Uber – The Surge-Story of Success
Looking back at 2009, a flurry of users started to download an application that looked like nothing before. Little did they realize that they were a part of a revolution that was going to take over the Transportation system. Uber had marked its presence in the form of an app on the iOS app. Today, it stands at a staggering $70 billion valuation. It operates across more than 700 cities spread over 70 different countries. It has exhibited prominence in the field of on-demand, location-based transportation.
However, nothing comes close to showcasing the success of Uber more and how mainstream the phrase ‘Let’s book an Uber’ has become. Uber was not a service or a company. It was becoming a habit and a lifestyle!
The Growth of Ride-Hailing
It will remain a constant question if Uber contributed to the success of ride-hailing or if the success of ride-hailing was responsible for Uber been what it is today. However, it cannot be denied that the ride-hailing market is growing steadily and is expected to cross the $200 billion mark in the market-value by 2020.
The fact that Uber is present in so many countries, and that many competitors exist parallel to Uber show that there is a market still right, waiting to be conquered. This gives a promising opportunity for Aspiring entrepreneurs to create a business of taxi booking, and the availability of Uber clones only makes it faster and easier.
Replicating Uber – Not Only In Business Model But Also In Success
There is no question that essential technology is available to create an app like Uber. However, the success of Uber does not lie in the app alone. There are a lot of factors that have gone into shaping the leviathan that Uber is right now. Let us look at the aspects that contributed to the success of Uber – the learnings that will help you script your story of success.
Going Glocal (Global+Local)
The portmanteau sounds like an oxymoron but it will be good to learn its implications in business. Uber might be headquartered in San Francisco. However, it brings a very local feel to the business. The availability of the app and the services in local languages ensures that the domestic appeal is taken care of. This local flavor extends into the promotions as well. It might have been observed that Uber effectively used the Indian Cricketer Virat Kohli to promote its brand during the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup.
Focus On Customers & Customers
When it comes to any aggregating service, there are two sets of customers. One of them is the set that avails the service and the other is the one that provides the service. One should not be forgotten favoring the other. Uber has addressed this issue by looking at both customers and drivers. We need not even talk about complex things that establish equal importance. The simple fact that a review and rating system is available for drivers to rate their passengers is completing enough to tell you that Uber lays a lot of emphasis on driver happiness.
Give Control – Make Customers Feel Empowered
The era of baby boomers is gone. Today, it is the time for millennials and they alone drive the business. It is important for any business to understand the psychology of millennials. They like to stay in control and should be given an illusion that they are empowered to command and call the shots. Uber capitalized on this mindset by giving these people the power to book a cab and asked the driver to come to their location instead of them going to the taxi stand to take a service at the mercy of the drivers.
Take Your Engagement Beyond Utility
It is true that Uber provides nothing more than transportation from point A to point B. However, Uber does not stop with this service alone. There are possibilities to explore better business opportunities and better engagement by bringing in entertainment options within the cab. This can include but is not limited to on-demand videos and even cross-selling of other Uber services like UberEats. This ensures that your app does not confine itself to just one service. It also gives an opportunity for you to stay connected with the passenger when they are in a cab that you have facilitated for them.
Know The ‘Premium-Sensitive’ Areas
It might have been observed that Uber has multiple segments of services like Uber Prime, Uber X, and Uber Go. There are even premium services like Uber Lux and Uber Premier. However, Uber does not compromise on the quality of services. This means that Uber ensures that the car is clean and the driver is safer, irrespective of the service that the passengers are taking. It could be acceptable if there are certain services like ad-free videos that are made available to premium users. However, letting the affected by money is detrimental to the success of the business.
Create A Feedback Mechanism… For Everyone
A company can innovate a product only based on how customers feel about it. This includes but is not limited to the people who take your brand to other prospective customers. It is for this reason that you will need to have a reporting system that will ensure continuous feedback. Uber takes this very seriously. That is why it has incorporated a feedback mechanism for both users and drivers where they can mutually rate each other.
Be Uncompromising On Security
Security has been an ongoing concern for all cab services. Uber has brought in a few aspects that will make the passengers feel relatively secure. They have introduced a meticulous scrutinization process for the drivers with background checks. There is also a panic button that can help users call for assistance in case of any misbehavior by the driver or co-passenger.
Be Intuitive & Simple
Although there is a lot of intricacies and complexity that go into creating an app like Uber, the company has made the user interface of the app quite simple. It has been observed that both users and drivers do not have any problem in adopting this app. The user interface has to be intuitive, navigable and creamy, so it can be universally used. Kind of takes it back to the first point that we discussed it doesn’t it?
Conclusion
Replicating the success of Uber is not just about the app. It is about understanding every facet of this business of ride-hailing. In all of this, you do not have to worry about the technology if you are creating an app like Uber. The Uber clone scripts that are made available to you by AppDupe will ensure that you do not spend a lot of time and money in creating the app. Our customizability feature also helps you to garnish the app with your own brand and its flavors.
