User:RydeCarpool/sandbox

Ryde Carpool by Ryde Technologies, Inc. is an American carpool marketplace that matches college students traveling in the same direction. They offer a closed carpool network for students, parents, and universities.

The Beginning
Ryde Carpool was founded by Johnny Morris, Josh Wong, and Emily Gavrilenko, in 2022, during their time at California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo. The trio used their university Facebook rideshare group to find rides back home to the Bay Area throughout their years at school.

Launch
Ryde Carpool launched a squeeze page in January 2022 and their product launch was two months later to their peers at California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo. The team focused on guerilla marketing strategies to gain traction on campus, but they also advertised through Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Tik Tok in order to convert students and parents.

How It Works
Ryde Carpool is free to browse and join, but users must be actively enrolled in college with a valid .edu to access specific product features such as profile viewing, booking, inviting, and messaging. The team believed in the importance of matching users based on trip criteria and not campus affiliation so they could increase the liquidity of rides.