Challenges
Uber drivers make up the company “Salesforce” yet these critical partners often dual-app (use competitor products), or are underutilized.
Drivers lack understanding of the Uber ecosystem of support programs, earnings potential & incentives.
Opportunities
Increase driver awareness to support programs, incentives and meaningful celebrations of success or achievement.
Offer an intuitive on-boarding into the Uber ecosystem that provides clear pathways to success and rewards.
Output
Research & assess driver affinities, ambiguities, perceptions & aspirations.
Explore and design systems for a dedicated support feature that guides each driver on a linear progression towards greater earnings potential, meaningful new features, and a clear path to premiere status & support programs.
First task was to understand the goals that Uber has for its business as well as drivers. Product & business goals would help shape which questions to frame to capture driver feedback.
After careful product opportunity assessment, it was time to engage directly with a small, diverse sampling of drivers to capture feedback.
Based on the field research, there were clear & consistent opportunities for improvement in services, support and incentives. Drivers offered consistent challenges and aspirations in their field of work.
A clear opportunity existed, with high ROI potential for an intuitive, omnipresent feature to address the challenges and fulfill aspirations.
Feature Proposal 1
Improved Earnings + Bonus Dashboard
Intuitive snapshot of all current bonus incentives in-progress
Clear visualization of the bonus contributing to the driver’s overall weekly earnings
Delightful celebratory messaging when a bonus achievement is made
Feature Proposal 2
Clear, Intuitive Bonus Progress (“Quest”) Experience
Bonus earning achievement system rewards early-on to create behavior
Bonuses “level-up” over time, awarding greater values with higher/advanced milestones
Add dynamic, mini-milestones to respond to engagement and retention opportunities for each driver.
Apply mobile gaming methodology to drive behaviors, mitigate churn & deter from dual-app usage to competition
Offer ‘
Surprise & Delight’ at Quest Milestones
Bonuses awarded to drivers accomplishing their milestones, even when missing milestones by a small margin
Add a more playful and positive “voice” to messaging – Uber Together is encouraging, optimistic and caring, with meaningful messages that resonate with drivers.
Feature Proposal 3
A Tiered, “Expert Driver” Reward Program
Tiered levels now award new features such as boost notifications and exclusive incentives based on experience
Commit and provide reachable incentives, visible from day-1.
Offer fixed & variable cost subsidies (i.e. gas, maintenance & insurance) for “career drivers” at Diamond level**
**Career driver online availability 30 hours/week minimum, retaining 4.90+ avg. star rating
Feature Proposal 4
Opportunity Zone - An Incentive to Retain a High Star Rating
Opportunity Zone notifications available only to Premiere (4.90+ rating) Drivers
Offer Premiere Drivers prime locations that anticipate higher demand (via historical Rider request patterns, high-population events, surging, etc.)
Interactive mobile/desktop prototype available
