Ola launches mystery loyalty program that’s largely MIA on its app

Ola’s loyalty program comes for a membership fee. Photo credit: Chuck Moravec.

Ola, the Uber rival in India, has just launched a new loyalty program to fend off its Silicon Valley competitor, a plan we revealed in May.

It is not called Ola Exclusive any more, but retains the same star signed logo and is effectively the same program under the moniker Ola Select. There is one problem, however.

Ola’s beckoning people to try the Select experience by downloading the app, but it’s nowhere to be found on the app for most users.

Like we reported earlier, the new loyalty program offers users benefits like no peak-time pricing (which has been deemed illegal by the government in some states), free wi-fi in all cabs, access to special events, and the assurance of riding with highly rated drivers.

Membership starts at US$8.20 a month. The one thing that seems to be missing is the promise of post-paid billing.

Screen shot from Ola’s website listing Select benefits.

App-based taxi services are habit forming, and typically see frequent use by customers. So forming a rewards system and guaranteeing a better experience does indeed sound like a winner. The end goal is to get users to stick with the Ola app and not move away to rival Uber, of course.

The worry, however, is in its roll-out. Almost nobody seems to be able to avail of the benefits. Of the nearly thirty users in Bangalore, Mumbai and Delhi Tech in Asia checked with, only two said they could see the “Select” option on their apps. The Ola blog does not allow options for signing up either.

Ola is beckoning to customers to sign up.

Ola did not respond to an email seeking clarification on how the program was rolled out.

Ola’s launch, by all means, looks like a clever move to gain customer stickiness and make money at a time when taxi-apps in the country are locked in a battle of discounts and cheap rides.