Bring in the bubbly: Uber Eats' strategy in hiring Alia to boost brand

With the Bollywood actress at her bubbly best in a new campaign, the fight for the number three slot in online food ordering is getting stiffer

A hungry Alia Bhatt walks out of a party to dine with a friend at home. She rushes to the kitchen to help herself with food and is greeted by the humble apple gourd or tinda (in Hindi) in a container. She is upset and threatens to walk out, but is saved in time by Uber Eats, the food ordering app that sits on her phone. She and her friend help themselves with burgers ordered using the app.

For viewers of this commercial, currently on across television channels, a smile of recognition comes easily. There have been innumerable times when consumers have wished to escape from home food, opting instead for fancy fare from a neighbourhood restaurant or hotel. For all those moments now, there is Uber Eats.

The campaign, which is the first featuring Bhatt, appointed in November, makes no bones about what it wishes to achieve: Brand recall. In a competitive market, estimated to be Rs  50,000 crore in size and growing at 15-20 per cent per quarter, experts say the fight for the top three spots is stiff.

Swiggy and Zomato claim to be clocking a monthly order run rate of 28 million, though the former achieved the number ahead of the latter, say experts, giving it an edge over its rival. Zomato also had to contend with consumer backlash last month following a delivery boy’s move to eat from a customer’s food packet, denting its brand image. Zomato has since apologised for the incident, launching tamper-proof packs recently.

With Swiggy and Zomato therefore fighting tooth and nail with each other for leadership of the market, it is the third spot that is drawing attention of players such as Foodpanda, backed by Ola, and Uber Eats, part of the Uber group.

In 2017, Foodpanda had appointed actor Shah Rukh Khan as its brand ambassador with the objective of driving brand salience, basically goading consumers to order food during any daypart, to satiate their hunger. Foodpanda also drove home the message of aggressive offers through the campaign.

While Uber Eats is making no such claims, the bid to get consumers to try out its app, especially, in moments of distress, is familiar, say brand experts.

Bhavik Rathod, head of Uber Eats India and South Asia, says it was looking for a strong connect with the youth through an ambassador such as Bhatt. She is the first brand endorser for Uber Eats in the world and is expected to feature in more campaigns in the future.

“Today’s youth relate to Alia’s easy-going, carefree and energetic personality. She is known for her unique style and agility as an actor, qualities that are integral to the Uber Eats brand,” he said, adding that the fit between the two was perfect.

Namita Katre, head of brand, strategy and campaigns, Uber Eats India, who devised the current piece of advertising featuring  Bhatt, says the objective was to strengthen the brand’s role in an individual’s life and establish its position as an ally of the youth. “The campaign goes beyond functional attributes such as speed and affordability, focusing on the consumer’s ordering behaviour instead,” she says.

A few more films featuring Bhatt, which are digital-only, show her cheating on her diet and ordering food for a house party. “Uber Eats is leveraging a mainstream celebrity in a situational plot, making it relevant to its target audience. Foodpanda’s campaigns have been tactical, aimed at driving sales,” says Saurabh Uboweja, CEO of firm Brands of Desire.

Some experts though point to the downside of being a unit of a cab service. Harish Bijoor, CEO of Harish Bijoor Consults, says, “While it is great for a celebrity to talk about one’s service, the bigger challenge for Uber Eats would be to clean up negative brand tags associated with its parent.” Also, words specific to a language (tinda), say experts, may not find takers in markets such as the south, where it doesn’t click. The battle has begun.