Inside the Ola vs Uber marketing war zone

As Ola and Uber’s marketing war gets aggressive, we take a closer look at their brand expansion strategies aimed at new and existing markets

e4m by Madhuwanti Saha
Published: Dec 16, 2015 8:58 AM  | 5 min read
Inside the Ola vs Uber marketing war zone

Taxi aggregator service Ola and Uber have changed the landscape of cab service in India with the former accounting for 80 per cent of country’s ride share market till 2014 end, while San Francisco-based Uber accounts for 25-35 per cent share according to a recent report by brokerage India Infoline.

Brand positioning

From its inception Uber banks itself as a premium service where the user is paying an affordable price for the experience of travelling in luxury cars, whereas Ola always focussed on getting more cars, taxis, and auto-rickshaws on their platform and more riders to use their services. But the lines are increasingly getting blurred with the launch of Ola’s business class service called Ola Prime.

In May both taxi aggregators launched their ride sharing verticals called Ola Share and uberPOOL. With these, users can now share cab rides with others heading to the same destination or in the same direction. Uber even ventured into auto rickshaw category in Delhi but had to suspend its operation after seven months. In March Ola introduced Ola Cafe, a food delivery facility via its app. The model is similar to uberFRESH service in the US and uberEATS in Spain. Uber has run promotions around food delivery in India with uberGOURMET, a gourmet meal service curated by celebrity chefs.

Marketing war continues

It took Ola four years to come out with its nationwide (multi-channel) campaign titled ‘Chalo Niklo’ by Happy Creative Services, which aimed to position Ola as the go-to transport platform of choice for immediate and spontaneous city travel needs, across cabs, autos and taxis. Before this, it made good use of Facebook’s Marketing platform in October ’14. Facebook offered Ola a captive audience in terms of the number of mobile users who could be used to promote their app. Facebook’s plethora of ad formats were utilised to reach out to specific demographics. Link ads in the News Feed and right column brought people to its website. Then there were mobile app ads which drove people directly to Ola’s mobile app. In just five weeks, from 5 January to 9 February 2015, the Facebook ads strategy helped Ola increase its customer acquisition rate by three times and brand-related online searches by four times, while sales increased by 60 per cent.

Uber on the other hand banks on experiential marketing. For instance, they rolled out their service with ‘Rider Zero’ campaign, where they roped in celebrities from every city to try out Uber’s service for the first time. In this manner they reached out to millions of followers, since the celebrities used Twitter to create a significant buzz around the service. Then they tried referral marketing by targeting the corporates (titled ‘Office Heroes’), where for every colleague you refer, Uber promised credits worth Rs 600 and Rs 10,000. This was followed by festival marketing, launch of new cars and expansion to other cities. But its business was disrupted after one of its drivers was involved in an assault case in the capital last year. 

Despite the obstacle, Uber started looking at different alternatives like tie-ups with Zomato, Paytm and BookMyShow apps which worked in its favour. Its partnership with Mini Cooper gave its users a 15 minute free ride using their app. Uber with its experiments and tie-ups claims to grow at the same pace as Ola, which stands at 40 per cent month-on-month in India, and will clock more than one million daily rides by March 31, 2016.

Ola is increasingly focusing on innovative marketing to stay ahead of the competition. Recently it tied up with Myntra  to flag off their ‘LookGood Express’  across metros, offering a free makeover curated by personal style advisors to users of the Ola app.

Celebrity engagement

Leveraging the power of celebrities, both brands implemented efficient communication campaigns to become the talking point on social media platform like Facebook and Twitter. For instance, this September Ola announced a major revamp of its business-class offering (Ola Prime) in Bangalore, where select customers will be picked up by celebrities like F1 racer Narain Karthikeyan and former model Milind Soman.

Uber gave out VIP passes and an on-demand chopper ride with DJ Hardwell to his concert recently. It has also teamed up with the premier IPTL (International Premier Tennis League) offering an opportunity for Uber riders to meet tennis stars like Rafael Nadal, Sania Mirza, Rohan Bopanna and Agnieszka Radwanska.

Expansion plans

The competition is just about to intensify with Ola closing a funding round of $500 million recently. It plans to enter new markets and introduce new services like motorcycle taxis and shuttle bus service. It’s India’s third most valuable venture-backed startup after e-tailer Flipkart and Snapdeal, functioning across 102 cities across India. Uber is catching up fast with its aggressive expansion into newer cities with investment plans of $1 billion in India in the next nine months. In August Tata Group's private equity arm Tata Opportunities Fund invested around $80-100 million on this taxi hailing app, which currently operates in 22 cities.

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E4M Our strategy is to target younger audiences through Sports: Rajiv Dubey, Dabur

The Head of Media at Dabur India spoke exclusively to exchange4media on the World Cup, associating with Indian Idol, the company’s digital spending and much more

e4m by e4m Staff
Published: Oct 27, 2023 6:15 PM  | 1 min read
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With quirky campaigns, memes and moment marketing, timed with the ongoing World Cup and particularly the India-Pakistan matches, Dabur India has got considerable consumer attention for its popular brands – Red Paste, Cool King Hair Oil, Chyawanprash, Dabur Vita and the recently launched Bae Fresh Gel toothpaste.

The 140-year-old company is going big on key sporting events, World Television Premiere (WTP) movies and reality shows. It is now gearing up to become the title sponsor of popular talent show ‘Indian Idol’ on Sony TV for the first time, shared Rajiv Dubey, who leads the media strategy at Dabur.

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Swapan Seth's new book 'COOL' is out

The book is a reflection of the author's 'eclectic taste across categories'

e4m by e4m Staff
Published: Oct 27, 2023 6:07 PM  | 1 min read
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Advertising professional and art collector Swapan Seth has announced the launch of his new book COOL. The book is described as "a ready reckoner to the hip and the happening, of the known and the very unknown."

The book is a reflection of the author's "eclectic taste across categories: from boltholes to exotic hideaways."

COOL has been published by Simon & Schuster India and is available on Amazon.

Seth is an ad veteran with a long and illustrious career in the industry. He became the youngest-ever Creative Director at Clarion at age 24. He was VP at 26 at Trikaya Grey. Two years later, he started his agency Equus.

He writes for publications such as The Economic Times, Hindustan Times and India Today. This is his second book and he has previously published THIS IS ALL I HAVE TO SAY.

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Disney Star signs 9 sponsors for Asia Cup PAK

Charged by Thums Up, Nerolac Paint+, Amazon Pay, Jindal Panther, My11Circle, MRF, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5, Wild Stone and Thums Up come on board

e4m by exchange4media Staff
Published: Aug 26, 2023 11:48 AM  | 1 min read
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e4m Staff Disney Star has signed nine broadcast and digital streaming sponsors for the upcoming Asia Cup.

Charged by Thums Up, Nerolac Paint+, Amazon Pay, Jindal Panther, My11Circle, MRF, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5, Wild Stone and Thums Up have come on board for the upcoming tournament.
As reported earlier by exchange4media, Disney Star has sought Rs 26 crore for the co-presenting sponsorship on TV and Rs 30 crore for Disney+ Hotstar.

According to industry sources, the associate sponsorship on Star Sports has been priced at Rs 19.66 crore, whereas for the ‘powered by’ sponsorship on Disney+ Hotstar, the broadcaster is seeking Rs 18 crore.

As per the information available with exchange4media, Disney+ Hotstar has three sponsorship tiers-- co-presenting (Rs 30 crore), powered by (Rs 18 crore) and associate sponsorship (Rs 12 crore). The broadcaster is offering an estimated reach of 120-140 million for co-presenting sponsors, 90-100 million for powered by and 60-70 million for associate sponsorship.

A spot buy for 10 seconds has been priced at Rs 25 lakh for the India vs Pakistan matches, while for the non-India matches, the ad rate for 10 second is Rs 2.3 lakh. The India matches plus the final for ODIs has been priced at Rs 17 lakh per 10 seconds.

Asia Cup is scheduled to be held from 30 August, 2023, to September 17, 2023.

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Sorted 360 wins creative & social media mandate of Reliance Mall

The agency will manage offline and online campaigns for Reliance Mall

e4m by exchange4media Staff
Published: Aug 26, 2023 10:54 AM  | 1 min read
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Sorted 360, an integrated creative and social media agency, has won the mandate to providing brand solutions for Reliance Malls across India.

“Sorted 360 is set to enhance Reliance Malls' market presence with their unparalleled creative prowess and strategic thinking,” read a press release.

“Sorted 360's commitment to pushing the boundaries of creative communication aligns perfectly with Reliance Malls' ethos. With a pan-India presence spanning across 19 cities and growing, Reliance Malls has consistently captivated customers by offering an array of Reliance brands and third-party fashion & lifestyle brands. The mall has established an unparalleled connection with its patrons through superior quality, a remarkable value proposition, and an unmatched shopping experience,” it read further.

"We are thrilled to welcome Sorted 360 as our trusted partner in advancing our brand presence across the nation," said the Head of Marketing at Relaice Malls. "Their proven expertise in retail, shopping center management, and innovative creative strategies make them the perfect fit for our vision."

"Partnering with Reliance Malls is a testament to our commitment to shaping extraordinary brand experiences," remarked Prerana Anatharam, Co-founder of Sorted 360. "We are excited to leverage our strategic and creative acumen to further elevate Reliance Malls as the epitome of convenience, choice, and excellence."

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e4m by exchange4media Staff
Published: Aug 25, 2023 4:39 PM  | 1 min read

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e4m by exchange4media Staff
Published: Aug 25, 2023 4:38 PM  | 1 min read

KlugKlug onboards Hemang Mehta as Country Manager for Indias

Mehta was most recently Head of Agency Relationships at Network 18 Media & Investments

e4m by exchange4media Staff
Published: Aug 24, 2023 3:35 PM  | 1 min read
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KlugKlug has appointed Hemang Mehta as its Country Manager for India.

Mehta will play a pivotal role in driving KlugKlug's growth and expansion within the Indian market and be responsible for Sales & GTM Strategy

Prior to that, he has also represented organisations like Exponential (now VDX.tv), India Today Digital and Rediff.com. His expertise spans various domains including digital media sales, mobile marketing, media planning, and buying, social media marketing, and more.

Hemang Mehta expressed his enthusiasm about joining KlugKlug, saying, "I am thrilled to be a part of KlugKlug, a forward-thinking platform that is reshaping the influencer marketing landscape. As much as I look forward to collaborating with the exuberant team at KlugKlug, I am super excited to interact with the brands to deliver powerful data-backed Influencer solutions that will guarantee business outcomes."

Commenting on the appointment, Kalyan Kumar, Co-Founder and CEO of KlugKlug, stated, "We are excited to welcome Hemang Mehta to our team as the Country Manager for India. His extensive experience in digital media sales and marketing will be instrumental in driving our efforts to provide influencer marketing solutions to our clients. We believe Hemang's leadership will be key in scaling our operations and expanding our reach within the Indian market."

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