Episodes  · Season 3  · Episode 45  · 40 min

Paul Wright: Advertising Inside the Journey

Paul Wright, Head of EMEA at Uber Advertising, on building a $1 billion advertising run rate faster than expected, how Uber's three distinct advertising propositions reach audiences at moments of genuine commercial intent, and what it looks like to build a media business inside one of the world's most-used mobility platforms. Recorded as Head of EMEA at Uber Advertising.

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 ·  The Business of Marketing  · S3 E45  · 40 min
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"We launched Uber Advertising in 2022. Two years later, $1 billion run rate. Earlier than we expected."

The Conversation with Justin Cooke

How Uber Advertising reached a $1 billion run rate by creating advertising that reaches people at moments of genuine commercial intent

Paul Wright joined Uber in December 2022 to set up the UK advertising business, which he then expanded across EMEA and APAC. Uber Advertising launched in 2022 to accelerate the company's move into advertising beyond the sponsored listings that already existed in Uber Eats. By the time this episode was recorded, the ads business had reached a $1 billion run rate, achieved faster than the company had planned.

In this conversation Wright explains why Uber's three distinct advertising propositions, sponsored listings in Eats, brand activation in Rides, and Journey TV in the US, each reach audiences at moments of genuine commercial intent, and what the principles of consumer benefit and contextual relevance mean in practice for a platform where the user experience is paramount.

Key Takeaways

  • $1 billion advertising run rate, reached faster than planned. The demand for access to Uber's unique audience moments exceeded initial projections.
  • Advertising on Uber must be beneficial to consumers. The user experience is the product. Advertising that degrades it damages the core business.
  • Three propositions: sponsored listings in Eats, brand activation in Rides, Journey TV in the US. Each reaches a distinct moment of commercial intent.
  • Uber Advertising is operational in over 30 markets since launching in 2022. The international expansion continues.
  • The intersection of mobility data, transactional data, and location data creates advertising context that traditional programmatic cannot replicate.

Topics Covered

  1. 01 How Uber Advertising reached $1 billion run rate and the three propositions that drove it
  2. 02 Why advertising on a mobility platform must be beneficial to consumers not just to partners
  3. 03 Sponsored listings: reaching audiences at the moment they decide what to eat or buy
  4. 04 Brand activation in Uber Rides: advertising in a moment of captive in-journey attention
  5. 05 What building a media business inside a mobility platform requires from first principles

Key Exchanges

05
01 Tell us about your role and Uber Advertising.

My role is to run the international teams in EMEA and APAC. Let me roll back on the story of Uber Advertising. We started in 2020 with a straightforward sponsored listings business built around the Eats platform. Then we launched Uber Advertising in 2022 to accelerate our move into advertising and launch into the Rides app. I joined in December 2022 to originally set up the UK.

Wright sets out the founding context and the speed of commercial development.

02 Tell me about the three core propositions.

We have sponsored listings elements that sit within Uber Eats. We have advertising for CPGs in terms of how they engage with people getting their products in basket through convenience or restaurant partners. And then we have brand activation within the Uber Rides app. In the US we also have Journey TV: back of headrest screens in cars where the rider can see their map and there are advertising opportunities.

Each proposition targets a distinct moment of commercial intent.

03 What is the principle around consumer benefit?

It has always got to be ideally beneficial to the consumer as much as it is beneficial to our restaurant partners. We are building a business where the advertising serves the user's intent. That is the constraint that also turns out to be the commercial differentiator.

Consumer benefit is not just a values statement. It is the operating principle that makes the advertising more effective.

04 Tell me about the $1 billion run rate.

We announced in July this year at our earnings call that the ads business had reached a billion dollar run rate, which is great. We set that out as a target to achieve by end of 24. We actually achieved it slightly quicker than we thought. It is a key part of Uber's business now at that level.

The milestone illustrates that the demand from advertisers for access to Uber's audience moment exceeded the company's initial forecasts.

05 What does the expansion look like?

We are operational in over 30 markets now in terms of where we have teams and operations. We launched Spain at the beginning of this year. We have expanded into other markets across EMEA and APAC. Constant growth capturing demand from advertisers in ways they have not perhaps thought about before.

The international expansion continues to be the primary growth driver.

S3 E45Season & Episode
40 minDuration
$1B Advertising run rate reached by Uber Advertising faster than planned
30+ Markets where Uber Advertising teams are operational

"It has always got to be beneficial to the consumer as much as it is beneficial to our restaurant partners."

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The Business of Marketing
Season 3 Episode 45 40 min
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Lightly edited for readability.

Host Tell us about your role and Uber Advertising.

Wright I run the international teams in EMEA and APAC. We launched Uber Advertising in 2022. I joined in December 2022 to set up the UK and then expanded. Three propositions: sponsored listings in Uber Eats, brand activation in Uber Rides, and Journey TV in the US. We announced a $1 billion run rate at earnings, achieved faster than we planned. Operational in over 30 markets.

Host What is the principle around consumer benefit?

Wright It has always got to be ideally beneficial to the consumer as much as to our restaurant partners. We are building advertising that serves the user's intent at the moment they are making a decision. That constraint is also the commercial differentiator.