By: Triyo Saputra – Account Manager of Fortune PR
“Conventional business today must change its business model to survive the digital disruption. They must start utilizing digital technologies. We can learn from the case of Blue Bird Taxi, and how they now struggle to compete with online taxis operating with different types of vehicles and equipped with tech-savvy drivers who rely solely on Google Maps. Data showed that consumers today prefer riding online taxis compare to conventional taxis, and this has become a major loss for Blue Bird over the recent years. The company lost three-quarters of its market value over a 20-month period from the beginning of 2015, which coincided with the emergence of ride-hailing apps. Its share recovered after announcing a partnership with ride-hailing app Go-Jek, allowing customers to order cabs through the Go-Jek app. But its market value remains well below 2015 peaks. We can consider the partnership as a right step. Through this, Blue Bird can slowly come back and build their image as a company that will go-digital. But it is important to note that the road to digital transformation requires a lot of changes of internal infrastructure and system. In addition, going digital requires educating employee’s mindset and knowledge about digital literacy, so they will able to face the changes and challenges in the future. I predict Blue Bird will only have less than 5 years to run their old business model. If Blue Bird does not immediately shift to become a digital business, then get ready to be history.”
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