Ola's loyalty programme not accessible for most users

Almost nobody seems to be able to avail of the benefits, reports Tech in Asia

Ola, the Uber rival in India, has just launched a new loyalty programme 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 programme 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 programme offers users benefits like no peak-time pricing (which has been deemed illegal by the government in some states), free WiFi in all cabs, access to special events, and the assurance of riding with highly rated drivers.

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

App-based taxi services are habit forming, and typically see frequent use by customers. So forming a rewards system does indeed sound like a winner. 

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.

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

This is an excerpt from Tech in Asia. You can read the full article here