Review: Click A Taxi

When I was living in Manhattan, hailing a cab become second nature. But the truth is that I was overdosing on taxi rides even before that and – since having moved back to Stockholm again - I’m still addicted. Because of this, I was happy to test a new taxi app out, Click A Taxi. They got me some taxi coupons (thank you!) and given my addicted taxi lifestyle, I was happy to give the application a try.

UI & Tonality

I’m guessing the interface is designed by a guy and not a girl. Nothing wrong with that, but blue and steel grey doesn’t make the app into a feel-good-environment. The logo is a bit clunky as well, but I still think it works, mainly because Click A Taxi is a really good name. The big plus is that it’s very easy to use; I had no problems ordering a taxi just a few seconds after downloading it. You also get a confirmation screen, which gives you a sense of comfort.

The tone of voice should be improved on the home page however—it’s not exactly a revolution. It also claims to be working anywhere and that is a social media disaster waiting to happen; A digital influencer might take that on as a challenge and one fairly big negative conversation might have a huge SERP (search engine results page) impact.

Features & Functions

The GPS functionality in finding your address is awesome. If it’s a little bit off, you just swipe it in place while the address auto-updates. This function is the reason why I would choose this app over any of the native taxi companies’ apps. You can also save your name and phone number for future orders, which is nice.

However, for me, who is loyal to Taxi Stockholm and NYC Yellow Cabs, would like to be able to choose what taxi company to order from. If I’m to be a loyal user of this app, I have to get used to the idea that some of the other scary taxi companies picks me up. If I can’t get used to this idea, then I would use this app when going to places where I don’t yet have favorite taxi company.

Social Psychology

Unfortunately, there are no gamification aspects of this app at all. I would love to have the choice to post my ride RunKeeper style to my Facebook wall. I would love to collect taxi “miles” and compete with my friends. Most app companies complain that there’s only a fraction of their user base who would be interested in these functions, but implemented correctly, the ramp-up marketing effect these individuals create more than make up for it.

User Value

It seems the crew behind the app has put time and effort into partnerships with local taxi companies. This is the main user value, because it ensures that it works each and every time. The secondary is its ease-of-use and GPS accuracy. But is it necessary? The native local taxi apps are making progress as well and Taxi Stockholm for instance allows me to order a taxi with a text message, so Click A Taxi needs to be more than just working, it needs to be awesome.

Will It Stick?

The company behind the app will have to spend on marketing continuously, since there’s no social ramping. This will require financial stamina over a long period of time, because manifesting user behaviors takes persistence. They must also keep developing the app based on user data without loosing the ease-of-use as well as ramping it up with a social strategy.

 Want to test it? It’s available in both AppStore and Android Market. And please share your opinions on taxi apps in the comments!