4 UX Design insights of 100+ DiDi rides.
A western perspective after being two months in China.
During my two months in China, mainly Shanghai, I had some exciting insights on life and drive in China. Here are some takeaways on my daily ride-hailing experiences — using the DiDi service 2–3 times per day. DiDi is the Chinese ride-hailing equivalent to Uber/Lyft in the US/EU. I use Uber/Lyft frequently but China is a quite different cultural context — especially when it comes to mobility. Opinions on insights are my own.
1. A new level of digital device stacking.
In my experience I saw most people attaching two phones on the dashboard via a mount. One for WeChat or Entertainment and one for Didi’s Turn-by-turn Navigation. It was very common that drivers were constantly chatting on the WeChat — using both text or voice audio function when the vehicle stopped for a few seconds in the dense and rather slow Shanghai traffic during rush hours. Furthermore, a Dash-cam view integrated either in the rear mirror or as a separate device (mostly for insurance purposes). In addition, the vehicle screen system itself that either plays music, entertainment, traffic information or a city/route overview for instance. Some vehicles even had a DiDi or WeChat integration which actually decreased the number of additional devices and gave the interior a more integrated look when it comes to the digital interaction.
2. Hospitality is key.
Even though the fact that the “new car smell/scent” is not very popular in China it plays an important role in the vehicle “guest experience”. Similar experiences I made in building, hotels and homes to an extent that definitely exceeds the attention of people put on scents in US/EU from my experience. Aftermarket solutions that people mount on the dashboard or in front of the air vents are also very popular. Additional pillows on the rear seating row are another example. Blankets or covers are popular to make it feel more comfortable, warm and casual especially in the vehicle that has a basic interior setup people use aftermarket upgrades to come closer to a premium interior experience. Furthermore, people liked to decorate the vehicle to express their personality. A fully decorated AC Milan vehicle interior was one of my highlights.
3. No Mandarin? No problem.
When ordering/using a taxi, debating the price and destination can be difficult since many Chinese drivers don’t speak English. Not just is the address/pickup location already in the Didi app, so the driver knows exactly where she/he has to go . The app also enables chat translation: By default, all my messages to the driver will be translated into Mandarin and vice versa. This makes the experience incredible seamless and removes a major pain-point. Translating the spoken word of a conversation with apps worked very good in general and was a natural interaction for many who communicate often with English speaking people: One person speaks to the phone, which translates it in the opposite language in text and then vice versa. When it comes to the written word the camera function of, for instance, Google Translate did an excellent job of translating Mandarin words into English once in real time.
4. The vehicle as an advertising platform.
Cargo is a startup from the US many readers might be familiar with. I saw similar startups in China in the Didi vehicles that enable people to buy snacks or drinks directly in the vehicle. Since mobile payment is accessible for everyone I predict these solutions don’t even need an Uber/Didi app integration since the user could just use WeChat or Alipay — the most popular mobile payment platforms. I guess the driver will get a cut of the money spent in the in-car-shop. Other advertising solutions were magazines, banners or stickers in vehicles (which all use QR code to get from attention to conversion). Another common image was that taxis and small vans had a rear-window projection to show advertising to the people on the street or to other vehicle drivers and passengers in the traffic.
Have you been to China recently yourself? Share your insights in the comment section and let me know what you think.
In the following weeks I plan to share more insights from my two months of life and innovations in China.
