Diffusion of Innovation with Uber Blog #8
In this blog post I am going to break down Uber's Diffusion of Innovation. "Uber is a platform where those who drive and deliver can connect with riders, eaters, and restaurants."
The first section on the chart are the pioneers or innovators. They are the ones coming up with the idea or product and the first 2.5% to adopt the innovation. Innovators are the people who can take risks and branch out to try new ideas and inventions. Uber was in its innovation period in late 2009-early 2010. It was a concept that people might be opposed to because of cell-phone tacking and other privacy related issues, but the innovators for Uber were willing to take a risk with it.
The early adopters (13.5%) are the next group that start using the innovation. By this point there is about 15% of the specific population or social group adopting the innovation. This is the tipping point for an idea or product because there are enough people using it for it to spread to others. In 2012 Uber reached their tipping point and expanded to international markets. Uber really took off at this time because smartphones were in there laggards stage. It was a perfect invention for the time because most of the population was using smartphone, so it was easy for people to adopt the idea ordering a casual car service with the click of a few buttons off of an app.
The third group is the early majority (34%). This group adopts the idea or product right after the tipping point, while its momentum is high. They are still in the first 50% of people to use the innovation or idea. During this stage, the idea or product has diffused and is well known by the specific population or social group. For Uber, this stage would have been in 2013-2015, when the app started to become more well known and was becoming an innovation people were using commonly. This section of was mainly younger people form ages 15-34. because of Uber's growing popularity, they were willing to adopt this innovation without much hesitation.
Right now, Uber is in its late majority stage (34%). This late majority is the group that takes longer to use the innovation because of skepticism. When it comes to Uber, there are many things to be skeptical about in terms of privacy and safety, so it is understandable that it took until now for Uber to be in the late majority. "Uber had a funding of $62.5 billion valuation and provided the service in over 300 cities of 68 different countries." At this point, Uber is a name everyone knows. Most of the skepticism and worry is in the past as Uber has enhanced its safety measures.
Lastly, laggards (16%) are the last group that use the idea or product. Uber has not reached this group yet. This 16% still relies on other methods of transportation and is not ready to start using this innovation. One of the main reasons why Uber has not made to the laggards stage is because there is a lot of competition such as Lyft, taxi's, walking, etc.
I would say that I was in the late majority of people who started to use Uber. At the time, I was in my early teens and my parents were hesitant about letting me be alone in a car with a stranger. I started using Uber in early 2017. I understand how many people do not like Uber or do not want to use it because it can be expensive and sometimes dangerous. But, some of the benefits are not having to worry about parking, avoiding drinking and driving, and doorstep food service.
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