Analyzing Uber's Market Strategy in Australia: A Research Project

This research project analyzes Uber's market strategy in Australia, including market dynamics, competition, business activities, targeted market, and internal and external factors. The research objective is to understand the insights of the stakeholders of Uber in order to better the existing levels of customer service and the enhance efficiency in dealing with problems as well as problem solving.

INITIATE AND LEAD APPLIED RESEARCH

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Table of content
Project scenario........................................................................................................................... 3
Topic 1: Market strategy overview...............................................................................................3
1.1 Market dynamics analysis..................................................................................................3
1.2 Competition........................................................................................................................ 3
1.3 Business activities undertaken...........................................................................................3
1.4 Targeted market.................................................................................................................4
1.5 Market factors....................................................................................................................4
1.5.1 Internal factors............................................................................................................. 4
1.5.2 External factors............................................................................................................4
Topic 2: Background and role of research...................................................................................6
2.1 Research purpose..............................................................................................................6
2.2 Appropriateness of research..............................................................................................6
2.3 Impact of research.............................................................................................................6
2.4 Barriers to research............................................................................................................6
Topic 3: Objectives...................................................................................................................... 8
3.1 Business objective.............................................................................................................8
3.2 Research objective............................................................................................................. 8
Topic 4: Suggested approach and research target......................................................................9
4.1 Research specific group.....................................................................................................9
4.2 Sample size........................................................................................................................ 9
4.3 Data collection method.......................................................................................................9
4.4 Research design limitation.................................................................................................9
4.5 Research tools and techniques..........................................................................................9
Topic 5: Reporting requirement.................................................................................................10

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Topic 6: Timing.......................................................................................................................... 11
Topic 7: Budget.......................................................................................................................... 12
Topic 8: Conduct research.........................................................................................................13
8.1 Handling data storage and privacy...................................................................................13
8.2 Presentation techniques...................................................................................................13
8.3 Code of conduct and ethics..............................................................................................13
Topic 9: Data analysis and results.............................................................................................14
References................................................................................................................................ 21

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Project scenario
Uber has become the most recognised name in the transport business. They have
revolutionised the entire transport industry with their intuitiveness, innovation and smart
business policies (forbes.com, 2018). The company had started its operations in Australia in the
year 2015. There have been a lot of ups and downs to the company with issues like conflict with
taxi and cab aggregators as well as entry of new competitors in the market. This project will help
to analyse and understand how Uber has been able to maintain its market leader position even
in times of aggressive competition and marketing.
Topic 1: Market strategy overview
1.1 Market dynamics analysis
Uber can be categorised as private organisation which has received massive capital support
from venture capitalists. In order to maintain their business, outreach the company has adopted
a very aggressive business strategy. Australian commuters have been utilising Uber’s services
and have promoting the brand among their social circles (Hirson, 2015). The company is known
for its services as they are efficient, easy and affordable. Services like Uber X have become
popular and with an extensive network dedicated to customer services, the company has
maintained its market position. Hence it is quite logical to analyse the various circumstances in
which the company operates.
1.2 Competition
At present the Australian market is inundated with service providers who are similar to that of
Uber. During the early days of initiation, Uber was mostly competing the local cab aggregators.
However, with increasing impact of globalisation, there has been a rise in companies whose
mode of operation is very similar to Uber (forbes.com, 2018). Companies like India based Ola
cabs, China based DiDi and other entities like Shofer, Taxify, Sheba andGoCatch have been
giving stiff competition to the company. The customers have reaping benefits like affordable
prices but the profitability of the company is susceptible to decline due to ease of market
penetration and low entry.
1.3 Business activities undertaken
Apart from the regular cab services that Uber generally provides, the company has been
involved in other sectors of the transportation industry as well. Uber has been pioneering
services which satisfy the consumer demand for availing personal rides and has been
developing its services in such a way that payments can be done easily. The company has
recently developed a food delivering wing which transports food from restaurants to home.
Since the company has been looking to cater to a huge market, they have also introduced

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logistic services (Dudley, Banister &Schwanen, 2017). The pricing policy is clear and effective.
In order to lure in business clients, the company has also provided Uber Business for managing
the transportation requirements of a company and provides facilities like automated billing,
expenses and reporting,
1.4 Targeted market
A lot of consumer personas have been identified by Uber for targeting the market. They have
targeted individuals aged 18 to 65 who require transportation services to attend social events or
need an alternative to the public transport (Rimmer, 2017). Uber has successfully tapped into
youth market as they provide chauffeured rides to individuals who are intoxicated, underage or
have mandated court order against them which prohibits them from driving a vehicle.
1.5 Market factors
1.5.1 Internal factors
Strength Weaknesses
 Brand recognition
 Quality service
 Largest car fleet
 Company has high valuation
 Easily imitable business model
 Strained relations between the drivers
and the company
 Business model is very unpredictable
 Concern for user data privacy
Opportunities Threats
 Ease of accessibility and affordability
in comparison to traditional cab
services.
 Services in sub-urban regions
 Option to add new services to the
revenue model.
 Low profit margin
 Conflict with chauffeurs
 Increase in competition
 Aggressive growth can lead to more
crisis situations.
Table 1: SWOT analysis of Uber
(Source: McRostie & Regan, 2017)
1.5.2 External factors
Political Regulation of Uber is a very debated topic
and this is because the company has been
disrupting the business of the traditional cab

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aggregators. Political factors have a
significant impact on Uber.
Economic Uber has been affecting the economy rather
that being affected by the economy itself. The
company has made cab service affordable
and made chauffeuring a profitable business.
Economic factors moderately affect the
company.
Social A business needs to have a sociable front
which matches the brand identity of the
company. The organisation is susceptible to a
range of legal issues ranging from customer
service to competition to human resource
related aspects.
Technological Uber had pioneered the platform for
connecting the users and service providers.
Environmental The organisation has been dabbling with
electric vehicle as greener alternative to fossil
fuel vehicles.
Legal The company has been involved in a lot of
legal complexities because the traditional
laws are not exactly applicable to the working
of the organisation.
Table 2: PESTEL analysis of Uber
(Source: Boyle & Peterson, 2015)

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Topic 2: Background and role of research
2.1 Research purpose
This research has been undertaken for analysing the ability of Uber to make profit in the current
market scenario in Australia. In order to shed light on the various issues that require immediate
attention of Uber’s administration so that the organisation run into losses. In order to conduct an
unbiased research, the people taking part in the research are allowed to choose their select
their responses autonomously and anonymously (Harris, 2015). This unbiasedness will help the
organisation to comprehend the key issues that the company may be facing. The project will be
helpful in understanding the impact of brand image on the consumers in the market.
2.2 Appropriateness of research
As already mentioned, Uber has been under a lot of pressure due to entry of several domestic
as well as international competitors who have a similar business ideology and structure (Cleat,
2017). It is also worth mentioning that Uber has been facing heavy criticism due to its ethical
violations. The viewpoint of the consumer is very necessary and to gain the insight the project
will be conducted. Understanding the consumer psyche will help the business organisation to
undertake strategies that will help in not only maintaining the competitive leadership but will also
improve internal and external relationships that will help in improving brand image of Uber.
2.3 Impact of research
The research should have at least some impact on functions of Uber like customer service and
Chauffeur/Driver relations. The insights of the market can be obtained by carefully evaluating
and analysing the response of the individuals partaking the research. This in turn will help to
evaluate the strategies in place which can be used for framing new goals, targets and tactics
(Milar, 2017). This is a necessary step that should be taken by the administration with the hope
of consolidating the advantage in competitive market that is held by the company. This may
result in introduction of new services, modification of existing ones and obliteration of the
decadent ones.
2.4 Barriers to research
Perhaps the most common and disruptive research barrier lack of support from the
organisation’s administration. The support required for conducting such a research requires
sufficient incentives, adequate funding, practical applications of the research, equality in
adopting or implementing the project (Wilson, 2016). The other infuriating barrier that is
commonly faced in research is lack of sufficient evidence and data. This may be further
complicated by strained dynamics of the research team along with insufficient mentoring and

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guidance, Plagiarism needs to be minimised and the project should adhere to Right to Privacy
and Data Protection Act.

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Topic 3: Objectives
3.1 Business objective
Uber has a very well-definedobjective to continue progressing in the Australian market. They
want productivity, quality and measurability. Uber works with a target of increasing their profit
percentage which can be only achieved by providing quality services at affordable prices. As the
company grows in needs to keep track of its growth percentage and this is why Uber has been
adapting measurable revenue model which helps in decision making process (Smith &
McCormick, 2019). Uber also has to invest a significant chunk of their fortune to develop the
customer service infrastructure to support the fleet of huge number of cars. They will also try to
recruit chauffeurs thus helping in creating job opportunities.
3.2 Research objective
The research objective is to understand the insights of the stakeholders of Uber in order to
better the existing levels of customer service and the enhance efficiency in dealing with
problems as well as problem solving (Elsey, 2017). The project will be assessing the company
also on the basis of services and products that are offered to the customers. In addition, the
research will help to understand the connection between the brand image of uber and consumer
psychology.

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Topic 4: Suggested approach and research target
4.1 Research specific group
In this research the primary focus will be on two group of stakeholders namely the consumers
and the drivers/chauffeurs. As these two groups interact directly with each other and are
responsible for providing and availing Uber services respectively. The groups have been
selected in order to achieve the research objective.
4.2 Sample size
For the current research, the study will be conducted on a sample size of 57.
4.3 Data collection method
In order to progress with the research, the data collection method to be employed needs to be in
accordance with the data type required in the project. In case to collect quantitative data, most
preferable method will be to conduct interviews and surveys. This is necessary for testing the
hypothesis based on theory as it will help determining the scale in which the phenomenon of
particular interest is occuring (Ross, 2015). For the current research the sample population will
be subjected to survey.
4.4 Research design limitation
The research project undertaken follows a descriptive design. This design has been selected
because the project utilises survey questionnaires. There are, however, few limitations to the
descriptive research design like biasedness which will tilt the response of the questionnaire in
favour of the researcher. This is a effect called observer’s paradox in which respondents behave
differently when they know that their responses are being observed. As the research employs
predetermined options for the questions, the researcher has the liberty to choose those specific
results which aligns with the stated hypothesis (Chu, 2015). This type of research design is
neither reliable nor scientific.
4.5 Research tools and techniques
The major research tool to be utilised in this project will be internet as it contains a diaspora of
information which may or may not be relevant to the current research project which makes it the
duty of the researcher to mine the necessary information from websites, online journals, articles.
Physical libraries and print media will be also used for retrieving important pieces of information
(Jacquet, 2018).

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Topic 5: Reporting requirement
The project will be reported in a word report document. As the research is quantitative in nature,
the researchers need to provide their observations and insights after conducting the data
analysis. Factually interpreting the data requires use of word report.

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Topic 6: Timing
Main activities
and stages
Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7
Selection of
the topic
Collection of
data
Planning the
proper layout
Reviewing
literature
Development
of research
plan
Selecting
research
technique
Gathering
Primary data
Data analysis
Interpretation
of findings
Conclusion
preparation
Project rough
overdraft
Final
submission
Table 3: GANTT chart
(Source: Self)

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Topic 7: Budget
Requested funds
Materials and supplies $500
Publication costs $300
Consultant services $500
Computer related services $250
Rental costs $500
Travel (if necessary) $1000
TOTAL $3050
Table 4: Estimated project budget
(Source: Self)

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Topic 8: Conduct research
8.1 Handling data storage and privacy
Research data will be handled by core research team members and all the data should be
password protected and encrypted (Glöss, McGregor & Brown, 2016). In case of hard copy
data, it should be stored in safes with only core team members having access.
8.2 Presentation techniques
The data collected will be presented in tabular format and then analysed. Graphs will be
provided for graphically explaining the data and will ease data interpretation.
8.3 Code of conduct and ethics
The accepted protocols of research standard will be followed and in case help is required, the
assistance would be sought from someone knowledgeable. Data needs to be accurate and
unbiased. Exaggerations and misleading statements to be avoided (Mulholland, 2016). The
research will not be a plagiarised copy of any other researcher and in case some data has been
inculcated in the research, the authors will be appropriately cited.

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Topic 9: Data analysis and results
Q1. Have you ever ridden in an Uber vehicle as a customer/driver? (If not, you do not
qualify to participate in this survey).
Response Response
frequency
Response
percentage
Total no. of
respondents
Yes 53 93% 57
No 4 7% 57
Q2. Are you a driver or a customer?
Response Response
frequency
Response
percentage
Total no. of
respondents
Customer 32 60% 53
Driver/Chauffeur 21 40% 53

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Q3. I am satisfied as a customer/driver
Response Response
frequency
Response
percentage
Total no. of
respondents
Highly agree 8 15% 53
Agree 17 32% 53
Neither agree nor
disagree
9 17% 53
Disagree 11 21% 53
Highly disagree 8 15% 53

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Q4. The decision to choose drivers/commuters at random, both Uber and I have equal
influence.
Response Response
frequency
Response
percentage
Total no. of
respondents
Highly agree 9 17% 53
Agree 11 21% 53
Neither agree nor
disagree
20 38% 53
Disagree 7 13% 53
Highly disagree 6 11% 53

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Q5. Uber and I have a two-way relationship.
Response Response
frequency
Response
percentage
Total no. of
respondents
Highly agree 5 9% 53
Agree 12 23% 53
Neither agree nor
disagree
9 17% 53
Disagree 21 40% 53
Highly disagree 6 11% 53

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Q6. Uber is a trustworthy organization.
Response Response
frequency
Response
percentage
Total no. of
respondents
Highly agree 10 19% 53
Agree 19 36% 53
Neither agree nor
disagree
9 17% 53
Disagree 11 21% 53
Highly disagree 4 7% 53

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Q7. Uber is fair and just when treating me.
Response Response
frequency
Response
percentage
Total no. of
respondents
Highly agree 12 23% 53
Agree 19 36% 53
Neither agree nor
disagree
4 7% 53
Disagree 14 26% 53
Highly disagree 5 8% 53

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Q8. Uber keeps its promises.
Response Response
frequency
Response
percentage
Total no. of
respondents
Highly agree 8 15% 53
Agree 2 4% 53
Neither agree nor
disagree
32 60% 53
Disagree 4 8% 53
Highly disagree 7 13% 53

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On the basis of the observed data it can be confirmed that Uber is a very well-known enterprise
in Australia. Nearly 93% of the respondents recognised Uber and have at some point of time
availed the services. Out of the 53 people surveyed, 60% of the respondents were plain
commuters while the rest 40% of the respondents were chauffeurs/drivers. The satisfaction
levels of the customers as well as the driversis significantly higher as indicated by the response
of the respondents. A vast majority of the respondents that is 15% and 32% agree with the
notion while 21% and 15% of the respondents disagree with the notion. 17% of the respondents
have no opinion on the matter. The aspect of influence has been also assessed with a majority
of the respondents have no opinion on the impact of their influence in the services, most of the
respondents negatively replied when queried about having a two-way relation with Uber. 40%
respondents responded in negative. However, when it comes to brand reliability and
trustworthiness, a significant percentage of the respondents agree with the notion. 36% of the
respondents claim that Uber treats people in just and fair manner while 26% of the respondents
disagreed with the statement. The respondents were confused regarding whether the company
keeps the promises it made and this is evident from the fact that a majority 60% could neither
agree or disagree with the given statement.

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References
Boyle, P., & Peterson, C. (2015). Taxi drivers rally against Uber. Green Left Weekly, (1069), 4.
Chu, Y. (2015). Is ride-sharing really as novel as it claims-Understanding Uber and its supply-
side impacts in New Zealand.
Clear, T. (2017). THINKING ISSUES What's driving uber?: values in computing and the'sharing
economy'. ACM Inroads, 8(4), 38-40.
Dudley, G., Banister, D., &Schwanen, T. (2017). The rise of Uber and regulating the disruptive
innovator. The Political Quarterly, 88(3), 492-499.
Elsey, L. (2017). In focus: Over the uber rainbow. LSJ: Law Society of NSW Journal, (40), 26.
forbes.com, (2018) Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/lensherman/2018/07/17/is-
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Glöss, M., McGregor, M., & Brown, B. (2016, May). Designing for labour: uber and the on-
demand mobile workforce. In Proceedings of the 2016 CHI conference on human
factors in computing systems (pp. 1632-1643). ACM.
Harris, M. (2015). Meet Zoox, the Robo-Taxi start-up taking on Google and Uber. IEEE
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Hirson, R. (2015). Uber: The big data company. Forbes, 23rd March.
Jacquet, A. (2018). A power struggle in the taxi industry: a challenge for Uber and Lyft regarding
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McRostie, S., & Regan, L. (2017). App-based companies in the gig economy: Are they your
regular web-footed, quacking waddlers?.Brief, 44(10), 36.
Millar, R. (2017). UberX drivers supply taxi travel and so must be registered for GST: Uber BV v
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Mulholland, E. (2016). Uber markets. Instituate of Public Affairs Review: A Quarterly Review of
Politics and Public Affairs, The, 68(4), 38.
forbes.com, (2018) Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexkonrad/2016/06/01/uber-
raises-3-5-billion-from-saudi-sovereign-fund-at-62-5-billion-valuation/#3265822f78d9
Retrieved on 13 December 2018
Rimmer, M. (2017). Intellectual property and self-driving cars: Waymo vs Uber: Supplementary
submission to the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Industry,
Innovation, Science and Resources' inquiry into the social issues relating to land-based
driverless vehicles in Australia.

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Ross, H. (2015). Ridesharing's House of Cards: O'Connor V. Uber Technologies, Inc. and the
viability of Uber's labor model in Washington. Wash. L. Rev., 90, 1431.
Scheiber, N. (2017). How Uber uses psychological tricks to push its drivers’ buttons. The New
York Times, 2.
Smith, N. C., & McCormick, E. (2019). Uber and the Ethics of Sharing: Exploring the Societal
Promises and Responsibilities of the Sharing Economy. In Managing Sustainable
Business(pp. 579-611). Springer, Dordrecht.
Wilson, D. (2016). Uber is the Walmart of transport. Guardian (Sydney), (1718), 2.