For subscribers in Delhi-NCR, Uber on Wednesday announced the introduction and extension of the WhatsApp to Ride (WA2R) product feature. Both the The 2 businesses announced jointly on Wednesday that Uber customers could hire cabs, auto rickshaws, and motorcycles over WhatsApp in Hindi and English.
This functionality was first shown and evaluated in Lucknow in December last year. Only dwellers of Delhi/NCR will first have accessibility to the function, which goes live this week. Either the Uber app or an authorized Uber chatbot on WhatsApp are available for booking rides. The chatbot will understand both Hindi and English so that it can be used by people from various places.
Based on the number of rides, New Delhi is among Uber’s major towns. The world’s largest ride-sharing company thinks that this alliance will enable it to connect with a fresh audience segment in India. Through inclusion in two languages and the WhatsApp Business Platform, the agreement will increase coverage to Uber’s mobility solutions for a new group of customers.
The WA2R population is pretty young as compared to the usual Uber App subscribers, with approximately 50% of them being under the age of 25, the company discovered in its Lucknow pilot study. The possibility of gaining new users through this relationship is demonstrated by the fact that 33% of the inbounds throughout this trial were from newbies.
Manikandan Thangarathnam, Sr. Director, Mobility and Platforms, Uber in his statement said, “Encouraged by the positive response from our Lucknow pilot, we are excited to roll out the WhatsApp to Ride experience in Delhi NCR. Looking at the needs of the local market, the team also provided Hindi language support while booking a ride through WhatsApp. Making the booking process more interactive with the integration of buttons and go-to actions was one of our top priorities. Future product iterations of WA2R will allow existing users of the Uber app to also book trips through WhatsApp.”
There are three options for WhatsApp users in Delhi NCR to order an Uber. They can click a link to initiate an Uber WhatsApp chat, scan a QR code, or message Uber’s business account number. They will then be asked for the pick-up and drop-off locations, the upfront fare, and the anticipated arrival time of the driver. The same security measures and insurance coverage are available to riders as they are to individuals who directly book trips through the Uber app. At the time of booking, they will be informed of the name and license plate of the driver. They will be able to communicate with the driver in confidence using a disguised phone number and monitor the driver’s whereabouts as they go to the pickup place.
