TriggerMap is a 21-day behavioral case study that tracks how Uber Eats responds to new users who hesitate, abandon carts, and never convert.
Just observation and system mapping.
| Column | Use for tracking… |
|---|---|
| Date/Time | Exact timestamp of behavior or trigger |
| Action Type | What I did in the app: Account Created, App Opened, Cart Abandoned, Switched Pickup/Delivery, Promo Appeared, etc. |
| Behavior Details | Details of my in-app interaction — e.g., cart value (unpaid), time of day, whether a tip was selected (but not submitted), etc. |
| System Response | What Uber did: push notification, email, promo offer, nothing |
| Result Status | What you did in response: used offer, ignored, re-opened app |
| Notes | Anything contextual: device, delays, unexpected UI behavior |
| Phase | Days | Doing | Probing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bait Phase | Days 1–5 | Scroll during lunch/dinner, add to cart, abandon. No card, no orders. | How the system tracks hesitant but high-interest users |
| Escalation | Days 6–10 | Repeat patterns. Revisit past carts. Add variation (value, restaurants, timing). | What triggers promos: frequency, cart value, repeated behavior |
| Conversion Window | Days 11–15 | Add card (no order), leave cart populated, simulate near-checkout behavior. | How trust level shifts with card on file; escalation vs. delay in promos |
| Decay Watch | Days 16–18 | Skip entire day(s). Go dark after near-conversion. Re-engage with scroll only. | Reactivation logic: how does Uber respond to sudden drop-off |
| Total Dormancy | Days 19–21 | Full ghosting. No app opens, no behavior. Watch for email/push escalation or silence. | Final re-activation attempt, or whether you’re classified as churned user |
| Extended Dormancy | Day 21-25 | Brief scrolling | Final re-activation attempt, or whether you’re classified as churned user |
Screen Captures:
Uber One Promo free for 4 weeks
Day 18 50% off 3 orders up to 20 dollars
In App pushes for user to claim the offer easily
30% up to 8 dollars off Uber Rides for a payment method
30 days free delivery over $15 on initial sign up
| Day | Platform | Offer | Condition | Claimed? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Uber Eats | 30-day free delivery (Order $15%) | On account creation | ❌ |
| 0 | Uber Eats | 4 weeks trial | On account creation | ❌ |
| 3 | Uber Rides | $8 off first trip | Add card | ❌ |
| 3 | Uber Eats | Push: “Deals you’re missing” | Multi-cart hesitation | ❌ |
| 18 | Uber Eats | 50% promo off 3 orders | Make an order | ❌ |
| 34 | Uber Eats | 75% promo off 3 orders | Make an order | ❌ |
| Day | Date/Time | Action Type | Behavior Details | System Response | Result Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | May 19, 11:30PM | Account Created | OAuth via Gmail, Clean Android, Dad's number, Added $24.98 cart and abandoned | 30-day Free Delivery (orders $15+) | No order placed | No SMS, no payment method yet. Monitoring if promo escalates before card added. |
| 1 | May 20 12:20PM | Cart Abandonment + No Payment + First Trust Offer | ||||
| Opened app, browsed, added ~$20 cart, sat 30s, | ||||||
| Attempted to view checkout, system prompted for card instead of showing final total, exited without adding card | ||||||
| Opened App, was offer Uber One for 4 weeks trial for free, prompted for card instead of showing me checkout total | ||||||
| offer ignored, no order placed -abandon cart | No push or email yet. Will monitor for escalation if ignored by dinner. Baseline trust score likely high due to clean device/new acct. |
|
| 1 | May 20 5:28 PM | Cart Reset + Restaurant Search + Cart Add
| Deleted earlier lunch cart
• Searched for known restaurant (specific interest)
• Added 1 item (~$20) to cart
• Sat idle ~30s
• Did not check out or view final total
• Exited app without action | No discount offer, no new banners, no push
| Cart left full, session ended
| Search → cart → exit = very strong hesitation signal System is still holding back promos, likely expecting natural conversion Watching for next-morning or lunchtime promo trigger Escalation likely Day 2 or 3 if conversion doesn’t occur |
| 2 | May 21 11:58 AM | Cart Repeat + Intent Reinforcement | Opened app during lunch window, browsed multiple cuisines, added ~$20–23 item to cart, sat idle ~60s, exited with full cart (no card) | No direct promo, Uber One-specific deals shown in UI, no push or email | Cart left full, user exited | System still favoring subscription path (Uber One) over dollar promo; likely testing if you’ll convert without a deal. May escalate by Day 3 if ignored again. |
| 2 | May 21 5:05PM | Cart Add + Menu Exploration + Remove | Opened app, browsed for ~2 mins, added $40 sushi to cart, added/removed a few menu items, sat idle on cart screen ~1 min, exited without adding card | No promo, no banner, no push/email | Cart abandoned | High-value cart ($40) plus item tweaks = strong purchase signal. Uber One still not escalating to discount. System may assume imminent conversion and is delaying incentives. Watch Day 2 lunch. |
| 3 | May 22 1:15PM | Cart Refresh + Add | Deleted yesterday’s cart. Browsed sushi again. Built new $27 cart. Sat on cart screen ~60s. Toggled between pickup and delivery → prompted for card each time. Exited without checkout. | No promo. Card prompt surfaced when switching delivery method. No banner, push, or email. | Cart abandoned | Uber still stalling. Card prompt on delivery toggle shows the system assuming you’re close. No offer escalation yet. System continues to assume you’ll convert without incentive. Watch for Day 3 pressure. |
| 3 | May 22 5:35PM | Cart Abandoned | 40 dollar cart (2 meals) built, during 1-minute scroll session | No push notification, no promo triggered
| Closed app, no further action taken
| Large cart signals strong intent. System likely expected conversion and chose to delay promo escalation. Multiple consecutive full carts now stacked across days. Day 3 may trigger escalation. |
| 4 | May 23 12:05PM | No app action yet – Passive Watch | | Received push notification: “Deals you’re missing” | Opened the email for Uber Rides (30% off Up to 8 dollars off) Received 1 hour after (May 22 1:26PM) / to email - subject to adding a card on file & by May 27 to claim. | Push + dual-email = system is testing urgency and trust fallback strategy. Rides offer is technically unrelated, but the add-card incentive is clearly being pushed. System now watching if you’ll cave and link payment |
| 4 | May 23 12:05 PM | Cart Abandoned | $20 cart built during 1-minute scroll session | Received push: "Deals you're missing"; email for Uber Eats; separate email for Uber Rides: "$8 off first trip” - obtainable by adding a payment method | App closed, no payment added, no order placed | System triggered multi-channel escalation in response to repeated cart hesitation. Push came within hours. Uber Rides offer indicates trust-building attempt through vertical cross-promotion. No food promo yet. Testing user resistance through parallel incentives. |
| 4 | May 23, 2025 – 6:40 PM | Cart Abandoned + Priority Option View | Opened app after receiving a push and email: “Let the store come to you” (grocery-focused copy). Browsed 1 min, added 4 dinner item to cart ($60). Viewed “priority delivery” option. Stayed on cart screen ~1 min deciding. Exited without ordering. | Push + email nudge for grocery delivery. No food-specific promo. App continues showing Uber One perks. No discount escalation. | App closed. No card added. No order placed. | Uber has now pivoted to testing a vertical reframe, attempting to shift behavior toward grocery delivery or higher AOV purchases via priority upsell. Cart behavior remains high intent. Escalation pressure continues. Monitoring if food promos are skipped entirely in favor of ecosystem nudging. |
| 5 | May 24 11:40 AM | Cart Abandoned + Pickup viewed | Opened the app, added some food from a merchant, Stayed on cart screen ~1 min deciding. Exited without ordering. | No discount offer, no new banners, no push | App closed. No card added. No order placed. | Pickup mode may be de-prioritized for escalation (possibly less lucrative than delivery)
Card not added could signal to the system that you’re not ready to transact → lower trust bucket
Cart hover time (~1 min) is borderline — not long enough to trigger urgency, not short enough to be dismissed as a misclick Could indicate Uber's system is still in observation mode with your user profile |
| 5 | May 24 5:40PM | Cart Reminder Re-Engagement + Cart Reset + Cart Abandoned | Received push notification reminding user to return to incomplete lunch cart. Opened app, browsed for 1 min. No new offers or banners. Deleted all old carts. Added a new meal ($45) to cart. Navigated to checkout menu, viewed it briefly, then exited the app. | Push: Cart recovery nudge | No promo or Uber One escalation | System has now moved to specific cart recovery nudges, attempting to reactivate through memory/context. Still delaying promo logic. Priority likely shifting to subtle exit friction. If no conversion by Day 6–7, discount escalation may finally trigger. |
| 6 | May 25 12:15PM | Menu Revisit – Prior Merchant | Reopened same restaurant from Day 5 dinner. Scrolled the menu casually for ~1 minute. Did not add anything to cart. Exited the app. | No promo, push, or offer triggered. No banner escalation. | App exited. No cart activity. | This reinforces intent memory — Uber logs prior merchant revisits as heat signals. System may interpret this as pre-conversion behavior. No new system moves yet. Day 6 dinner may escalate if no food conversion follows. |
| 7 | May 26 12:07 PM | Cart Add + BOGO Deal + Long Idle | Opened Uber Eats, scrolled for 1 minute. Added a restaurant’s BOGO promo deal to cart ($25 value). Then sat on the cart screen for ~5 minutes (distraction). Did not add payment or proceed to checkout. Exited app. | No push, no offer, no escalation. Uber One banner still visible. | Cart left full. App exited. | 5-minute cart hover after adding BOGO = extremely high conversion signal. System still holding back dollar-based promos, assuming user may convert organically via “deal stacking” behavior. Watching dinner window for final test of Escalation Phase. |
| 7 | May 26 7:20PM | Cart Add + Payment Screen Hover | Scrolled for 1 minute add a 25 dollar meal to cart.Tapped to check out. App prompted for payment. Sat on the add payment method screen for ~1 min. Did not enter card. Exited app. | No promo, no offer, no banner. Just default card prompt. | Cart abandoned. App exited. | This is a peak trust-testing behavior — Uber registers this as near-conversion hesitation. You effectively simulated a user who almost paid, but flinched. System still refuses to escalate with a food promo. Now entering Decay Phase with Uber fully aware you might drop off. Major test for re-engagement logic ahead. |
| 8 | May 27 | Did not open Uber Eats | | No Emails No pushes | | |
| 9 | May 28 12:25PM | Cart Add + Partial Payment + Abandonment | Opened app at lunch. Browsed for ~1 min, added item from new restaurant. Reached payment screen, entered first 4 digits of credit card, then exited without completing payment. | Push notification received ~10 minutes later: “Come back for your BOGO” from the same restaurant. | No order placed | System triggered quick re-engagement via BOGO. Partial card input raised trust score significantly, flagging user as high-potential. Likely entered conversion escalation tier. Monitoring if full promos trigger next. |
| 10 | May 29 1:40PM | Cart Add + Checkout Hover | Added 2 food items to cart. Went to checkout screen, waited ~1 minute. Closed app without further action. | No promo or push (as of now). | No card added. No order placed | High intent carryover from Day 9. Uber may be stalling to test natural conversion. Monitoring for delayed triggers. |
| 10 | May 29 5:30PM | Cart Add + Checkout Hover | Searched ~5 mins for restaurant. Selected one, added food, hovered on checkout screen ~1 min, exited app. | No promo or push (as of now). | No card added. No order placed | System may be escalating silently. High scroll time + cart behavior suggests intent. Still holding out offers—watch Day 11 closely. |
| 11 | May 30 4:00PM | Card Add + Checkout Return | Added a never-used credit card. Revisited lunch cart to “confirm” order, stayed on checkout screen ~1 min, exited app. | No promo shown, no push received. Order not placed. Cart left populated. | First full card add marks a major trust milestone | System is now likely evaluating you as ready-to-convert. If no promo appears within 24–48h, you may be bucketed as price-insensitive or expected to convert naturally. |
| 12 | May 31, 1:15 PM | Cart Rebuild + Checkout Hover
| Opened app during lunch, navigated to previously used restaurant. Added same food items to cart, visited checkout with credit card on file, remained idle on checkout page for ~1 minute, then exited app without placing order. | No promo triggered. No push notification, email, or Uber One banner change. | No order placed | System may now be in wait state due to card on file. Checkout behavior with saved card signals high trust, yet no escalation. Uber could be testing if card presence alone leads to natural conversion. Monitor Day 13 for system shift. |
| 12 | May 31 5:40PM | Card on File + Repeat Checkout Intent | Reopened same restaurant as lunch, re-added same food item, navigated to checkout with card on file, hovered for ~1 minute, no changes made, exited without placing order.System Response: No push, no email, no promo shown in-app. | No push, no email, no promo shown in-app. | No action observed (as of log time) | Repeat behavior with card on file. Signals strong but stalled conversion intent. Watching for Day 13 escalation or overnight promo trigger. |
| 13 | June 1 12:28 | Passive Browse | Opened app, browsed 5 different restaurant menus over ~3 minutes, no items added to cart, no checkout page viewed, exited app. | No push, no email, no visible in-app promo. | No escalation observed | Likely interpreted as cool-off period or decision fatigue. System may delay promo logic assuming user is still in discovery mode. Watch for re-engagement push if cart behavior resumes at dinner. |
| 13 | June 1 5:28PM | Cart Build + Checkout Hover + App Flicker | Opened Uber Eats
Browsed a few restaurants, added a high-value cart (~$50)
Reached checkout screen
Stayed on screen for ~1 minute, flicked between app and home screen (soft closes)
Did not place order, did not remove items | No push, no banner, no promo
No new Uber One escalation | App closed with full cart, no transaction | High AOV signals strong intent
Soft closing mimics indecision or distraction—could simulate real-world hesitation
No reaction may suggest system is now in "wait mode" due to card already being added
Still watching for first re-engagement promo or Uber One retry push | | 14 | June 2 12:50 PM | BOGO Cart + Checkout Wait + UI Observation | Opened Uber EatsAdded a BOGO deal from a popular chicken restaurantSat on checkout screen for ~2 minutes, no order placedObserved UI change: dismissed Uber One banner on homepageNoticed Uber no longer shows "how much you could save" if you had Uber One | No push, no new banners or promos Uber One prompt suppressed post-dismissal push notification after to come back for the BOGO | Cart abandoned App closed with no transaction | Uber One upsell logic appears to adapt to banner dismissal—could indicate user tagging as “not interested” in subscription BOGO selection + long hover = strong purchase signal, still no discount escalation System may be betting on natural conversion before promo unlock Possible promo or push escalation likely in Days 15–17 if abandonment continues | | 14 | June 2 5:40PM | Extended Browse + Checkout Delay | Opened app and idled on main page for ~5 minutes (passive session) Added new food item to cart Proceeded to checkout, hovered for ~2 minutes Backed in and out of checkout menu App closed without transaction | No push, no discount, no Uber One escalation No UI change detected | Cart abandoned No order placed | Long idle time suggests decision fatigue or low urgency—system may interpret this as low-conversion user or “bored browser”Escalation logic still stalled despite extended activityBack-and-forth checkout motion signals hesitation, but Uber continues to hold offers—possibly classifying as slow-burn leadIdeal moment to test ghosting or vertical switch in Day 15 (e.g., groceries, pharmacy) to trigger different re-engagement branch | | 15 | June 3 | Ghosted | | No Emails No pushes | | | | 16 | June 4 | Ghosted | | No Emails No pushes | | | | 17 | June 5 | Ghosted | | No Emails No pushes | | | | 18 | June 6 | Dormancy Break + Reopen | Opened app after 3 full days of ghosting No cart or scroll activity logged yet | Instantly surfaced 50% off first 3 orders, valid until June 20 Banner placement at top of homepage Offer tied to immediate visibility upon app open | Major Escalation Triggered | 3-day full ghosting was the threshold for Uber’s re-engagement logic Offer scope (3 orders, 50%) suggests high-value reactivation strategy Time-bounded (14-day expiry) indicates urgency push System likely now classifies user as “retention-critical” | | 19 | June 7 8AM | Reopened, Browsed restaurants | Scrolled, did not add to cart. No Checkout | Email received take up to 50% off your first 3 orders at 8AM, App showing a banner of said promo | Escalation | Rengagement? possible sent at 8am just before the workday | | 20 | June 8 1:03PM | Reopened, Browsed | Scrolled, did not add to cart. No Checkout | App shows a banner to claim 50% off 3 orders | minor push to take the promo | | | 21 | June 9 1:05PM | Reopened, Browsed | Scrolled, did not add to cart. No Checkout | Reminder Email Sent 50% off your first 3 orders at 8AM, App shows a banner to claim 50% off 3 orders | Escalation | Reengagement? possible sent at 8am just before the workday | | 22 | June 10 2:05PM | Reopened, Browsed, restaurants, grocery stores | Scrolled, did not add to cart. No Checkout | App shows a banner to claim 50% off 3 orders | minor push to take the promo | | | 23 | June 11 12:20PM | reopened, browsed, restaurants | Scrolled, did not add to cart. No Checkout | App shows a banner to claim 50% off 3 orders | minor push to take the promo | Suspect there will not be another promo until this one expires June 20 | | 23 | June 11 6PM | Checked emails | Did not open UberEats | 6PM email to join Uber One 4 weeks free, $0 Delivery fee + 5% Uber One credits on rides | | Pushing UberOne with user memory of 50% off, promo stacking to incentivize the user? | | 24 | June 12 | reopened, browsed, restaurants | Scrolled, did not add to cart. No Checkout | App shows a banner to claim 50% off 3 orders | reopens 50% promo whenever i navigate back to the home page | Trying to get me to convert | | 24 | June 12 6PM | Ghosted, did not open the app | | | App Notification: 50% promo “Get Up to 50% off your first 3 orders” | Trying to get me to convert | | 25 | June 13 8AM | opened the email | | | Email Sent: 50% promo off 3 orders, redeem / claim now! | Trying to get me to convert | | 25 | June 13 1PM | Ghosted, did not open the app | | | | | | 34 | June 22 | opened the email | | | Email Sent: 75% promo off 3 orders, redeem / claim now! | |