Three years in the past, I wrote concerning the Amazonification of Uber, an evolution of the transportation firm right into a closed enterprise loop that feeds prospects again into different Uber channels. On the time, the main focus was on how Uber creates buyer stickiness by, for instance, actively cross-selling meals supply prospects into grocery, and grocery into alcohol, after which alcohol again into mobility.
As we speak, Uber seems to be shifting past its deal with transportation and dealing to turn out to be a handy tremendous app, an aggregator of providers, a daily-use way of life platform with its finest choices tucked behind a paywall.
Working example: Uber this week is launching its first Uber One Member Days, the corporate’s personal model of Amazon’s Prime Day. Prime Day is a two-day buying occasion solely for Amazon Prime members, a consumerist hype fest that leads folks to spend greater than they usually would on materials objects as a result of THE DEALS!
Amazon has seen gross sales rise yearly since launching the occasion in 2015, and final yr, the corporate is estimated to have topped $14 billion in gross sales.
Uber is an extended, great distance away from reaching such scale, however the potential is there given the corporate’s world presence, logistics know-how, and community of drivers – each gig and autonomous.
The primary Uber One Member Day goes from Might 16 to 23 and guarantees tens of 1000’s of offers throughout Uber’s personal product lineup in addition to its numerous retail and hospitality companions.
Uber prospects could have entry to twenty% off Uber Black, 30% off Uber Reserve, and 40% off Uber Consolation. Different offers embrace:
- 3,000 Delta Skymiles factors for individuals who’ve linked their Delta and Uber accounts and brought 10 journeys throughout the week.
- Oura rings reductions.
- $20 off your subsequent Ticketmaster buy in the event you spend $3 on groceries.
- Free meals from virtually each quick meals restaurant, together with a Chipotle burrito, a Dunkin’ Donuts iced espresso, and a ten piece hen nuggets from McDonald’s.
“We wish to create delight for Uber One members,” Sachin Kansal, Uber’s chief product officer, advised TechCrunch. “This needs to be an awesome financial savings interval for them. But additionally for folk who are usually not members proper now, it’s a good way for them to get an introduction into membership as they turn out to be members throughout this era.”
Uber is at all times working to develop its Uber One membership base, which is at round 30 million members right now. Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi stated throughout the firm’s first-quarter earnings name final week that members “are likely to have excessive retention.”
“They spend 3 times greater than non-members, as effectively,” Khosrowshahi stated.
As Uber works to mixture extra partnerships outdoors of meals and grocery supply (simply take a look at its current tie-up with House Depot) and mix these offers with its membership program, the corporate is mirroring Amazon’s evolution. Amazon began as a digital bookseller. Then it started promoting all the pieces. Now it additionally owns the infrastructure for each e-commerce and digital life, whether or not that’s AWS cloud providers or Prime Video.
For a lot of, Amazon is a lifestyle. With Uber One Member Days, the corporate is signaling that it, too, desires that form of ubiquity. And it’s betting that asset-light mobility – not packages delivered in Rivian vans – might be the subsequent spine of digital client tradition.
