It’s safe to say that Uber is among those that changed the ride-hailing service, giving rise to other services with a similar business model. Of course, it has driven a number of pros and cons such as a highly profitable opportunity while increasing time spent in the middle of traffic.
According to traffic think tank TomTom, the world now sees an average of 87 extra minutes spent in the middle of heavy traffic. However, the congestion in the metro, plus the increasing real estate prices in these prime locations, has triggered companies to expand toward other cities. This creates more opportunities for ride-hailing services, especially for locations where Uber and its competitors are not yet firmly rooted in place.
If you’re looking to take advantage of this opportunity, here’s how you can set up your own uber business without shelling too much capital:
1. Understand and customize the business model
For starters, Uber is not a taxi fleet operator or anything like that. It leverages technology to work as a digital aggregator app platform. In this case, Uber connects the taxi drivers looking for passengers with the riding customers looking for a ride from one place to another. Basically, there is an existing demand and there is also an existing supply. Platforms like Uber step into the middle and create an all-in-one location for this part of the market.
It creates a new value for both customers and service providers. First, it’s convenient and on-demand, basically eliminating the need to wait by the roadside for a passing taxi. They can set the pick-up in advance and arrive at the designated time. For the drivers, they no longer need to drive around to look for clients; they just need to wait for a booking and take it if the route works for them. For taxi operators, passengers, and drivers, the platform also usually includes a GPS tracking feature presented in an interactive map that shows where the vehicle is, guides the driver toward the destination. These apps even include real-time updates such as maintenance works or accidents and give an estimated travel time.
In building your own Uber business, remember the existing industry standards and see if you can add something for your own. Most ride-hailing services now include pickup and delivery services, making them more inclusive for other vehicle types. You also have to take into consideration the resources you have and the resources you need. As a tech platform, you can have your own Uber business with or without an actual fleet of taxis. You do, however, need an app to offer your services to others.
2. Build your business plan
This is where things get serious, as your research will be taking a more concrete form with a business plan. In this formal written document, you get to detail everything about your upcoming Uber business–from specifications such as logo and location, to your needed capital, and your plans to achieve your set goals following a specific timeline. Usually, a business plan has the following parts:
- An executive summary that contains everything about your company. It has the mission and vision statement, your planned organizational chart, workflow processes and management strategies, and your location.
- The planned range of products and services. You will outline the rates for your services and whether you are looking to charge additional expenses to the customers, for example, during rush hour. Under this section, you can also start proposing your planned additions as well as your timeline for introducing these new products or services.
- A market analysis is perhaps the most technical part of your business plan. It will detail the existing market conditions such as the target segment and the current market shares. Here you will have to argue the impact that your business will make once it enters the industry. Of course, you have to include ideas on your projected market shares as the years go by.
- Marketing and financial strategies will explain how you plan to gain passengers and raise the funds you need to get started. Your marketing strategy will explain the advertising and marketing strategies you will implement while financial planning for upcoming businesses usually focuses on a fundraising timeline for your Uber business.
Business plans are especially important if you’re planning to raise funds by looking for investors or taking a loan from a bank. Presenting solid arguments in your document could put you in a better position and could help you secure the funds you need to advance. Aside from banks and investment platforms, you can also check out online financial platforms like Giggle Finance that can offer flexible and affordable loans for people in the same industry as you will be.
3. Conduct a beta test and make final improvements
Before you formally launch your own ride-hailing service into the market, it’s better to start with a trial run first, or a soft opening if you will. This way, you can try out your work processes and your app if they actually work against an actual workload. Ideally, you start with people you know–family and friends, colleagues, or regular customers if you have your own vehicles–and try to build a beta testing group that’s diverse to let you have an insight regarding various demographics and to let you gain insights on what will be the distribution of your user base.
Of course, this is an opportunity to learn what works and what doesn’t and to correct them before you formally launch into the market. This is even a chance for you to improve your user interface through the UI and UX of your app.
Conclusion
With the right preparation, you can definitely start your own Uber business that can uniquely meet the needs of your target customer in the area where you will be operating. It will require diligence and a lot of patience in order to get you where you have to be. Lastly, all the tips listed above are just the preparations needed to start, running the business will require even more from you.
Rumzz Bajwa is a digital strategist and content marketer. She enjoys spending time with her family. She loves to go out and experience new moments whenever they came to light. Rumzz discovers satisfaction in investigating new subjects that help to extend her points of view. You can frequently locate her immersed in a good book or out searching for a new experience.
