Lyft Buys YesGraph, DataScore as The Business Grows

Lyft, the ride-hailing service, which provided an update about its growth on Thursday (Aug. 10), also announced that it is acquiring the technology and team behind YesGraph, which builds customer-centric referral programs and DataScore, which runs customer retention programs.

In a blog post, Lyft said that YesGraph will use its expertise to improve and expand the Lyft driver-referral program. “Lyft is committed to helping drivers earn more, with programs like in-app tipping, same-day payments, low-cost car rentals, scheduled rides and more. Referrals are an important income stream for drivers, and the YesGraph team will help expand the program so drivers can earn both on and off the road,” the company said in the blog post. What’s more, Lyft said it is also acquiring the growth team of DataScore, which has deep experience in customer acquisition, conversion and retention programs. “DataScore, co-founded by Monica Ohara, Ismail Coskuner and Hannah Russin, has a proven track record of scaling growth quickly and is joining Lyft to help do the same. As part of Lyft’s growth team, they will add valuable expertise to accelerate the growth of passengers and drivers,” the ride-hailing company said.

Lyft said in the same blog post that its service is now available to close to 80 percent of the population in the U.S. and that the service is in more than 160 communities. What’s more,  so far this year there have already been more Lyft rides than a year ago. The acquisitions on the part of Lyft come at a time when the company is closing in on rival Uber, which is the leading car-hailing service in the U.S. Lyft has been the beneficiary of Uber’s very public series of troubles, including accusations of sexism by female workers, the absence of CEO Travis Kalanick and a lawsuit with Google over self-driving car technology. Uber’s U.S. market share has dropped from 84 percent at the beginning of this year to 77 percent at the end of May, according to data from Second Measure, a research firm that uses anonymized credit card data. Uber’s sales are still growing — Q1 revenue was  $3.4 billion, triple the 2016 figures for the same time of year.