Online taxi hailing giant Ola, present in 100 cities across India, has decided to take the app-only route for bookings. Earlier, a minuscule number of taxi bookings were done through its tollfree number — a service which has been brought down to just customer support and assistance.
The company also rolled out an app enhancement in its recent update to support 2G network better, giving small town users with weak internet connectivity a seamless experience. It will continue to operate its customer care number renamed as Ola Care for assistance.
“With 99% of our bookings coming through our app, it is clear our users prefer the seamless app-experience to any other mode of booking. This will allow us to deliver a consistent one-touch booking experience and improve ride experience across all aspects like navigation, payment, safety and feedback. The 2G enhancements will also allow users in smaller towns and low network areas to access Ola without compromising on speed and ease of access,” said Pranay Jivrajka, chief operating officer at Ola. When Ola launched cab booking app in 2011 only 20% of the bookings happened through app, which has escalated to 99%.
According to a report by Flurry, a Yahoo-owned mobile analytic company, the app-usage in India is growing by 131% y-o-y. Another report by Deloitte India said this year India will see five times more app downloads compared with 2012.