, and the list goes on. With all these on-demand services, people are able to invest their time in other things, in exchange for a fee. In theory, the sharing economy is creating more time in the already limited 24 hour day.
There is controversy that the sharing economy is disrupting traditional business models. Although this is true, if nothing is disrupting your business, are you really innovating or progressing? There will always be competition in an economy, the sharing economy is simply the newest form of competition. Adopting new tactics and adjusting your business will better serve the wants of your customers.
I believe the sharing economy is overall beneficial. What we’ve seen so far is a more close-knit community, with a sense of trust and assurance. What was once unheard of a few years back; renting out services, items, or space, is now an adopting norm. Creating employment for retirees, an additional means of income for those already employed, and allowing job flexibility, means those who are working, truly want to work. The sharing economy may bring fear, uncertainty and doubt to those who don't understand it, but in contrast, take a look at what it has already done to create jobs, create trust and create opportunity.
