Driver App Launch
Telling the story of an app built with and for Uber’s drivers
As a designer focused on driver communications, I found myself doing a lot of product marketing campaigns, that would introduce our drivers to new features within the app, and the nuances needed to talk about different features in different markets. After building a strong reputation as a collaborative designer across marketing strategy, brand designers, and product designers, I became the lead designer for product marketing for the new driver app that Uber launched in 2018.
The Problem: How do we tell Uber’s story?
Uber had been working on a new driver app, meant to show Uber’s commitment to serving and partnering with our drivers.
In 2018, Uber had been working to improve its reputation with drivers, and the new app was meant to complement that and prove that we were listening to their needs.
The goal for the global launch was to create a campaign that would build anticipation and tell the story of Uber building this new app with, and for drivers.
However we recognized that driver’s are often skeptical of new features, and certainly a new app entirely. On top of that, Uber’s reputation with drivers had been improving, but we needed to be careful not to overpromise. The marketing needed to feel global and inclusive for drivers and delivery partners, and from a technical perspective, the assets would need to be localized for all markets.
Leading and collaborating
As the lead designer, I was creating all the CRM assets for a multiple phased campaign, and the overall campaign look.
Simultaneously, the marketing team hired an agency to create a few key graphics, the launch video, and consult on the overall campaign. As they were briefed in, I worked closely with one designer from the agency and one product designer to come up with the overall look, feel and the brand tagline. I collaborated with designers from product, to make sure we were accurately telling the driver app’s story, as well as designers from various marketing, product, and global teams, so that all channels had a consistent visual language.
Campaign Visual
As the agency focused more on the launch video, I began creating the various emails needed for the launch. I collaborated with marketing managers and PMMs, both at HQ and internationally, to ensure that all needs were being addressed, regardless of the market.
There were 4 phases:
Prepare: Launching and building the new Driver app with the help of real drivers
Announce: Set the context of the new app with a special announcement from the new Uber CEO
Priming: Prepare and excite drivers for the new app
Introduce: Launch and rollout the brand new app
Final solution
The final campaign used real beta drivers and delivery partners to tell the full story of how we designed and built the new app. We paired lifestyle photography paired with specific hero product features, and intentionally simplified elements of the app UI for quicker user understanding and local scalability.
I created the in-app carousel takeover to 100% of active drivers, the 528 screens needed for the email campaigns (due to 48 languages), and 34 various CRM emails and comms from the entire launch.
Then because I was leading the overall marketing visual and approach, I oversaw other marketing designers to ensure that the design and messaging were consistent and flexible across all channels—paid media, Uber support center visuals, and the Uber.com marketing.
Coming soon launch email
Upgrade now email
In-app carousel at app launch