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    Uber Emails and how they can improve

    I'm a copywriter and tend to notice when people are screwing up on their email.

    This time I've noticed someone who has room to grow: UBER. 

    Love the service.

    Love the company.

    Meh on the emails.  

    I pulled a big list of the emails Uber has sent me since I signed up for Uber in July 2013 when I needed a looong ride from the Seattle airport to the suburbs:

    Uber email frequency

    Of all these emails, the only inherently interesting emails I really get are when they send my receipt.

    The receipt email is great because it's all about ME!  I even save them in a special expenses folder.

    These receipt emails are inherently helpful to me:

    uber-receipt

     

    But if you take a look at some of the other Uber email marketing attempts, they're not inherently interesting:

    uber-email-5-star

    This email I thought was actually on the higher-end of being interesting, but it fell flat.

    Problems with this email:

    • Doesn't particularly teach you anything useful.
    • There was a chance to tell a good emotional story, but it seemed like someone at Uber "wanted to keep the email short" and cut it off.  It lost all the emotions because it was so short.  (Guy gives ride to another guy to jump-start his car.  BFD).  If there's a great story to tell, don't worry about the length.  Keep it long if necessary to tell a good story.

     

     

    "Ok Neville, how do you KNOW FOR SURE these emails could be better??  You don't know their actual stats....."

     

    I started poking around to see if I could find some "pseudo-stats" from the emails.  Time-and-time again I found results such as this:

    Checkout this "#WomenMoveUs" campaign email:

    uber-women-email

    Ok, that's a noble cause.....but the message is all over the place and not correctly explained.

    But more troubling was that I checked the "psedudo-stats" from a lot of emails like this, and the numbers were surprisingly low for some of them....like the view count on the YouTube video from the email:

    Uber email video count

    That video is 4+ months old and barely has any views for a company on the size of Uber.

    Even if this video was only sent to Uber subscribers in Seattle, this number still seems jokingly-small for how much effort must've been put into that campaign.

     

    So how can we make Uber emails better....and actually get people to use the service more?

    Let's play a simple thought-experiment:

    Let's pretend you have been named Uber's VP of Email Marketing Growth, and you have to get people ACTUALLY READING the Uber emails or else Travis Kalanick will bitch-slap you.

    How would we do this?

    I think the key point is to make Uber's emails inherently interesting.  This means writing about topics such as:

    • Showing alternate uses for Uber people may not have thought of.  This helps ME.

    • Stories of people using Uber in unique and useful ways.  This helps ME think of new ways to use Uber.
    • Cool features customers may not know of.  This helps ME understand the product better.
    • How Uber dramatically improved someone's life.  This gets ME emotionally involved.
    • A case study of how much money someone saved because they take Uber instead of owning a car.  This helps ME make decisions about my vehicle situation.

    It's very tempting to "brag" about how cool your company is, but it's far more effective to show what the services can do for THEM.

    Let's take a couple of examples.

    In the blue boxes below I've made a sample email in the same format Uber currently sends it's emails:

    [[Headline]]

    [[image]]

    [[Text]]

    This email is meant to show the email subscriber some cool ideas for using an Uber Black (they may have never even THOUGHT of using the service for these):

    "Want to roll in style?  Order an Uber Black and get a luxury car picking you up."

    Uber Black Car

    An Uber Black will only cost you 20% more than an UberX, but you get a Black Car (either Mercedes, Jaguar, BMW, or Audi) picking you up.

    An Uber Black car is great for:

    • Date nights.
    • Looking baller at the club.
    • Transporting wedding parties.
    • Picking up VIP guests from the airport in style.

    Next time you want to feel like a million bucks, order yourself an Uber Black.

     

    This email shows some cool uses about Uber XL.  A lot of people may not even know you could carry this many people in an Uber.  This pops the idea into their brain that for their next group outing, everyone could take a single vehicle:

    "Did you know you can take up to 7 people in an Uber XL?"

    Uber XL

    When you've got a group of people going somewhere and don't want to split up, just select "Uber XL" on your app. We'll send a van or SUV capable of taking 7 adults.

    A taxi will normally take only 4 passengers.  But you my friend have FAR more friends than that to shuttle around.

    • Use an Uber XL when going out on the town with a group of friends.
    • Shuttle your big family around on a rainy day.
    • Have tons of bags from shopping?  They'll easily fit in an Uber XL.

    Just select "Uber XL" when calling your Uber, and a big SUV or van will come your way with plenty of room!

     

    This email shows "unique uses" of the service.  Most people think of Uber as only "a car service kind of like a taxi."  So giving real life examples like this of "alternate uses" expands someone's view of what Uber is:

    "Uber helped us move the big stuff!"

    uber-moving

    "All of our friends live in the city and no one has a truck or car big enough to move stuff.

    We only had a couch and a dresser that needed a large van to be moved.  We selected "Uber XL" and got a Honda Odyssey van big enough to fit the couch with no problem!

    The cheapest moving service we could find was $300.......but our Uber XL trip only cost $12!  Thanks Uber!"

    Sincerely,

    Ashlee Tacohm - Happy Uber Rider

     

    This is another "alternate use" email which people may not have even realized.  A large number of teenagers are using Uber with their parents permission, this could bolster more of that use by letting parents know some crucial info:

    "Jason's new ride home from school is Uber"

    uber-bus

    Our oldest son is 15 and part of over 6 different after-school activities.

    Between 3 different kids, we end up shuttling the kids across the city.....and sometimes literally couldn't make some activities.  Thanks to Uber, we sometimes have our 15 year old grab an Uber to wherever he needs to go.

    It's comforting to know that even when swamped with errands for the other kids, he can still safely get where he needs to.

    The best part is that Uber tracks the entire trip for us.  We know where his pickup location was, drop-off point, who the driver is, and the route they took.  As parents this is a must-have for our peace of mind.  We'd never let him take a random taxi.

    Thanks to Uber Jason can be active as he wants.

     

     

    Before these email marketing campaigns, a person signed up to Uber may think of it just in this little circle:

    uber-scope

    .....but after getting a bunch of USEFUL emails from Uber, someone's scope of what the product will be FAR LARGER like this!

    uber-scope-big

     

    Now you don't have to be a genius to figure out that the person who is well-informed of all the cool uses of the product will use it more.  

    Sincerely,

    Neville Medhora

     

    P.S. Comment below with some ways YOU think you could improve the Uber newsletter, I would love to help get them more feedback!

     

     

     


    User Feedback

    Recommended Comments



    Guest Rick

    Posted

    I'm meh on this post.

    I think their emails could be more inspirational than just alt use cases.

    Link to comment
    Guest Grant

    Posted

    Another helpful post. Thanks Neville.

    If Travis Kalanick leaves a comment, send HIM a NevBox!

    Have a great day everyone

    Link to comment
    Guest Shae

    Posted

    I'm honestly starting to wish that all of my professors were copywriters! I just started looking into this field a few weeks ago and so far everything that I've read on the subject, I've enjoyed. You're emails, though, have to be my favorite! It's such a casual way to learn.

    As for the #WomenMoveUs campaign, I think they should have started by telling one woman's story, sort of an example. It's easy to click away from something like that because you're not sure if your woman, wife, mother, or sister, would qualify. Asking for inspiring women and describing an average but inspiring woman will elicit two very different responses .

    I also agree with you on the first ad. The whole story just seemed very mundane by the end.

    Link to comment
    Guest Daniel Gillen

    Posted

    I think they need to feature the drivers a bit more. All we ever hear about in the UK press is how Uber drivers are being exploited, make very little money etc. It puts me off getting an Uber because I don't want an angry/sad driver!

    If they showed some profiles of drivers in my local area with a brief Q&A it would make the service seem more personal and I'd be more likely to use it.

    Link to comment
    Guest Marina

    Posted

    I think Mr. Kalanick now owes you a barrel of beer or so :D
    Link to comment
    Guest Cleaven

    Posted

    That was awesome. Send a Uber Black to take Nana and her Golden Girls to bingo on Tuesday night.
    Link to comment

    You defenitely know how to attract attention Neville, fab emails! :)

    Thanks for the inspiration.

    Cheers,

    Ivy

    Link to comment
    Guest Darren Davis

    Posted

    Great post Nev!

    I actually couldn't agree more and think it's really smart how you approached the different content and expanded what Uber is. I try to do this for Ecommerce clients as the always seem to try to send email deals or boring product emails. Anyways, I like your approach and will be borrowing some of this :-)

    Best,

    Darren

    Link to comment
    Guest Arnaud

    Posted

    Uber ride-sharing is a great way to meet people, especially if you're a new transplant to a city. A friend met his girlfriend this way, true story!

    So an interesting angle could be:

    "New to Paris and want to make friends on your way to work?"

    You just moved to Paris. All your friends are on the other side of the world and you don't know anyone here. Your new job keeps you busy and it's hard to carve out time to meet new people.

    But even if you're swamped with work, you can still meet new people without having to make extra time for it in your daily schedule.

    Just sign up for Uber ride sharing and make use of your daily commute to shoot the breeze with locals. You'd expand your social circle in no time!

    Link to comment
    Guest Josh Skaja

    Posted

    It's funny that Uber is spending so much effort taking over new markets (both new verticals and new cities), and trying to get new customers, but dropping the ball on selling more to their existing ones.
    Link to comment
    Guest Abraão

    Posted

    Well... I think they should take a look at some resources about headlines/subject lines... Maybe I have something around here, I'm not sure: https://copywritingcourse.com/copywriting-headlines-that-sell/

    The thing is that Uber has focused on their high-end service and forgotten a bit about why people want to use it. Right now in Brazil there's a pretty big fight going on with cab drivers and uber drivers because of regulations and all that...

    For me? I felt safer when using Uber... friends of mine have been harassed by cab drivers more than once and one drove off with me still on the door because he didn't have change...

    So taking testimonials from users (not just ratings) would be a good way to go as well.

    Link to comment
    Guest Fernando Labastida

    Posted

    Love these emails Neville. After signing up for the Kopywriting Kourse and going through it all I was sad it ended, but with mind-expanding emails and posts like this Uber one I'm happy again. I especially love this ecamoke because it's not a traditional sales letter, but an example of how to use copywriting to drive loyalty and cross-sell people who have already been customers in the past. This is hugely important because its often so much more difficult to get a new customer, and so many companies waste the valuable opportunity to expand their relationship with their current or previous customers.
    Link to comment
    Guest Leighton

    Posted

    It's shocking how bad Uber's email comms are for a company with its resources.
    Link to comment
    Guest Dustin Snyder

    Posted

    Great information. Already have some ideas that I will put into action today.
    Link to comment
    Guest Elena

    Posted

    This is great! I never used Uber before and wasn't going to because it seemed like an alternative to a taxi cab. In the last 8 years I used taxi twice. But one of your make-over e-mails mentioned that I can get a larger truck or van to move furniture. Now, that's something I need all the time and I had no idea Uber provided this service!
    Link to comment
    Guest Fernando Labastida

    Posted

    Neville, are you going to penalize me because I said "ecamoke" instead of "example"? :-)
    Link to comment
    Guest Chris

    Posted

    Big companies tend to be easy targets, but still a ton of good insights here. Thanks
    Link to comment

    LOL

    Now everyone is frowning at the copywriter/marketing person, going "that Krazy Nev dude totally pwned you, dude/dudette. Like zomg, why don't you take an Uber down to EMBARRASSMENT LAND and have a ride on the EMBARRASSMENT-A-ROUND. Maybe you can meet your 667 YouTube subscribers there."

    Link to comment
    Guest Mateusz

    Posted

    I personally would like to see the following things from Uber emails:

    1) Address the issue of safety - many commenters online, whenever the topic of Uber comes up, point out that it may or may not be safe in terms of the drivers not being licensed drivers (like taxi licenses). There have been a few cases of rape charges and assault and Uber could have a campaign showing that using the service is actually much safer than stopping a cab on the street since the company has all the data of the driver, the route being traveled etc. I think many women would be interested in this.

    2) Provide an X amount of credits to people that would be willing to show how their life has been improved (not just changed) by using the service. I know a person who sold one of the two cars in the family because keeping two cars was more expensive than taking Uber frequently. (cost for the company - tiny)

    Link to comment
    Guest Lenny

    Posted

    This is great Neville.

    One benefit that they could include in their emails is to familiarize people more with hot places near them to discover and visit. Most people don't do local tourism or they don't expand their regular spots for lack of information. This could be an opportunity to have their service fresh in their inbox regularly and, well, a nice call to action to use their cars, or at least mention subtly how many are available, wouldn't hurt.

    I don't have the service here so I trust you'll tell me how that would work for you. Sounds good? :)

    Thanks

    Link to comment
    Guest Don The Idea Guy

    Posted

    great breakdown and suggestions for improvement. I've done some driving for Uber and the emails they send their Drivers are way more interesting than those they send Riders.
    Link to comment
    Guest Lisa

    Posted

    Not shitty. Not shitty at all.

    Thanks, Neville, for another excellent, non-shitty teaching.

    Link to comment
    Guest Matt

    Posted

    Great breakdown. You're kind to say they're not "inherently interesting"...

    Those subject lines could use some life support, too...especially since a bunch of the messages are still unread in your pic at the top.

    The Uber marketing dept. must really like the BS giveaway contests (shopping sprees? SPAM) and subject lines that give away the whole message ("Uber now accepts PayPal..." okay great, got it...next).

    Here are the Neville-inspired subject lines that I would try:

    "Use this flowchart to decide how to get from A to B"

    (inside is a graphic with options like just walk, rickshaw, UberX, Uber XL, space shuttle, etc.)

    "Hot date out of your league? Pick her up in an Uber Black"

    (Who doesn't want to impress their date and look like a baller?)

    "Someone is leaving $100 bills in Ubers"

    (This could actually be a relatively cheap and easy marketing stunt...and better than those shopping spree contests. Just put a few $100 dollar bills randomly into Uber cars for a month).

    Thanks for the education Nev.

    Link to comment
    Guest Dave

    Posted

    "..... and you have to get people ACTUALLY READING the Uber emails or else Travis Kalanick will bitch-slap you."

    Well there is an email idea right there. Wouldn't it be cool for a hipster company like Uber to do a reprise of National Lampoon's classic cover from 1973? The cover had a pic of a border collie (I think) with a gun to its head. Caption read: "If you don't buy this magazine, we'll kill this dog".

    Uber subject line: "Read this email or Travis Kalanick will bitch-slap me".

    Not sure if that's right for Uber *now*. But two years ago that could definitely have worked.

    Link to comment
    Guest Stephen C

    Posted

    I've wondered how copywriting could draw in clients in law, where communication is highly regulated. Showing alternative use cases for additional services is one possibility.
    Link to comment



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