# UBER UNCOVERED....Breaking NEWS.....8/26......SLIMEBALLS



## UberXWhip (Aug 17, 2014)

Uber is sending hired brand ambassadors undercover to recruit drivers from competing companies like Lyft, according to documents obtained by The Verge.

The driver recruitment process is called Operation Slog (Supplying Long-term Operations Growth). The word slog also means to work hard or hit forcefully, like in a fight.

Slog aims to disguise Uber brand ambassadors as normal Lyft riders by giving them burner phones and credit cards to create fake accounts, according to the Verge. Then the Uber workers reportedly talk to Lyft drivers about jumping ship to Uber during their rides. The hired Uber workers are supposedly called "Street teams."

One Uber contractor tells The Verge's Casey Newton that, not only is Uber recruiting aggressively from Lyft, it's also well-aware that Uber's tactics are costing Lyft drivers business. Lyft previously estimated that Uber workers called and then cancelled more than 5,000 rides on its service, costing its drivers time and money.

"Not only does Uber know about this, they're actively encouraging these actions day-to-day and, in doing so, are flat-out lying both to their customers, the media, and their investors," the contractor told Newton.

An email about Slog details the steps Street Teams were allegedly asked to take by Uber:


Request a Lyft using your temporary phone/account
Upon arrival enter car, begin small talk with driver ("How long have you drove [sic] with Lyft?" "What brought you to Lyft?" "Do you like Lyft?")
After assessing driver for openness to Uber, ask them if they'd consider joining Uber
If they say "Yes" fill out [a] form.
Verge's documentation suggests that Lyft is Uber's primary target. One email from a marketing manager at Uber to "Sloggers" encouraged the street teams to "#shavethestache," a reference to Lyft's signature pink mustaches. Other services like Sidecar, Hailo, and Gett weren't mentioned in documented cited by The Verge.

In response to The Verge's report, Uber issued a blog post describing Operation Slog in a way that makes it sound like just your average smart growth tactic. (When asked for comment, Uber referred us to this blog post.) It says its aggressive recruitment strategy is just "cutting through the noise" of the crowded ridesharing space.

"With millions of riders and ever-increasing demand for more rides in even more cities, we are always working hard to recruit new drivers onto the platform," Uber writes. "Ridesharing is a noisy marketplace. To market the benefits of driving with Uber, we cut through the noise to market to potential partners."

Uber admits that it may have its team take rides from competitors, but says it never cancels rides or hurts a competing driver's business intentionally, like Lyft has claimed in the past.

"We can't successfully recruit drivers without talking to them - and that means taking a ride. We're all about more and better economic opportunity for drivers. We never use marketing tactics that prevent a driver from making their living - and that includes never intentionally canceling rides," Uber writes.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/ubers-operation-slog-against-lyft-2014-8#ixzz3BYjaIuME


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## RustleWimson (Aug 7, 2014)

Capitalism at its finest..


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## anexfanatic (Aug 10, 2014)

I actually almost became an ambassador for Uber Charlotte. They scheduled me for a phone interview last week, but I didn't see the e-mail in time. Probably for the best that I didn't get it this time around...


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## u_no_me (Jun 27, 2014)

anexfanatic said:


> I actually almost became an ambassador for Uber Charlotte. They scheduled me for a phone interview last week, but I didn't see the e-mail in time. Probably for the best that I didn't get it this time around...


Just curious how they select people: have you been a driver a long time? great rating? personal contact with staff at the office?


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## Walkersm (Apr 15, 2014)

Think they were mostly looking for college age people and more specifically women to convert the mostly male targets over.


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## fuber (Aug 26, 2014)

Who cares? It can only benefit the drivers and recruiters. Where that 20% commissions should go do you think? I like this move


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## Walkersm (Apr 15, 2014)

How will this benefit the drivers to have more drivers on Uber? One time bonuses are nice but at what cost?


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## LuLu (Jun 27, 2014)

u_no_me said:


> Just curious how they select people: have you been a driver a long time? great rating? personal contact with staff at the office?


There is a spot on Uber website. Just found it while reading above article, click on Operation Slog.....wow, looks like they would consider anyone..


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## uberdriver (Aug 4, 2014)

UberXWhip said:


> One Uber contractor tells The Verge's Casey Newton that, not only is Uber recruiting aggressively from Lyft, it's also well-aware that Uber's tactics are costing Lyft drivers business. Lyft previously estimated that Uber workers called and then cancelled more than 5,000 rides on its service, costing its drivers time and money.
> 
> "Not only does Uber know about this, they're actively encouraging these actions day-to-day and, in doing so, are flat-out lying both to their customers, the media, and their investors," the contractor told Newton.
> 
> ...


More Uber doublespeak. "Never intentionally canceling rides".

But then Uber also made the following statements (underlined) in the CNN article *Uber rival accuses car service of dirty tactics *in which Gett, which allows users to order cars with a smartphone app, claimed that Uber employees in New York ordered and canceled over a hundred of its cars, and then Uber acknowledged the tactics went overboard:

_"Our local teams can be pretty determined when spreading the word about Uber and how our platform opens up new economic opportunities for drivers," Uber said in a statement. "In this instance, the New York City team was a bit too ambitious and we'll make sure they tone down their sales tactics."

Gett CEO Jing Herman likened the incident to a "denial of service" attack, saying the cancellations disrupted the company's business. In some cases, Herman said the Uber employees waited until the cars had showed up to cancel the order. Uber said the orders were all canceled immediately.

Order forms provided to CNNMoney show that more than a dozen Uber employees were involved, including community managers, operations managers, Uber's general manager, and the company's social media strategist.

Uber spokesman Andrew Noyes said Uber ultimately paid cancellation fees for the rides its employees ordered on Gett._

So on one side they write that they would "never" do such a thing and on the other side the company's spokesman even acknowledges that they actually did it.


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## Joanne (May 7, 2014)

Uber and Lyft have been ride-cancelling eachother and swiping drivers foreeeverrr.


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## fuber (Aug 26, 2014)

Walkersm said:


> How will this benefit the drivers to have more drivers on Uber? One time bonuses are nice but at what cost?


More cars there are, shorter the drive to the p/u spot.


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## UberNoob (Aug 14, 2014)

Pretty soon, the average ride will be $4.00, netting you only $2.40. Hmm, it would be worthwhile if you could do a hundred of those a day.


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## anexfanatic (Aug 10, 2014)

I actually almost became an ambassador for Uber Charlotte. They scheduled me for a phone interview, but I didn't see the e-mail in time. Probably for the best that I didn't get it this time around...


u_no_me said:


> Just curious how they select people: have you been a driver a long time? great rating? personal contact with staff at the office?


I've only been a driver for 3 weeks. No, I don't know anyone at Uber - I just applied through a posting they had on the website. I have a 4.97 rating.


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## Sean O'Gorman (Apr 17, 2014)

I'm an ambassador in my market, and one of the few who isn't a college age kid. The other one is also a driver. There has been no Lyft driver recruiting here, it's all about getting new rider sign ups.

The hours are limited but the pay is really good.


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