Dive Brief:
- Uber’s advertising division announced that it will now enable programmatic buyers to access its Journey Ads solution across the Uber Rides app, according to details shared with Marketing Dive.
- The expansion includes a partnership with Google Ad Manager and allows programmatic buyers in the U.S. and global markets to leverage demand-side platforms including Google’s Display & Video 360, The Trade Desk and Yahoo DSP to purchase display and video ads on the app and target consumers across three distinct phases of their trip.
- Journey Ads were first launched in 2022 and Uber has sought to offer additional opportunities for the solution with the introduction of video ads earlier this year. The latest move arrives as the company continues its efforts to shore up advertising potential.
Dive Insight:
Uber has made a consistent effort to build its advertising business, and the expansion of Journey Ads to programmatic buyers could represent a major opportunity. Uber claims its Journey ads deliver performance “well above industry standard,” including a click-through rate of over 3% and an average global view time of more than 100 seconds. Additionally, 80% of its users indicated that ads caught their attention, per release details.
Uber’s users also skew young and affluent, demographics from which Uber has developed comprehensive consumer profiles and historical purchase patterns. Early Journey Ad campaigns delivered increased brand favorability, message recall and purchase intent, said Jillian Kranz, general manager of Rider Ads at Uber Advertising, in the release.
“We’ve seen the majority of campaigns exceed expectations compared to other types of media, including social, TV, mobile and web display,” Kranz said in the release, citing Kantar research.
The expanded availability gives programmatic clients access to Uber’s premium inventory bundled with high-intent first-party data through their preferred platform. Advertisers will have an opportunity to interact with consumers in the moment, like as they're on their way to the airport, for instance. Uber has also established comprehensive user targeting profiles based on historical behavior across both Uber and Uber Eats. In an example provided by the company, clients could tap into QSR food purchasers from Uber Eats or leverage curated personas, like Beyoncé or Taylor Swift fans, to target their messaging to the intended audience.
Uber began selling ads on its Rides and Eats apps in 2022, and has stated it is targeting $1 billion in annual ad revenue by 2024. Unsurprisingly, other ride-hailing and delivery companies have followed suit. Lyft, for instance, recently added video ad capabilities and improved ad-targeting tools to its in-app ad network. Instacart, meanwhile, recently received a Media Ratings Council accreditation for three of its ad formats.
