The Campaign

We reconnected riders with Uber via data visualisation of their riding patterns, creating simple yet personal story about how they moved through 2016. We visualised 1,020 contextual data points, from locations and trip-lengths to city-specific references. We overlaid this data with contextual and local cultural nuances for events like Ramadan, Chinese New Year and Formula One Grand Prix - turning mundane details into an engaging narative. Each rider’s look at 2016 ends with a personalised calling card and 'Rider type' for them to share on social media.

Creative Execution

Given the pilot nature of the project, we started small, targeting five cities. Knowing that the majority of our riders would access Year With Uber from their mobile phones, and on limited prepaid data packages, we worked hard to keep the experience light and sleek so data bandwidth for our riders was minimised without reducing the entertaining, immersive experience. Using WebGL, we made sure the most relevant and interesting facts for each rider were pulled from 1,020 data points on the fly, making each rider’s experience uniquely personal. We used data to connect with and customise each rider’s journey, turning statistics into engaging experiences. We also drew largely on our owned media channels to drive traffic to the site: Existing riders’ email database, social platforms (Facebook, Twitter) and in-app cards. Shared social posts were key in organically spreading the word. This ‘first-of-its-kind’ project was successfully turned around in just 8 weeks.

What started out as a pilot in 5 cities garnered interest across 195 countries. The campaign gained traction in media, earning coverage across 48 publications (key mentions include Mashable, Mumbrella, and The Drum), resulting in 525M earned PR impressions. #yearwithuber also top-trended on Twitter for 19 hours without spend. Engagement was strong, exceeding expectations. In the first week alone, we saw 974,849 site visits - 75% of which were accessed through mobile devices. Over 16,000 custom visualisations were shared socially, resulting in 4,096,839 Earned Social Impressions. 115,296 individual experiences were completed in the first 4 weeks, with an average dwell time of 1.08 minutes. The response was overwhelmingly positive. 55% of users said they intend to ride more frequently. Many voiced their love and enthusiasm online: “The Night Rider! wtf Uber even knows my days better than my ex(es) #yearwithuber” “Thank you @Uber for always getting me home safe #yearwithuber”

We selected 5 key cities in the heart of Southeast Asia - Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Manila, and Bangkok - all cultural centres with a mobile population, high smartphone ownership and strong market penetration by Uber. But more importantly, all 5 cities have the same prevailing issue – a highly commoditised perception of Uber. While we set out to target all Uber riders, our primary audience were those who had made multiple trips using the app in 2016. We tapped into the rider’s trip history to customise the experience to the user, while keeping the story open enough to accommodate each market’s cultural nuances. True to the Uber app itself, we brought their real-world actions to life with a digital experience reflecting their year’s rides.