Real life Analytics - Redbus

I have to improve the transactional funnel of redBus without increasing the CAC (Customer Acquisition Cost) because the business objective is not just to increase the total number of transactions, but to increase the total number of transactions with a sustainable solution.

Following are the important metrics for RedBus, which you would need to monitor in order to measure the funnel performance.

1. Conversion rate: How many visitors or users actually book a ticket? Check each stage of the funnel so that we get to know at which stage the drop-off rate is high. By measuring this metric we get to know how many people actually derived value from our product.

2. Customer Retention Rate: This metric measures the no. of users retained after using the service. This also gives an idea of churn rate, we can work to reduce churn rate by working on retention strategies.

3. Cancellation Rate: This rate can be calculated as a percentage of bookings out of all bookings that are cancelled in a given time period. By collecting qualitative feedback, we get to know the reasons for cancellation and can work on improving to reduce the cancellation rate, thus ultimately increasing the transactions in a particular time period.

Some user segments that one might look at to help separate the target users. Some likely user segments are:

1. Male-Female: To identify our primary target users.

2. Geolocation: To identify areas with strong internet services and better transport facilities.

3. Age: To identify people among which age group are more acquainted with online bus services.

4. Customer journey stage: To identify the user segment have better chances of transacting.

5. Users Status: To identify user segments that can be targeted.

6. Device and platform: To identify which device or platform is preferred among users.

7. Interest: To identify people with what type of interests prefer to travel.

Some cuts across the funnel that one might look at to help select a target feature. So, the cuts to monitor the funnel daily are:

1. Platform: Which platform does a user prefer for booking a bus?

2. Customer journey stage: Which type of users are transacting more?

3. Top providers: How are the bus providers communicating with the users?

4. Time of day: At what time of the day are the number of transactions high?

5. Bus type: What is the prefered bus type for a user travelling between two points?

6. Payment method: What is the most convenient payment mode for the user?

7. Geolocation: Which type of geographical area provides you with a higher number of transactions?

8. Booking amount: How does the cost of a ticket affect the number of transactions?

2 new features that can help RedBus increase the number of transactions?

1. Reserve a seat – Many travel companies like Emirates allow customers to reserve a seat with the same fair price for a limited period of time by charging a little premium for those users who are not sure about the travel dates. If the booking is done in time then the amount is refundable.

2. In-app notifications and alarms while travelling – Redbus has a very good tracking system to enhance it further we can add in-app reminders and alarms to travellers about their destination distance.

2 growth strategies that can help RedBus increase the number of transactions?

1. Redbus loyalty program – What I mean by loyalty program is tier-based badges are provided to users based on the frequency of bookings. Depending on the tier, promotions and offers are provided.

2. Partnerships with brands and travel agencies – Providing mind-boggling promotions or offers results in the increase in retention and engagement of users to the app or service, this can be achieved easily by collaborating with various organizations.

3. Travel Packages – Based on the season various tours conducted by redbus might build trust and create awareness about the brand and increases engagement, maybe increasing the number of user percentage of reconsidering the service or app.

Metrics to monitor the above-mentioned features and strategies

1. Bounce rate at checkout – This metric is used to measure the reserve a seat feature, by conducting qualitative feedback methods to users who quit from the checkout page. This provides brief information about the feature reserve a seat.

2. Adding sessions or cuts while tracking bus – This metric provides information about the interaction of users with the feature of In-app notifications and alarms.

3. No.of bookings made in a particular time period – This metric gives data about booking users whether loyalty members or normal regular users.

4. Traffic source – This metric provides information from where traffic is coming like referrals, direct search, SEO, and paid advertising likewise.

5. CTA rate – With this metric, we can derive insights about the promotions or offers used by users.

What are the major challenges that RedBus could face in the next 12 - 24 months?

1. COVID - The most obvious challenge for the next 12 months is going to be COVID. With COVID travel restrictions will be in place and unless Buse services resume- there will be no Bookings- which means a complete halt of business.

2. Employee retention, meeting Operating expenses. - With Business Impact and lesser revenue due to the pandemic, Red-bus may find challenges with respect to meeting Operating expenses, and retaining employees.

3. Direct Booking – Many frequent travellers or long-distance travellers choose offline mode because of connections made a long time ago.

4. Female safety – Due to recent incidents, many female users might not consider travelling via busses, especially during nights