Malaysian Media Awards Winners Showcase





2015 | |

Stand By X

Advertiser: Uber Malaysia
Brand: Uber X
Creative Agency: -
Credits: -

The Challenge
Uber, a social-media driven taxi service, saw spiking demand. Post the launch of its more affordable service, Uber X, media coverage was enviable, translating into passengers and advocacy. Uber X had to deliver safety, quality and good value. Hence it needed the right drivers. The brand turned to the agency to help solve this problem.

Insight, Strategy and the Idea
INSIGHTS: We discovered Uber fans are millennials who felt they deserved a service like Uber X. A generation outspoken in their opinions, their desire for entrepreneurship and freedom is strong. They also believe it’s essential to support causes beneficial to communities. STRATEGY: To get millennials to act on their beliefs, we focused on enabling them to start their own small business, becoming entrepreneurs. The core idea was to creatively disguise a typical B2B partner recruitment program into a channel activation and engagement exercise. Campaign was called ‘Stand By X’ mirroring “support a cause” campaigns. A dual-phased approach started with recruiting Uber Partners as Brand Ambassadors who in turn competed to recruit Uber X Drivers. We would use Activated Conversations, rather than traditional advertising, to create interest.

Media Execution
We activated conversations, getting university students interviewed and officially appointed as brand ambassadors. 4 teams spread out, covering key zones of Klang Valley. Each team was briefed with recruitment strategies, target profiles and supplied with branding materials. Teams took to the streets, for 2 weeks. They engaged young people with #StandByX, got prospective driver signups and spread Uber Love via social media. We targeted urban areas with high concentration of millennials.

Results and Effectiveness
16 brand ambassadors appointed. 400+ potential driver signups. 500+ social media mentions, worth RM 20,000+ in earned media. ROI 7 times the investment. We had discovered quality partners to help engage consumers and influence opinions. Strategy now continuously used by Uber X, shared in other global markets.