CAREEM – PAKISTAN

SUBMITTED TO:

SUBMITTED BY:

SECTION:
MBA – 1
DATED:
2nd January, 2017

SESSION 2016-2018
LAHORE SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
All thanks and praises be to Allah who is the only source of knowledge and wisdom for
Mankind. His unending blessings enabled us to accomplish this task efficiently.

This report could not have been completed without the time, effort and support of a number of
people. Therefore, we wish to acknowledge the contributions of all of them. We would like to
extend our deepest gratitude to Professor F.A. Fareedy, the instructor of the course, Marketing
Management, for continuous encouragement and wise counseling. Without his guidance,
encouragement and valuable supervision, this report would not have been completed.

We would like to extend sincerest appreciation and thanks to the whole team of Careem, who has
supported us throughout this project with patience and knowledge whilst allowing us to work in
the most convenient ambience.

We are grateful to Harris Khan: Marketing Manager, Ahmed Usman Sheikh: Assistant General
Manager, Talaal Burny: Fleet Operations Manager, Basit Ayub: Fleet Coordinator, Muhammad
Arfan: Fleet Manager, and Muhammad Adeel: Assistant Fleet Coordinator, who offered
cooperation throughout our project work.

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 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Careem, is a multinational transportation network company, an app based car service provider,
was founded in the year 2012 by Mudassir Sheikh and Magnus Olsson. Since its beginning,
Careem targeted metropolitan cities for providing its services and now is operating in more than
30 major cities of the Middle East South Asian region. The company started its business in one
of the busiest countries of the world i.e. UAE, and then expanded its horizon to Egypt, Lebanon,
Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, North Africa and Pakistan.

With the remarkable success in the Middle East, Careem, was launched in Pakistan in late 2015.
The company started its operations initially from Karachi but soon extended it to Lahore and
Islamabad. They are planning to expand it even further to cater Hyderabad, Faisalabad,
Gujranwala, Peshawar and Multan for which they have already planted the seed in terms of their
promotional activities, especially Careem Campus Ambassador Drive in the universities situated
in these cities. Over and above that, Careem, has successfully tailored its services to meet the
needs of the customers.

The pillars of the company are; the captain and the vendor. Captain is a driver who is associated
with his respective vendor. They are designated to work under the vendors who have registered
themselves under Careem. A vendor is registered with Careem as a separate legal entity (Limo-
company), who brings his own car(s) along with driver(s). He is responsible for the car and the
driver (Captain) along with all the overheads and expenses which include internet cost, fuel,
maintenance cost, and captain’s salary. Vendor can grow his limo company at any time i.e.
recruit new captains and bring in new cars. Profit distribution follows 20-80 ratio. Careem gets
20% of the total of what the vendor has earned in a month. Whatever income the vendor
generates by servicing under Careem, he has to pay Careem 20% of his profit.

Careem communicates its branding strategy through loud and vivid means. A good example is its
recent billboard campaign demonstrating a “meme” with “Why You No Use Careem” written on
it. The idea is to get people talk about it. For young market segment who are also enthusiastic
social media users; it turned out to be an extremely relatable advertisement.

Careem runs ad campaigns on Facebook networks. The marketing team uses Facebook’s
Lookalike Audience tool to target mass audience. Based on the customer’s profile, location and

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personal details, Facebook gives access to “Lookalikes” of already existing customers who might
be interested in the given product or service. Careem uses this feature to target audience in the
three major cities of Pakistan (Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad). The targeted audience gets to see
Careem’s promoted ad of its app and page on their timeline, on other pages and as “suggested
page” along with the promotion codes and discounts. Careem wishes to avoid spamming so they
ensure that right audience is being targeted.

Careem has successfully completed its one-year operation in Pakistan and has morphed its
business model according to the market needs and consumer behavior. The company’s main
brand development objective is to create positioning which reflects its values proposition:

I. IT IS EASY TO USE

II. IT IS YOUR PERSONAL BRAND

Careem has made travelling easy; its quality service has increased its customer demand. It has
dedicated a great effort to provide a well-heeled environ not only to its customers but also to the
vendors and captains. It currently has about 6 million registered users and continues to spring up
its customer’s base by functioning efficiently.

In today’s dynamic market, Careem, recognizes the need to be ingenious to enrich the well-
developed customer relationship.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

TITLE PAGE NO.

Acknowledgement
i
Executive Summary ii
INTRODUCTION 1
-Net Worth of Careem 1
-Growth of Careem 1
CAREEM - PAKISTAN 2
CAREEM - COMPETITION 2
CAREEM - BUSINESS MODEL 5
CAREEM - BUSINESS PROCESS MAPPING 11
-How does Careem work 11
CAPTAIN’SLOYALTY 12
-Guarantee Structure 12
BRAND DEVELOPMENT OBJECTIVE 15
-Communication Strategy 17
MARKETING MIX 18
-Product 18
i. Product Line Extension 19
-Pricing 20
-Place 21
-Marketing Strategy 22
-Digital Marketing Mix 22
i. Facebook Advertising
23
ii. Google AdWords 24

-Customer Insights and Remarketing Strategies 25

i. Offer Impact 25
ii. Customer Conversion Mix 26
-Promotion 26
CUSTOMER SEGMENTATION 27
CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP 29
SWOT ANALYSIS 28
REFERENCES 31

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 INTRODUCTION
1
Careem is a cab booking service which was founded in the year 2012 by Mudassir Sheikh and
Magnus Olsson. Both of them were former consultants at Mckinsey & Company. Careem is
platform where drivers and customers meet. It is a comfortable and reliable cab service and
booking takes place through mobile app, online service or through call service which is available
24/7.Careem operates in more than 27 cities and seven countries which include Pakistan, UAE,
Egypt, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and North Africa. Careem has largest market in
Saudi Arabia. Recently, Careem has marketed 4 million users, with Android Store having 1
million downloads. 2The mobile app has average likes of 96,330 with an average rating of 4.5 out
of 5 stars. On Careem’s Pakistan Facebook page, it has 884,599 likes and on Twitter it has 6,265
followers. Thus Careem is very active on social media to ensure efficient user engagement which
is reflected in its rapid success. Careem does not use Google Maps, but has developed its own
map data base for Middle East to ensure error free smooth travel guide.

NET WORTH OF CAREEM

Careem got a $ 1 billion valuations on 18 th December 2016 which is a huge success for it. It will
benefit the company as this huge net worth is a financial improvement, and stimulate growth and
expansion. Careem aims that this valuation will help them to create 1 million jobs by the end of
year 2018. Currently the company has round about 150,000 drivers.

Moreover, this valuation of $ 1 billion is a threat for Careem’s competitors which include Uber
and A-taxi. With this money, the company has planned to expand in the coming future.

GROWTH OF CAREEM

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Careem has received 30% estimation in monthly growth of business and plans to further
succeed into a company worth 10 billions of dollars. Moreover, Careem is building strategic
partnerships to expand into new projects as well as new markets and for this purpose the
company plans to 4spend $100 million on Research and Development. It wants to introduce
electric driverless cars project in North Africa and Middle East by developing a partnership with
NEXT Future Transportation to improve performance, quality and experience for users. Careem
has planned to introduce an Engineering Department in Pakistan by employing fifty more

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engineers through Venture Dive. In Pakistan it is Telenor, Careem has been partners with. The
company is training 10,000 captains monthly in Cairo, Giza, and Alexandria and the North
Coast.

CAREEM PAKISTAN

With the huge success in the Middle East,Careem was launched in Pakistan in late 2015.
Currently Careem is offering services in Lahore, Islamabad and Karachi and plans to expand in
more cities which include Hyderabad, Faisalabad, Multan, Peshawar and Gujranwala.

COMPETITOR OF CAREEM
5
UBER

Uber is established in San Francisco, California, United States and was founded in March 2009
by Travis Kalanick. The company launched a messenger service called UberRush in the year
2015.Since its launch, it’s worthiest assets has remained its data. Uber operates in 68 countries
including United States, China, Brazil, Mexico, India, Pakistan and many more. Uber expanded
in India in 2015 and by investing 1 $ billion, also expanded in China and raised $1.2 billion.
Uber is planning to expand further to new markets, make more deals to sell data and is looking
for a potential IPO. It has its social media presence on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. One can
make Rs. 100,000 with Uber. There is no need of promo code for Uber if any discount is needed,
however by sharing a specific link on Uber’s app, one can avail the discount. Uber does not have
any call service, but if any customer has any issue, he can email them.

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POINT OF DIFFERENCE
CAREEM UBER

PAKISTANI CARS: PAKISTANI CARS:

 Most basic cars are Corollas of model 
forth of 2015, and various cars ranging 
from Mira to Cultus, and to the Suzuki
swift.
 Careem can track even if the app is
There are no specific cars for Uber.
UBER does not response when the app is
closed.

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 closed, or during the ride
BOOKING A RIDE: BOOKING A RIDE:
Careem lets you book any of their car without Uber only allows its customers to book
any issue. UberSelect in advance.
PRICING: PRICING:
Minimum fare RS 100 Minimum fare Rs 150
Per km Rs18.8 Per km Rs 9.38
Per minute Rs 1.83 Per minute Rs 2.00
CUSTOMER SERVICE: CUSTOMER SERVICE:
Careem requires a detailed email with For uber the customer has to go to history,
Booking ID. select the ride and then press “Need Help”
CALL CENTER: CALL CENTER:
Careem has a 24/7 call center. Uber does not have a 24/7 call center.
FREE RIDES: FREE RIDES:
AED 30% is credited to both the customer AED 40% off is credited for the next two
and his friend. rides to both customer and his friend.

1
Source: July 19 2016.All you need to know about Careem Retrieved from Google Chrome Source URL:
http://digitaldips.pk/index.php/2016/07/19/351all-you-need-to-know-about-careem-a-thorough-review/

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Source Retrieved from Careem Facebook Page URL: https://web.facebook.com/careempakistan/

3Source: Oct, 12 2016 Careem registers 30% monthly growth in 2016. Daily News Egypt, Retrieved from Google
Chrome. Source URL: http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2016/10/12/careem-registers-30-monthly-growth-2016/

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July, 11 2016 Careem Plans to spend100Milion on R & D. Daily News Egypt Retrieved from Google Chrome
Source URL: http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2016/07/11/careem-plans-to-spend-100m-on-rd/

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Source Sep, 5 2016 Uber vs Careem which online service is better. The Express Tribune Retrieved from Google
Chrome URL http://tribune.com.pk/story/1176490/uber-vs-careem-online-taxi-service-better/

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Source URL http://www.tbreak.com/careem-vs-uber/

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 CAREEM - BUSINESS MODEL

Classes Drivers Cars Profit Sharing

80 – 20
Business MODEL: Sedan Sharing
Vendor 2007 to 2016
Personal Car(s)
Driver(s)
Bears all
expenses
Economy

Captain
RCS verified PAK WHEELS
VERIFICATION

- Technical Checks
- Model Compliance
Captains check
(Limo Company) -Work under
Vendor or -
Independent
drivers

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 CAREEM - BUSINESS MODEL
1. CARS
 MODEL: Sedan
 YEAR OF MANUFACTURE:2007 to 2016
The cars at Careem that each vendor brings has to be a sedan model from 1300 cc to 1500cc and
above those are manufactured from year 2007 to the current time. Before booking a ride Careem
asks the customer to choose the type of car that a customer wishes to ride on.

The above picture has been taken from Careem’s website. It shows the option of type of the car
that the customer could select out of the two while placing their ride details.

VERIFICATION OF CARS

Cars that are bought by vendors are first verified. The verification of cars is a compulsory
process as to check the condition of the cars brought by the vendor. Careem has a collaboration
with Pak Wheels under which Pak Wheels carries out verifications of the cars that are used under
Careem. The verification involves testing the car’s:

 Performance.
 Technical viability.
 Overall condition.

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  Documents.

Once the car has been approved by Pak Wheels as fit for Use it gets registered under Careem.

The above picture shows Careem’s partnership with Pak Wheels for car verification. These are
the categories that Pak wheels verifies for the car Careem sends.

CLASSES

Careem Pakistan offers cars for customer’s rides on the following two classes:

1. Business class: It aims to make you arrive at your destination in style

2. Economy Class: An affordable and convenient ride

The product assortment in two classes of cars aim at proving the customer with the type of car
they want to ride in according to their affordability and needs. The business class rides are
comparatively priced higher than the economy class cars.

DRIVERS

Drivers at Careem are basically divided into two categories:

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  Vendor
 Captain
VENDOR

Vendor can be thought of as a business partner of Careem, he brings his own car(s) along with
Driver(s). A vendor is registered with Careem as a separate legal entity (Limo-company). He is
responsible for car and the driver (Captain) and all the overheads and expenses, which may
include internet cost, fuel, maintenance cost, and captain’s salary. Vendor can grow his limo
company at any time i.e. hire new captains and bring in new cars.

LIMO COMANY
The vendor works with Careem as a limo company. In a Limo company the captains register
himself and his cars for Careem. The limo company has all the credentials of the vendors and its
captains who will drive the cars for Careem. Every new vendor has his separate distinctive Limo
company under which he has registered his cars and his captains. For the Limo company every
vendor has to submit his documents regarding his credentials, car verification documents and
captain’s credentials.

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Source:
Careem
Documents

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CAPTAIN

The captain is a driver who is associated with his respective vendor. Captains have their
association with its vendor and is designated to work under his vendor which has registered itself
under Careem.

The captain drives the cars that his vendor has registered under Careem. The captain is hired by a
vendor to work and drive under him. Still the captain is required to get himself registered under
Careem so as to drive for Careem. Captains once registered are trained in training centers of
Careem. The training sessions are held once the vendors and the captains under them are
registered. They are given training regarding customer service, how to use Careem apps,
destination guidelines and major focus of training is on how to serve their customers with
superior customer service. After training sessions are completed the drivers take tests. If they
pass the
test they
are taken
on board
by
Careem.

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8
Source: Careem Documents

RCS VERIFICATION

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RCS verification is the process in which the verification of captains as well as the vendors take
place. It is a security verification team at Careem who verifies the information of the vendor as
well as the captains.

The verification of the following is made:

 phone numbers
 addresses
 CNIC
 Other necessary Legal documents

Without the RCS verification the Captain or the vendor cannot get himself registered under
Careem. This verification takes 10 days. After verification by RCS if approved the drivers are
given registered ID’s. Once verified by RCS vendor starts working for Careem.

PROFIT SHARING

Profit distribution follows 20-80 ratio. The earnings made be the vendor in a month is to be
divided among the vendor and Careem. Careem gets 20% of the total of what the vendor has
earned in a month. Whatever income the vendor generated by servicing under Careem it has to
pay Careem 20% of its profits.

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 9
Source: Oct, 2016 Interview with Careem Fleet Management.

CAREEM - BUSINESS PROCESS MAPPING

Careem - Business Process Mapping

CALL
App
Customer

Captain s
Picks up Drops @
Details,
Customer Destination
Order s Cab Arrival time

RIDE DETAILS
Careem

Checks Location Notifies Bill Receipt Careem s 20%

Pick & Drop Cusromer Share
Details

Pays bill to
Captain
Captain

Notify, Pick- Receives the

up point, Accepts Payment
Travel Details

Deposits daily Every

earnings to fortnight in
Vendor
Vendor

Any BANK
Collects the cash @ the
end of each day Deposits 20% Share via
ALPHA App or Manually

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Source: 25, Oct 2016 Extract from Interview with Fleet Manager Mr. Arif

HOW DOES CAREEM WORK

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In terms of the business process that goes behind Careem and how customer ordering a cab is
translated into revenue for the company the figure above shows the process mapping and entities
involved.

The process starts with customer ordering the cab, they can either order it for now or book it for
later. Also the customer can order it directly via application or via Careem call center. Customer
also selects the class category it wants to travel (Business or Economy). Furthermore, the travel
details which include the pick-up and drop in points. All details are received by Careem which,
checks the customer requirements and notifies all the Captains available in that area.

Once a Captain accepts the offer, Careem notifies the customer about Captain’s details (name,
number and picture) vehicle details (Car picture, model, and license number) and approximate
arrival time. Once the Captain picks up the customer it then drops them at the mentioned
destination. The customer can rate the Captain and ride experience. Careem on the other hand
sends the bill receipt to the customer and Captain via an email or SMS. Since in Pakistan most of
the customers like to pay on cash basis so the Captain receives the cash. At the end of the day
Captains deposit all the earnings with their respective vendors. Careem keeps the trail of all the
earnings and notifies vendor regarding the amount of their share. The vendor transfers Careem’s
20% share of the earning at the end of each fortnight (twice a month) either via Bank Al-Fallah
App ALPHA or manually in Careem’s account in any bank.

CAPTAIN’SLOYALTY

a. GUARANTEE STRUCTURE

Captain works under the vendor, they are the drivers and not necessarily the owner of the car.
They mostly work on a fixed salary (given by vendor). In order to keep these drivers interested in
working with Careem.

The company offers a very lucrative deal. It is very crucial for the company to maintain a healthy
number of Captains, because the more Captains it has the quicker will be its response to meet the
customer travelling demand. The higher the response rate the more likely it will be that customer
will prefer Careem over competitors.

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So Careem has put in a loyalty system for Captains, which guarantees a certain amount (Rs. 35,
00/- daily) of money at the end of each week. 14There are targets that the Captain’s must meet in
order to have a claim on the bonus. The target/guarantee structure consist of three terms, each
has few conditions and only in case of compliance with these terms the Captains would be able
to enjoy this offer from the company.

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Daily Guarantee
Offer Economy
Guarantee/Captain 3,500
Target
Time Slot (24 Hours 5AM to 5 AM)
Acceptance 90%
Availability 11 Hours
Rides 10 Trips
Super Bonus (14 Days)
175 Rides 10,000
150 Rides 7,500
125 Rides 5,000
100 Rides 2,500
Captain’s Bonus (14 Days)
Acceptance > 90% & 50 Rides 1,500
Rating > 4.75 & 50 Rides 1,500
Rides > 100 & Rides 1,500

The acceptance rate means the number of rides accepted to pick-up.

I. It must be higher than 90% at any day.

II. Customer rating on average ought to be 4.75 out of 5
III. Finally, the number of rides picked up in 14 days should be greater than 100

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Compliance with these terms will guarantee Captains the amount of Rs. 4, 500/-. On top of that
the more rides they take, the higher the amount of bonus gets.

Careem pays the amount of bonus via Alpha, each Captain is assigned an online portal where all
the details are automatically uploaded. So at the end of each fortnight their bonus amount and
period of bonus earned is updated. A unique pin is automatically generated which the Captain
can present at the bank and withdraw the amount.

This whole structure keeps them motivated in providing good customer experience and efficient
service.

10
Source: Dec, 2015. Deepika Thakur MBA Candidate, Harvard Business School Why is a local startup
winning the competition with a global giant like uber. Extracted from Google Chrome Nov, 2016 source
URL:https://rctom.hbs.org/submission/careem-why-is-a-local-startup-winning-the-competition-with-a-
global-giant-like-uber/

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11
Source: Careem Documents.

BRAND DEVELOPMENT OBJECTIVE

Careem has successfully completed one year operations in Pakistan and has morphed its business
model according to market needs and consumer behavior. Company’s main brand development
objective is to create such positioning which reflects its values proposition:

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I. IT IS EASY TO USE
II. IT IS YOUR PERSONAL BRAND

I. This is very critical for the company to reflect its user friendliness and strengthen it through its
communication. It is important to understand here that Careem’s users are not only the customers
but are Captains and Vendors as well. Careem provides in-depth training to the Captains (who
drive the cars) and Vendors too, about the application’s usability, features, payment details etc.
After that it tests them before they could be signed up officially.

The images shown below are from Careem’s office taken during the
official visit and interviews.

Careem wants to create high attraction among Vendors and Captains because they’re responsible
for generating revenue source and delivering Careem’s service to end customer. The company
runs on demand and supply mechanism and supply part is filled by these entities. So to position
itself as a user friendly platform is of utmost importance for its brand development.

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For Careem’s users, the app’s interface is very simple, catchy and easy to use. User doesn’t have
to go through many screens in order to book a ride or check for bill details, promo codes or
credits.

Images shown below are the app interface.

Pakistani market is still getting similar with the idea of availing services via mobile. Careem
ensures that it communicates its user friendliness through its communication strategy. However,
its current target market in Pakistan are those who are familiar with smart phones. For start-ups
like Careem the app is the face of the company, they have to ensure that their user’s experience
and feel of the mobile app is catchy yet simple to figure out and user develops unconscious
muscle memory of using it. So that the customer doesn’t have to think while browsing the app
options. That not only ensures frequent usage but also longer customer retention.

II. For the purpose of creating brand association Careem has focused on promoting itself as a
personalized brand. Where each customer is given high priority and is treated in an exclusive
manner. The company launched itself with the same philosophy in Pakistan. Initially in Karachi
it collaborated with Lays Pakistan in the campaign of “Pass A Smile” and with some prominent
celebrities to surprise any randomly selected customer, when these celebs come to pick them up

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as their captains. This drive became particularly successful as it flocked major attention towards
the cab service.

Careem in U.A.E started off as a premium cab service for business travelers; in Pakistan it
ensures the same premium feel to its service and amplifies it through celebrity endorsements and
teaming up with fashion industry. Later the company teamed up with a number of local
companies to build its brand association with younger audience, especially females.

Hiring of female drivers in Careem’s fleet of Captains made news in many prominent
newspapers. The company is focused on catering female market with female drivers as Captains
and also to support the women empowerment drive nationwide.

COMMUNICATION STRATEGY

Careem communicates its branding strategy through loud, bold and cheesy means. A good
example for that is their recent billboard campaign which showed a “meme” with “Why You No
Use Careem” written on it. The idea is to get people talk about it. For young market segment
who are also enthusiastic social media users; it was an extremely relatable advertisement.
According to Careem’s marketing manager (Mr. Harris Khan) “After this advertisement Google
Trend searches for Careem increased by 335%. Which is exactly what we wanted! Good or
bad we want people to start talking about it” This also explains the company’s effort to connect
with its target market which is very active on social media.

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12
Source: Marketing Manager Mr. Harris Khan (Islamabad).

MARKETING MIX

PRODUCT

Careem is a cab service that provides reliable, safe, convenient and affordable transport
specifically tailored to suit customer’s daily needs. Careem offers products that include:

 BOOKING A RIDE: CALL OR APP

 Book a ride on Careem’s app or website, or by simply calling them.
 NOW/LATER
 Book a ride for now, later or for customer’s daily commute through their new REPEAT
feature.
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Soure: Picture courtesy: Careem

 CAR TYPE

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  Selecting a car-type that suits customer’s needs The car categories range from:
- Economy: Good car. Affordable. 
- Business: Class A car. More expensive than Economy

 PAYMENT POSSIBILITIES
 Pay for ride with CASH or CREDIT CARD.

PRODUCT LINE EXTENSION

Careem Shaadi is tailored travel package aimed to facilitate customers with their transportation
needs.

Careem Shaadi is designed to save customer’s wedding related transportation hassle by

undertaking the logistics part of the event. To use the service, the host will need to activate a
Shaadi account with Careem. After the creation of the account the host will be able to add
different guests to a list and Careem will be responsible for the pick and drop of the listed
customers.

The service is flexible to sudden changes. A dedicated connection line will be provided to the
host which will be used to connect him with the assigned captains.

Once the compilation of the guest list has been completed, the host will be at the decision end as
to whether he would like to make the rides entirely free for the guests or if he would like to take
a partial discount. The payment of all these services and the differential amounts will count to
the host in both the cases.

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The host has the option to pay via Credit Card or by using Prepaid Careem Credits. Prepaid
Careem Credits are the credits points which can be bought beforehand through cash deposit or
through a cheque in the name of Careem.

PRICING

Careem faced a big challenge in Pakistan considering the local transportation services in place,
its premium brand image and competitor’s pricing. They had to maintain the exclusivity at the
same time ensuring that they’re priced competitively. Utilizing its service category model
Careem framed prices accordingly i.e. for business and economy class. Discounts are offered
keeping in view the service category, demand and a basic pricing structure.

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Careem’s pricing structure is as follows:

Structure Now Later

Base Fare Rs. 80/- Rs.

200/-

Charges/Km Rs. 8.8/- Rs.

8.8/-

Charges/min Rs. Rs.

traveled 1.83/- 1.83/-

Waiting / Hour Rs.232/- Rs.

232/-

Minimum Rs.120/- Rs.

Charges 300/-
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Source: Careem Official Documents.
14
Source Careem. (n.d.). Retrieved from Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/careempakistan/
15
SourceThe Express Tribune. (n.d.). Retrieved from Tribune Pakistan.
http://tribune.com.pk/story/1259396/careem-rolls-shaadi-service-pakistan/

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Base fare reflects the minimum amount of charges the customer has to pay while ordering
Careem service. Customers have the option of ordering the ride instantly or book it for later, for
which they have to pay accordingly. Apart from base fare the minimum charges show the total
minimum amount that the customer can anticipate to pay in any case. Other pricing includes per
kilometer travelled and also the time travelled which is calculated per minute. The amount of
discount availed via any promo code is also included and hence the total amount mentioned in
the bill is adjusted for it.

Customer at the end of the trip will get a detailed electronic receipt via email. Careem tracks the
total journey via Captain’s mobile also through GPS system installed in the vehicle.

PLACE

Careem since its beginning targeted metropolitan cities for providing its services and now is in
more than 30 major cities of Middle East South Asian region
(Pakistan). The company started in one of the busiest cities of the
world UAE and then expanded to Egypt, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia,
Kuwait, Qatar and North Africa and Pakistan.

In Pakistan the company started its operations initially from Karachi

but soon expanded it to Lahore and Islamabad. They are planning to
expand it further to cater Hyderabad, Faisalabad, Gujranwala,
Peshawar and Multan. For which they have already planted the seed
in terms of their promotional activities especially Careem Campus
Ambassador Drive in universities situated in these cities.

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Source:
The image shows the electronic customer bill break down.

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MARKETING STRATEGY

In terms of conventional marketing the company started ATL – BTL marketing activities in mid-
November 2016. Which mainly included billboards and banner ads across the cities (Lahore
Karachi and Islamabad) showing specific offers (according to the area). These offers are
carefully designed keeping in view the demand for that specific area. The company carefully
analyses the demand patterns and formulates an offer accordingly and targets that particular
area/location. A comprehensive remarketing strategy explained later in report will help you
understand further.

In addition to this, they are offering special rates on travelling to/from the airport especially in
Karachi. The company also launched a massive “Careem Campus Ambassador” drive, targeting
university students to become representatives of the brand themselves. This helped Careem
connect with young audience, helped them understand how the service works, organizes events
in universities and also promote its special offers for the students. Furthermore, the company set
up promotional booths in prominent places like malls and shopping destinations, where
representatives were offering people free rides in return of downloading the app. They also
entertained questions regarding how the service works, customer ambiguity regarding billing and
customer service. These below the line advertising activities and customer engagement
campaigns are particularly important since the company has no customer service front office.

DIGITAL MARKETING MIX

Careem’s main focus in terms of digital marketing is on customer acquisition since it is

providing services based on a mobile application. Customer acquisition is the bottom line for all
its marketing efforts. Also user engagement, once the app has been downloaded the next
challenge is to make customer coming back to it. So these are the two prime emphases while
building the digital marketing strategy.

For that Careem is using Facebook as main stream platform for its advertising and also Google
AdWords especially for mobile advertisement. There digital advertisement is run on both
desktops and mobile devices.

21
a. FACEBOOKADVERTISING
Currently Careem’s Pakistan Facebook page has approximately 9 hundred thousand likes and
equal amount of followers. The page is being updated daily with effective and catchy content as
part of content marketing. Moreover, Careem runs ad campaigns on Facebook networks. The
marketing team uses Facebook’s Lookalike Audience tool
to target mass audience.

Based on the customer’s profile, location and personal

details Facebook gives access to “Lookalikes” of already
existing customers who might be interested in the given
product or service. A model of this tool is mentioned on the
right. Careem uses this feature to target audience in the
three major cities of Pakistan (Lahore, Karachi and
Islamabad). The targeted audience gets to see Careem’s
promoted ad of its app and page on their timeline, on other
pages and as “suggested page” along with the promotion 18
Source:http://www.slideshare.net/katebuckjr/website-
audience-retargeting-on-facebook
codes and discounts. Careem wants to avoid spamming so
it ensures that right audience is being targeted.

Furthermore, as part of their Facebook marketing strategy, they also are running advertisements
on famous Facebook games, like Candy Crush, 3 Patti, 8 Ball Pool and Crime Case etc. It offers
the user (when out of coins to play) free coins as a reward for downloading Careem’s app or
discount on rides on using the ride service again.

Their Facebook page and Twitter account also work as customer service centers. Most of the
users’ launch complain simply by mentioning Careem on its social media accounts. Careem is
prompt with their replies, concerning booking of the ride. For customer complaints it requires an
email along with Booking ID. Customer is directed regarding all of the concerning information
via replies, also Careem has a 24/7 call center set-up specially to cater customers who want
assurance from customer care representative.

22
b. GOOGLE ADWORDS

AdWords is the biggest platform for online advertising. There are various ways to market on
AdWords which includes:

I. Search Engine Marketing

II. Display Network Advertising
III. Mobile Advertising
IV. YouTube Advertising

In Pakistan the cost for online marketing (Cost per Click) is

19
81% less than that in U.S. So that is what Careem is
utilizing. They are not much focused on Search Engine
Marketing (SEM) particularly in Pakistan, the main emphasis
is on Display Network and Mobile Marketing.

Careem uses in-app ads for mobile devices, these ads will
show up in applications both on android and IOs smart
phones. They are image ads primarily aimed to drive user
engagement. When customer clicks the ad it directly takes
them to Careem’s application on their phone. Picture on the
right shows an app engagement ad that is shown in another
app.

Display Network ads, the customer sees these ads on various websites while browsing through
internet. Their aim is to advertise Careem to mass audience and generate downloads. They
consist of text, image and banner ads. By clicking these ads, the
customer will be sent directly to the app download page. 20
Source: (Sep, 2016) Screen Shot - Personal
mobile

23
Careem’s marketing efforts are directed according to customer segmentation. A regular user of
Careem will not see customer acquisition ads and vice versa. By this the company makes sure
that it is targeting the right audience with the right offer.

19
Source: July, 2015 Average Cost Per Click URL extracted from Google Chrome Nov, 20 Source URL:
http://www.wordstream.com/blog/ws/2015/07/06/average-cost-per-click

CUSTOMER INSIGHTS AND REMARKETING STRATEGIES

The upside of digital marketing is that it lets the marketers measure their marketing efforts
preciously. Unlike in case of ATL-BTL marketing where the conclusions are drawn largely on
the bases of estimations. Marketing analysts and data scientists measure, analysis, access and
reflect the impact of marketing on digital mediums. That certainly enhances the efficiency and
effectiveness of decision making and enables to create maximum customer value.

Based mainly on digital marketing the company develops re-marketing strategies; an essential
strategic tactic to shape up the promotional and advertising campaigns. Moreover, it helps them
understand their customer better and eventually segment them effectively.

Careem’s app permission requires user’s location details. These details are used when the cab is
to pick the customer but the company optimizes the location based on the frequency of locations
traveled. Furthermore, Careem develops patterns based on the customer’s travel log and the
organic demand. For instance, if the organic demand for Careem is high particularly for Gulberg,
Lahore then this area will be marked as special zone or “peak”, the digital marketing analysts at
Careem will start to explore the time at which the demand is high and also will track all the
customers who frequently travel to Gulberg. Based on these market insights the company will
formulate its promotional campaigns and will re-market the customers. This enables them to
target the customer with the right valuable offer.

a. Offer Impact

As part of re-marketing strategy Careem measures the impact of its offer. 21The company runs
any particular offer for a certain period of time and based on certain KPIs (mentioned below) it
decides whether to continue or discontinue the offer.

I. Impact on Download

24
It depends on the type of offer, if the promotion made is aimed to drive more downloads then its
success rate is measured through the number of increase in the downloads by floating that
particular offer.

II. Offer utilization

Another key performance indicator is the offer utilization, which depicts the popularity and
acceptance of the offer in customer.

III. Profitability

Finally, of course the bottom line; profitability. Careem measures how profitable an offer is
against the cost spent on it and the profits it generated.

All the offers are adjusted according to these KPIs after evaluation. New promotional strategies
are designed.

b. CUSTOMER CONVERSION MIX

According to Careem’s marketing manager more than 2250% of the demand is being generated
through organic means i.e. through word of mouth and e-word of mouth. Also the customers
coming from organic means have a higher retention ratio as compared to those coming via social
media. This certainly has caused Careem to re-visit its digital-conventional marketing mix. The
collaborations with local companies and banks is a result of that. The company now is focusing
on making the customer experience their ride because stats are suggesting that those who have
experienced Careem even via word of mouth are more likely to use it again.

Promotion

Promotional campaigns are designed in harmony with market insights, consumer preferences and
previous offer impacts. Careem offers discounts up to 20% on various offers. A new customer
usually gets 20% off on using the ride for the first time, frequent users can earn free rides.
Recently they are offering discounts on travelling to certain specified restaurants and places, the

25
customer will receive discount from Careem and those restaurants too. Also the company
teamed up with a number of companies like Telenor, HUM TV, PFDC, Master Visa card,
Daraz.pk, MCB, UBL, Standard Chartered, Silk Bank, Faysal Bank and JS bank.

21
Source: Assistant General Manager Careem Ahmed Usman Sheikh.

22
Source: Interview quoted by Mr. Harris Khan, Marketing Manager Careem.

CUSTOMER SEGMENTATION

Customer segmentation is practiced by the companies who wish to develop deeper understanding
and connectivity with their customers. It enhances the customer service which leads to customer
loyalty. It helps the companies maximize the chances of attaining the desired goals through the
operative provision of marketing resources/strategies. Customer segmentation involves the
division of customers into different categories and addressing each of the categories accordingly
in order to achieve popularity, hence the increasing demand.

23
Careem segments its customers as:

 NEW CUSTOMERS

New customers are those who, largely, don’t have awareness about the services of Careem. The
company is striving to look for ways through which it can spread awareness. With the decline of
print media in the face of electronic media, advertisement through e-media has proved to be the
most fruitful. Hence, Facebook and Twitter are the best mediums for advertisement, in order to
spread awareness and attract new customers. Remarkable advertisement strategies are being
carried out by Careem, providing a major impetus to the new customers.

Careem has several eye catching ads on Facebook and

Twitter. The users like their pages and ads and also tell
others about it, thus provide awareness to more people.
These new customers give in to the temptation of free rides
and promo codes. Careem wants to make sure that it meets
the needs of the customers in an appropriate and steadfast

26
manner. It has also cut down rates for its economy cars. It aims to make itself available for
all.More and more customers have been attracted due to the minimum charges strategies.

24
Source: http://www.slideshare.net/AakifAhmad1/careem-
ride-share-presentation-may-2016

23
Source: 2nd Dec, 2016 Extract
from Interview with Assistant General Manager, Ahmed Usman Sheikh.

 CORE AND CASUAL CUSTOMERS

Casual customers are those who use Careem four to
eight times in a month whereas Core customers are
those who are the regular users of Careem; travelling
through it every now and then. It is pertinent to
mention here that Core customers are considered as
the loyal customers of Careem. People have
frequently started using Careem for transportation
because its service provides inexpensive, chauffeur-
driven cars within no time. Customers consider
Careem reliable because when they book a ride,
Careem mentions the total cost of the trip, the name
and number of the driver,

the license number of the car. The profile and photograph of 25

Source: https://www.visioncritical.com/engage-
the driver, ‘Caption’, is sent to the customer. Customers can casual-customers.

also track the ride so that they feel safe.

"Increasingly more and more women are using [our service] because for them, there is no
other option," says Careem's Managing Director Junaid Iqbal.

 CURIOUS CUSTOMERS

Some customers only use Careem out of curiosity. Since many people are using Careem, when
they share their experience with friends and family who have not used Careem, it instigates in

27
them the curiosity to test its credibility. As aforesaid, word of mouth is creating more than half of
the demand for Careem. However, some of these curious customers, not all of them, become
regular customers.

 COLD CUSTOMERS

Some customers have turned cold i.e. they have stopped using the services of Careem. Cases of
harassment have been reported against the Careem cab drivers, giving way to the cold customers.
The managing director has said that there is zero tolerance for unaccepted behavior and they
have already started training the drivers regarding mannerism and ethics.

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

In order to develop a healthy relationship with the customers it is necessary that the company
endorses what its loyal customers say. Turning a customer into a regular customer is very crucial
for a company. Interaction with the customer is substantial. The company tries its best not to
give even a single negative experience to its customers.

CUSTOMER LIFETIME VALUE

The company is aware of the importance of customer relationship. A harmonious relationship

26
will lead to the success of the company and generate revenue at a faster rate. Thus giving
incentives, free rides, and credits to the customers is helping market the company and evoking
the customers to return.

Careem focuses on customer lifetime value hence in order to retain the current customers and to
attract new customers, it rewards its clientele by providing them with various appealing offers.
For instance, if you ride with Careem for fifteenth time, Careem gives 15% discount on your
next ride.

EMPLOYEE TRAINING
Since the customer forms opinions on the basis of interaction with the staff the company has
trained its staff very well. Their staff members are experienced and have received appropriate
training.

28
26
Source: 2nd Dec, 2016 Extract from Interview with Assistant General Manager, Ahmed Usman Sheikh.

SWOT ANALYSIS

STRENGTHS:

 Careem, is a well-recognized brand whose standard of service is high, drivers are verified
and cars are licensed.
 Unlimited number of cars are available.
27
 Cost is low.
 Faces less competition.
 Many people are willing to invest on it.
 To address queries Careem has operative call centers working efficiently.

WEAKNESSES:

28
 Customers have privacy issues. Careem archives where customer gets the taxi from. It
also follows-up where the customer goes with it.
 Payment through credit card has triggered a serious concern; usually it deducts the twice
of as much as due.

OPPORTUNITIES:

 Customers are often frustrated with traditional means of transportation so Careem can
exploit new markets especially where taxi services are problematic and costly.
29
  Cheaper cars can be used. It will reduce the cost and increase the vendor’s profit margin.
 Can tap growing markets in areas where taxi services are not available.
 It can explicitly cater to the large female market by ensuring them; the safe ride and
ambience.

THREATS:

 Customers enjoy the convenience Careem provides but due to the scandals of harassment,
the company has fallen into the trench of bad publicity and negative press.
29
 Australian ride service Limofied and Uber, are a huge threat to it. Careem needs to
strengthen itself and address its weaknesses.
27
Source: https://propakistani.pk/2016/09/03/careem-cuts-prices-37-lahore.
28
Source: 25, Oct 2016 Extract from Interview with Fleet Manager Mr. Adeel.
29
Source: December,2016 Launch of Australian ride service Source URL:http://www.dawn.com/news/1238160.

REFERENCES
1
Source: July 19 2016.All you need to know about Careem Retrieved from Google Chrome
Source URL: http://digitaldips.pk/index.php/2016/07/19/351all-you-need-to-know-about-
careem-a-thorough-review/
2
Source Retrieved from Careem Facebook Page
URL:https://web.facebook.com/careempakistan/
3
Source: Oct, 12 2016 Careem registers 30% monthly growth in 2016. Daily News Egypt,
Retrieved from Google Chrome.

Source URL: http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2016/10/12/careem-registers-30-monthly-growth-

2016/
4
July, 11 2016 Careem Plans to spend100Milion on R & D. Daily News Egypt Retrieved from
Google Chrome Source URL: http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2016/07/11/careem-plans-to-
spend-100m-on-rd/
5
Source Sep, 5 2016 Uber vs Careem which online service is better. The Express Tribune
Retrieved from Google Chrome URL http://tribune.com.pk/story/1176490/uber-vs-careem-
online-taxi-service-better/
6
Source URL: http://www.tbreak.com/careem-vs-uber/
7
Source: Careem Documents.

30
8
Source: Careem Documents.
9
Source: Oct, 2016 Interview with Careem Fleet Management.
10
Source: Dec, 2015. Deepika Thakur MBA Candidate, Harvard Business School Why is a local
startup winning the competition with a global giant like uber. Extracted from Google Chrome
Nov, 2016 source URL: https://rctom.hbs.org/submission/careem-why-is-a-local-startup-
winning-the-competition-with-a-global-giant-like-uber/

11
Source: Careem Documents.
12
Source: Marketing Manager Mr. Harris Khan (Islamabad).
13
Soure: Picture courtesy: Careem.
14
Source Careem. (n.d.). Retrieved from Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/careempakistan/
15
SourceThe Express Tribune. (n.d.). Retrieved from Tribune Pakistan.
http://tribune.com.pk/story/1259396/careem-rolls-shaadi-service-pakistan/

16
Source: Careem Official Documents.
17
Source: November, 23 Faraz’s Email. The image shows the electronic customer bill break
down.
18
Source:http://www.slideshare.net/katebuckjr/website-audience-retargeting-on-facebook
19
Source: July, 2015 Average Cost Per Click URL extracted from Google Chrome Nov, 20
Source URL: http://www.wordstream.com/blog/ws/2015/07/06/average-cost-per-click.
20
Source: (Sep, 2016) Screen Shot – Personal.
21
Source: Assistant General Manager Careem Ahmed Usman Sheikh.
22
Source: Interview quoted by Mr. Harris Khan, Marketing Manager Careem.
23
Source: 2nd Dec, 2016 Extract from Interview with Assistant General Manager, Ahmed
Usman Sheikh.
24
Source: http://www.slideshare.net/AakifAhmad1/careem-ride-share-presentation-may-2016.
25
Source: September,2016 Engagement of the Casual Customers extracted from Google Chrome
Dec, 2. Source URL: https://www.visioncritical.com/engage-casual-customers.
26
Source: 2nd Dec, 2016 Extract from Interview with Assistant General Manager, Ahmed
Usman Sheikh.

31
27
Source: 3rd September,2016 Careem cuts prices extracted from Google Chrome Dec, 12.
https://propakistani.pk/2016/09/03/careem-cuts-prices-37-lahore.
28
Source: 25, Oct 2016 Extract from Interview with Fleet Manager Mr. Adeel.
29
Source: December,2016 Launch of Australian ride service extracted from Google Chrome Dec,
15. Source URL: http://www.dawn.com/news/1238160.

32