Lyft sees a future where shared rides build community and trump car ownership. With that in mind, it created a mobile app that connects drivers who have a ride with those who need one. Using in-market audiences on the Google Display Network, the company increased conversions by 74% month-over-month.
Goals
Attract new drivers efficiently to grow the Lyft community
Approach
Identified in-market audiences to target based on Google data and insights
Created a new campaign and ad group to attract drivers to Lyft using the most relevant in-market audiences
Results
Saw a 74% increase in conversions month-over- month from using in-market audiences
Generated conversions from new sources and didn't cannibalize current channels
Established set of best practices to guide future campaigns
The rapidly expanding ridesharing company, Lyft, provides a user-friendly mobile app that connects passengers who need a ride with drivers who have a car. In February 2013, Lyft operated in just two cities: San Francisco and Los Angeles. Today, it operates in 60 cities, has secured millions in funding, and has hired thousands of people, both full-time staff and drivers, to fulfill its growth plans in the United States and abroad.
A world where car ownership is optional
Lyft's ridesharing community is trailblazing the way to a future where car ownership is optional. It offers an alternative to commuting or using public transportation by giving people who need a ride the option to tap a big green button in an app and request a pickup.
To grow its community, Lyft needed a way to find more drivers. In-market audiences with the Google Display Network was the perfect fit.
We saw overall conversions increase by 74% month-over-month after we implemented in-market audiences, which indicates that these were new conversion sources rather than cannibalization from current channels.
Attracting in-market audiences
Digital advertising is a key part of Lyft's marketing plans. To increase conversions, Lyft needed to find users who were good candidates to become drivers. Lyft knew its candidates were people who were seeking ways to make money for driving. To drive conversions among prospective drivers, Lyft used in-market audiences on the Google Display Network. In-market audiences enabled Lyft to reach potential drivers while they actively browsed Google Display Network publisher and partner sites and YouTube. Based on past campaign performance and working with the Google account team, Lyft identified the in-market audiences that were most relevant and likely to respond to the ads.
Implementation was extremely easy. Lyft simply created a new campaign and ad group to target the most relevant in-market audience segments.
Growing the Lyft community
"We saw overall conversions increase by 74% month-over-month after we implemented in-market audiences, which indicates that these were new conversion sources rather than cannibalization from current channels," says Noah Tian, marketing manager, Lyft.
In the future, Lyft plans to test additional in-market audience segments and continue to improve advertising efficiency. Tian advises other advertisers to "target narrowly, track cost per acquisition at the segment level, and understand how your users' lifetime values change as you iterate."
