The Europe-wide taxi strike on June 11 ended as many predicted it would, with an 850 percent increase in Uber app downloads: a disaster of epic proportions that illustrates the dangers of staging a protest without having a strategy. Thousands of people who had never heard of Uber, even in cities where it is available, visited its site and signed up.

Before continuing, let me say that I accept that some kind of regulation might be required to accommodate the arrival of new players to the taxi market. But they are not going to go away, as European transport commissioner Neelie Kroes repeatedly pointed out on a flurry of tweets yesterday, as well as on her blog. Strikes make no sense in situations like these; they are a right, but that doesn’t mean that sometimes they can go horribly wrong.

In which case, what should taxi drivers do in the face of a disruptive force like Uber? The same as any other industry facing the same situation: analyze the value proposition of the new service and try to improve theirs. Nobody hates taxi drivers per se and installs Uber on this basis. But looking at many of the comments on the social networks in the wake of yesterday’s strike, it is clear that many people are not happy with the traditional taxi service, which is why they are taking up alternatives. What should the average taxi driver be thinking about, particularly if he or she has heard some of what people are saying?

First and foremost: if you are not working with an app along the lines of Cabify, MyTaxi, Hailo or others, do so immediately. It seems clear that the majority of taxi users are more comfortable about the service if it is peer-reviewed, thus providing an incentive for said service to improve. As a paradoxical result, many taxi drivers will end up joining Uber in its Uber Taxi flavor, which is extending its presence to a growing number of cities.

Managing fares: it is possible that one of the lesser-known regulations imposed on taxi drivers is never having change, but unfortunately, this is not very convenient for passengers. Payment by credit card is still not a universal option in Spain, although it is obligatory in most other countries. Paying by app is even better, especially for professionals.

Not all apps are the same. Those that simply transfer the radio-taxi concept to the web, without incorporating billing or payment systems, are not enough.

Reliability: this is an important factor, particularly when catching a plane or a train. A large part of Uber’s popularity comes from the need to know that your taxi will arrive on time, or that when you arrive at your destination, it will be waiting for you, and that you don’t have to queue and then board whichever taxi is next. People want greater freedom of choice.

Arguments against alternative taxi services on the grounds that they are unregulated and potentially dangerous, no longer work, as anybody who has tried Uber will know.

Measures such as strikes that simply make life difficult for ordinary people have completely the opposite effect to that intended. In the medium term, this battle will not be won by pressuring governments and city halls, but by winning over taxi-drivers’ client base.

The victor in the first battle of this war has definitely been Uber. Today, a great many more people known about Uber than they did the day before yesterday: they have downloaded the app and are looking forward to using it as soon as the next opportunity permits. Taxi drivers: take note; learn the lesson, and the next time one of the organizations that do such a poor job representing you utters the word “strike” run them out of town on a rail. New problems require new solutions.