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Even if you’ve never been to LA, everyone has the image in their mind. Lane after lane, mile after mile of big, gas guzzling vehicles grumbling alone like wallflowers at a high school dance. A grey fog of smog hangs above as stationary as the cars and the drivers sit inside alone, fuming for hours on their way in and out of the city. Or, singing by themselves with the windows up.

If there was a starker image more in contrast with the sharing economy, I’d like to see it.

Car-sharing landing page images always contrast the most - it’s usually a group of relatively young, mid-20s to 30s gender balanced bunch laughing their assess of together driving down a forested road with every seat filled. The idea is that they have never met and are going somewhere together. Are they happy because they’re sharing a joke? or because they’re saving the environment, money, car performance, or the world? Could it be they’re singing together?

The sharing economy began with sharing apartments - but it’s ridesharing where collaborative consumption is ensuring users get the most out of their assets and truly contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and save money.

So what is ride-sharing? Like the sharing economy itself, definitions are fluid and stick about as well as sand to a wall. Most people will immediately think Uber, or Lyft. However, the experts (who are few and far between) would probably not qualify these companies as ride-sharing, but rather “ride-sourcing.” The likes of these companies, Haxi and Sidecar included, are primarily commercial. The driver and the passenger do not share a destination and the relationship is an instantaneous, primarily commercial one. We are not arguing they are not part of the sharing economy, afterall, people are getting the most out of their car and their wallet - but they are not ride-sharing.

So if it’s not uber or lyft, what is ride-sharing? Think carpooling. Most of us have parents or friends who arranged to travel to work together, probably from the suburbs, into the city. In all likelihood it was coworkers or people from the same neighbourhood sharing an origin and destination. What’s changed is that the advent of social media and online marketplaces have allowed people who don’t know each or to share rides. They are sharing long distance drives, from Paris to Berlin for a concert. As more and more people are working from home and going to cities once or twice a week for work, they’re sharing one-offs in and out of town. They’re of course carpooling - because fewer people are choosing to, or are unable to, own cars.

Pioneers in the ride-sharing space are united by a similar mission: That the journey is as important as the destination. In the United States, Tripda is making ride-sharing accessible for everyone by reducing barriers and ensuring drivers and passengers trust one another. With 20 million users, BlaBlaCar in Europe is famous for doing its best to make sure everyone under the same roof gets along, pairing chatterboxes with chatterboxes and the silent types with the, not so chatty. In the UK, GoCarShare and Carpooling are cracking a tougher British market (it just ain’t that big) by focusing on a younger demographic and niche markets, such as students and football fans.

Ride-sharing is a policy area being taken seriously by governments interested in increasing incomes, reducing congestion and combating greenhouse gas emissions. However, the space continues to face challenges by legislators and users alike. Insurance providers are only now beginning to grasp the potential of this new market, whilst governments are still dithering about possible new taxation avenues and managing disruption to conventional services. There’s also that pesky issue of trust between drivers and passengers.

Ride-sourcing is a touchy subject for governments and businesses - it’s future in some cities is still a matter of debate at the moment. Ride-sharing, on the other hand, appears to be taking the quiet, back road to success as more and more like-minded travellers opt to save money, meet friends and cut down on carbon.

Start ride-sharing and stop singing alone (if you dare).

We’re thrilled to welcome three new, diverse and creative marketplaces to the eRated family of partners. It’s always a pleasure for us to work with the passionate staff of marketplaces all over the world. Their passion for their products or services, and people who use and share them, is infectious. Helping marketplace teams is what gets us up in the morning and keeps us up at night. Here’s a bit about our new friends!

If there’s one thing everyone in London needs - it’s space. London is one of the most crowded places in the world and, in the 21st century, we all have a lot of stuff. However, some of us have more space than others. Storemates is a marketplace driven toward bringing these two groups together - people who have stuff and people who have space. Storemates lets folks who have additional space rent it out to people who need to stash their stuff. They facilitate finding space, arranging a storage agreement and providing secure payment. Whether you’ve been tossed by a landlord or are moving out of town in a hurry, Storemates can sort your stuff quickly and safely. They’re your mates in space.

Based in the United States, eDivv is an online peer to peer bartering marketplace. You can flip fragrances, trade your nail polish and swap your stock of hair product. If there’s one thing we know about millenials, they get bored with the same thing quickly. eDivv lets users who share a passion for beauty and body care indulge one another’s passion while saving money and getting something new. They offer an exceptional depth of product choice for the whole body, including eye cleansing, skin toning and anti-aging. They have more creams than L’oreal and aren’t afraid to share it. On eDivv, women can trade for free on our easy to use bartering platform. Even the guys at eRated smelling better thanks to this great marketplace.

Relendo is a Spanish community marketplace that let’s users rent everything from sporting goods like a brand new kayak or a skill saw for backyard jobs. Relendo is a marketplace at the cutting edge of the sharing economy. They know that everyone has something they’re not using that may be useful to someone else. Need a great camera for a day out in the woods? What about a pair of binoculars to take out with you as well? You may only have time to do this a couple of weekends per year, so why spend £1000.00 on new equipment when you can rent everything you need from a guy down the street for £25.00? The satisfaction you get is in the day out, not in owning more stuff. The renter gets money and, in some cases, they will rent out their stuff to the point that it pays for itself. The sharing economy is an amazing place and Relendo let’s you take full advantage of it. So why not visit their marketplace before your next Spanish holiday?

Three marketplaces in three countries doing completely different things, but with one thing in common. They’re using erated to help their users get the most out of their reputation in their marketplaces. Using eRated, they’re also building a community of trust that generates more revenue for them and their users.

Keep up the good work!