Lean Business Model Canvas for BlaBlaCar.com

GALYNA PRYHODKO

Head of Product Marketing at Rademade.com

PROBLEM

Problem

General: There was no place where a driver and someone who wanted to rideshare could arrange to travel together.

For car owners:

To use free space efficiently whilst travelling.
To share the travel costs.

For passengers:

To get from point A to point B at a cheaper price than by using public transport.
To be able to get to another city if there are no tickets available with public transport services.

SOLUTION

Develop an online platform where drivers can offer a spare seat in their car and find a passenger to share the travel costs. (Driver: reducing the travel expenses)

Design a service where a passenger can find an alternative way of travelling long distance that is faster and cheaper than going by bus or train. (Passenger: the travel is cheaper than by bus or train).

Joint reliable journeys that can be trusted due to binding a credit card, confirmed profiles and reviews.

KEY METRICS

1. GMV (Gross Merchandise Value, the total amount of committed sales) — it is measured indirectly since the website does not operate with money transactions.
2. Purchase of goods — which percentage of listings, posted on the website, was booked in the 30-day period (an average bill).
3. The number of drivers who have posted their listings today.
4. The number of listings that have been posted today.
5. The total number of active users (buyers), growth rate, the percentage of items purchased by old and new customers.
6. Percentage of sales by old and new drivers.

UNIQUE VALUE PROPOSITION

Gather drivers and passengers who travel to the same destination.

UNFAIR ADVANTAGE

A сommunity of loyal users. Such a project won't survive without drivers and passengers; users and their interaction is the main asset of the business.
A сommunity of reliable passengers and drivers. On the website, all profiles, ratings, and customer reviews concerning the passengers and drivers are confirmed.
The BlaBlaCar brand. It created a new notion in customers' minds ‘A place where one can find a ride to his destination’, and BlaBlaCar became a generic name like Xerox.

CHANNELS

Social networks (promotion of the service)
Marketing buzz
Integration with a website that contains timetables of traditional transportation systems
Contextual advertising
Information on pages of festivals-partners
SEO of brand requests
Email marketing for users registered on the website

CUSTOMER SEGMENTS

Vendor's side

Characteristics: Drivers who have free seats whilst they are traveling from one city or country to another. Those who want to save money and share the travel costs. Drivers who wish to meet and communicate with people. Drivers who spend a lot of time online.

Drivers' profile:

A driver who goes on a business trip,
A driver who travels to see his family in another city,
A young couple which travels from point A to point B for different reasons including a vacation,
A driver who travels alone.

Customer's side

Characteristics: Passengers who need to get from one city or country to another. They are looking for a cheaper alternative to the bus or train. They are active online users who would like to socialise with new people and have fun during the journey. The passengers want to get to their destination faster and with more comfort. These can be students, younger people or even the elderly who have no concern with using an online service like this.

Passenger profile:

A man or a couple who travel somewhere on the weekend,
A passenger who visits his relatives during his holiday,
A student who goes to volunteer somewhere,
A young person who goes to another city/country to have fun (concerts, festivals, etc.).

COST STRUCTURE

Salary of the company's employees
Marketing
Cost of hosting (servers)

REVENUE STREAMS

% from transactions

Monetizing comes through implementing an Internet payment system: passengers pay for travel on this platform when they book the car seats. This payment includes the price set by the driver (within the limit defined by BlaBlalCar, they can compensate only the travel cost) and the brokerage fee of 10-15%, which is the only source of income for this web platform.The driver receives the payment from the passenger only after the journey has been completed.

Header photo: johny007pandp / depositphotos.com