When the internet goes down, life comes to a standstill. Well, almost. We have come to depend on the internet for so many things. Booking of cabs is one of them. With the advent of cab booking through smartphone apps, more and more people in metros have started booking their cabs via smartphones.
However, this dependence might become a problem if you are not able to get online. In case you are at a place where network is not good. Or you get disconnected while making a cab booking. It might cause lot of hassle.
To help the users during such times of no net connectivity, Ola has announced the launch of 'Ola Offline.' This will enable customers to book a cab using SMS. As of now, Ola Offline is only available in metros in India. It will be available across all cab categories, that is, Micro, Mini, Prime and Lux.
Here's how you can use Ola Offline:
- Users trying to book a cab using the Ola app will now get the options of Retry or Book via SMS if they lose internet connectivity.
- Retry: Retry will help the users who lose the network connectivity momentarily while booking a cab. By tapping on Retry, users can resume the booking process when they get back online.
- Book via SMS: Using this option, people can book a cab by sending an SMS. Tapping on this button will open up the default messaging app showing a pre-filled text message. When the user sends this message to the pre-filled number, they will receive a reply SMS. This message will give them the details of the nearest available Ola cabs in various categories. The user can select his or her preferred cab and intimate by sending an SMS. In response, they will get the driver and cab details that has been booked for them. The driver of this cab will also get the customer contact details as well as the GPS triangulated location of the user.
- Later, when the user is able to get back online, he or she can view other details like the ride details, GPS tracking, SOS button etc. from the Ola app.
This sounds like a good step to prevent travelers from getting stranded without net connectivity. Now the users can book an Ola cab even when they are not able to get online.
