Key Business Lessons Startups Should Learn from Uber

Description: Startups make mistakes. That is the norm, despite how brilliant an entrepreneur is. In this article, we discuss some business lessons startups should learn from Uber.

Business Lessons from Uber

Uber is one of the most valuable companies in the world. Its success, driven by its ability to help people book cabs with the ease of a mobile app, is another indicator of how insanely valuable companies can be built on simple ideas.

There is plenty a new startup can learn from Uber. The general habit of entrepreneurs is to look at successful businesses and founders and marvel at their achievements. Seldom does anyone take away any real lessons from the mammoth success of such companies For entrepreneurs, learning and absorbing marketing and business lessons is vital.

Uber is a good point to start talking about entrepreneurship and startups because it fundamentally changed the way people approach a certain part of their life. Just as Amazon changed the way people shop and Facebook changed the way people interact online, Uber changed the way people commute. Places in major cities that were disconnected from public transport were brought into the fold by its deep-rooted reach.

As a startup, the success of Uber brings to light many misconceptions and misnomers entrepreneurs have about business and success. While there is plenty that can be learned from the company itself, learning from the success of Uber is even more important. This is because learning from success can convey more objective lessons about building a successful company.

In this article, we will discuss some lessons a startup can learn from the success of a startup.

The Problem You’re Solving May Not be Apparent

If you’re someone building a startup, you might be hearing people say, ‘Your product must solve a problem.’

Though clichéd, the statement is true. Every successful business must solve a fundamental problem. Google solved a problem. Amazon solved a problem. Tata solved a problem.

And yet, there is one little thing many people miss. Before a problem is solved, it is not apparent and clear.

Think about it. Before Google came along, there were no internet campaigns speaking of the importance. No. Everyone was happy with Yahoo and AltaVista. It was only after people used Google did they realize how much more comfortable their life could be with Google.

The same is true for Amazon. People were not on the street demanding that a website deliver books to their doorstep. And yet, it is difficult to imagine life now without a company like Amazon.

Uber is the same. Before it came along, people used public and private transportation to get where they need to. If they wanted to take a cab, they’d book one through the many independent cab companies. The companies would overcharge, but no one would really complain.

And still, Uber managed to make something simpler.

We as humans are more malleable than we tend to think. In a given terrain, we would most likely react and train ourselves to survive in a harsh situation. This is why there was no burning demand for companies like Google, Uber, Amazon, or any other successful company. And yet, when they are available to the general public, their quality and ease make them a desirable product to have.

For someone building a startup, this is the most important lesson that can be learned. The problems that a startup is solving may not be apparent, but once it’s proposed, it will become obvious if it offers an audience real value.

Experience is the Most Important Part of the Product

Experience matters the most.

In a world where there are many options, a bad experience for one product is detrimental. A customer who has a bad experience with Zomato has the option of choosing Swiggy. If Amazon disappoints its customers, it stands to lose them to Flipkart.

The experience a customer has while using a product can define its destiny.

Think about it. There are only a few restaurants in every city that are really famous. That doesn’t mean that the other restaurants are bad. The best restaurants realize that they are not simply in the business of serving food, but in the business of fine dining.

Fine dining and serving food are two different things. Any restaurant can serve food. All one needs is a kitchen and a few tables. Fine dining is challenging. The people arriving at the restaurant must feel their stay at the restaurant is special. Little things like lighting, internal décor, cordial staff, and ambiance make the most difference in making a restaurant belong to the fine dining business.

Before working a product, entrepreneurs at startups must ask themselves: what is my customer feeling? Even if the feeling is something as simple as comfort or ease, an entrepreneur must make sure such a feeling as intensified at every turn.

Do check: The OLA case study

Monopoly is Not a Bad Word

Discussed extensively in Peter Thiel’s Zero to One, monopoly is an interesting concept if entrepreneurs study it carefully.

In the book, Thiel explains that the ideal stage a startup must seek to reach is that of a monopoly.

Generally, ‘monopoly’ is considered a bad word in the market. It is considered anti-competition, which it is by definition. And yet, from a startup’s perspective, becoming a monopoly is the only way to develop an ultra-successful business. 

Uber might not be a monopoly, but the level of awareness it has managed to generate amongst the general public exhibits similar traits to how a monopoly behaves.

Having a monopoly basically means a startup can put all its effort into taking the company forward. Many startups fail because they enter highly competitive fields. This means they use all their resources to beat the competition, instead of growing the company internally and ensuring unfettered growth.

Why is Google so successful? Think about it.

How much real competition does Google Search have? None.

How much real competition does Gmail have? None.

How much real competition does Google Drive have? From a B2C perspective, none.

How much real competition does Google Maps have? None.

The best products Google has to offer are in fields where it has no competition. Thus, it can use it resources to keep improving its products while trying to find other fields to enter. Google also understands the value of being the only real player in wide markets. A startup must not be good at competing. Instead, it should be good at finding areas where there is little to no competition.

While beginning the journey of a startup, it might be difficult to envisage an area or field where a monopoly can be generated. However, given enough time, an entrepreneur can find such an area in the market.

 In Conclusion

In conclusion, this article covers three important business lessons every startup must make a part of its intellectual base. Startups tend to have a high mortality rate and useful learning from time to time can help keep it in the mix.

About the Author – Gaurav Heera is a well-known digital marketing trainer and entrepreneur heading work at DelhiCourses.in. DelhiCourses is a popular institute for students looking for a digital marketing training in Delhi.