The Zipcar car rental app makes it easier to take a trip than ever before. You can use the app to find a car, book a trip and manage your account. Download it in the App Store or on Google Play and see the benefits of the mobile app for yourself.

When you hold your Zipcard to the windshield transponder box, it reads the RFID chip and sends a message to the telematics system. (Fun fact: these transponder boxes are Zipcar-designed and built.)

By using Zipcar, our members cut their carbon footprint by up to 1,600 lbs. per year and save about $784/month on average compared to car owners.

Zipcars aren't often checked for cleanliness or gas in between renters (they ask that you keep a quarter-tank at all times.) That can be a downside compared with standard car rentals. Zipcar customers fuel up using a gas card that's stored in each car.

Although Zipcar's 760,000 members account impressively for nearly half of global car-sharing members, the company has never turned an annual profit since its founding in 2000.

Apply online with a valid driver's license. Most people are approved instantly and can book a trip within minutes, but if there's a reason for delay, we'll email you. As soon as you're approved, you can book Zipcars by the hour or day and use our app to unlock and lock during your trip.

Zipcar, the company I co-founded, qualifies as a disruptive innovation because it created a whole new market: demand for cars rented by the hour (as well as by the day). For us, applying technology in a totally new way - to reserve and open the cars - was a key enabler of this new market segment.

All members are able to access Zipcars in areas of poor or no cellular reception. All of our US vehicles have Bluetooth® technology which allows you to lock, unlock, start, and end trips on all Zipcars from the iPhone® or Android™ app.

Millennials The Zipcar membership base ranges in age from 18 to 80s; however, Millennials are an important segment for Zipcar, comprising more than half of all members.

Zipcar became a car rental company that was about not just owning cars but also providing the driving experience to members. Fulfilling consumer needs by providing reliable and convenient rides to urban dwellers became the second pillar that drove this company to success.

5 Keys to Zipcar's Success

• Encourage feedback. Word-of-mouth promotion is vital to Zipcar's membership-based business, so the company encourages customer input.
• Keep it simple.
• Invest in technology.
• Brand with personality.
• Go where your competition won't.