Just how far will we go to test out interesting user experiences? The answer: many, many miles. At least that’s how far our Interactive Director Peter Björknäs went when he spent a day in Boston as a driver for Uber, the much-hyped Internet-based service aiming to upend the taxi business. In a nutshell, Uber connects regular drivers like you or Peter (who undergo a screening process) with potential customers who use their Uber app to flag down a ride. If your car is closest to a waiting passenger, your Uber app will alert you and you’ll have a short window of time to accept the assignment.
Peter’s verdict on the user experience…
He was impressed by the attention to detail. From the communications he received from the company to the interface of the app itself (now in its 2nd generation), Peter felt that “Uber thought of everything. It works as advertised from both customer and driver perspectives.” In particular, Peter liked Uber’s “coaching” emails. Some inform drivers about peak times to get fares as well as area events that could lead to an uptick in business. Others provide stats that show how you stack up against top-performing drivers. All are designed to keep Uber’s drivers driving – as much as possible. Of course, Peter did have a couple of nits, which were spot-on. In fact, one of them – the app’s lack of turn-by-turn navigation to find a rider’s pickup location – was fixed by Uber shortly after Peter’s test drive.
The customer verdict on Peter’s driving skill…
In case you’re curious, Peter received a very fine 4.83 rating (out of 5). He even impressed one passenger by delivering a quintessential part of the cabbie experience – a foreign accent (Swedish)! Lucky for us, Peter is putting aside a career as an Uber driver (for now) to stay on as our Interactive Director. Phew!
See what they have to say