In this episode of “At Your Convenience,” CSP Editor Diane Adam talks with Peter Rasmussen, who is an industry advocate, convenience and energy veteran, and CEO and founder of Convenience and Energy Advisors.
The two spoke in May during CSP’s Cold Vault Forum in Lombard, Illinois.
Rasmussen shares how retailers can unlock digital’s potential to drive packaged beverage profit. He also discusses the importance of in-store signage and how c-store shoppers notice promotions.
“At Your Convenience” brings industry experts and analysts together with CSP editors to discuss the latest in c-store news and trends. From mergers and acquisitions to foodservice and technology, the podcast delivers the story straight to listeners in short-format episodes, perfect for the morning commute or a quick break at the office.
Listen to their conversation above, or read the transcript here, which has been edited for length and clarity:
Diane Adam: I'm here today at the final day of CSP’s Cold Vault Forum in Lombard, Illinois. I'm joined today with Peter Rasmussen, CEO and founder of Convenience and Energy Advisors. Peter, good morning and welcome to Cold Vault. How's your experience been so far with?
Peter Rasmussen: Good morning, Diane. Thank you so much for having me here today. The experience has been wonderful.
Diane Adam: Peter is one of our presenters at Cold Vault, so tell our listeners what your session is about and what you'll be covering today with your topics.
Peter Rasmussen: Absolutely, I’m looking forward to connecting with the audience today. We’re going to be talking about marketing strategies that drive more velocity with packaged beverage. We’re going to start with outside the store in the marketing efforts, in particular, digital efforts across social and how you get the highest return on your marketing dollars. And bring that into effective store signage and effective messaging with the signage and then we're going to tie that right into loyalty so we can take that to direct relationships on the right offer and the right price for each consumer. We're going to follow the full journey from outside into the personalization of the sale.
Diane Adam: How long have you been in the c-store space?
Peter Rasmussen: I’ve been in the industry for about a quarter of a century now. I spent four years with Sheetz, 17 with Wawa and I founded my company about three years ago. My company Convenience and Energy Advisors offers consulting, technology and marketing services exclusively for the convenience store industry. It's what we know. It's what we love.
Diane Adam: Can you talk about why loyalty programs and rewards are so important, especially with cold vault customers?
Peter Rasmussen: Sure. From a growth perspective you think about, "How I can possibly sell more?" So we started off with single price points and then we got into multipack offers and then the world has shifted so much to personalization offers. So, when you're able to connect with your customers and get them the right offer that’s right for them, then you have the opportunity to ultimately sell more. We have such an advantage in that we also sell fuel. There are so many offers today through loyalty that can be tied to fuel. Rather than an offer simply on price or simply on having combo value, we can also link that to rollback at the pump. C-store retailers have that ultra power over other channels in that they can tie offers with fuel.
Diane Adam: How can retailers make the shopping experience even more fun and engaging when it comes to beverage items?
Peter Rasmussen: I think this is an area where we really need to think big and look outside our industry and within it. So many growing segments today are about “retailtainment.” People don’t want just the function of shopping, because if it’s just a function of shopping, they could just do that online.
Diane Adam: Let's talk about in-store signage. How important is that?
Peter Rasmussen: We’re going to talk a lot about digital strategy outside the store, but at the end of the day, what the data tells us is that while all your efforts on digital and social are very important, they’re part of the marketing journey. In- store signage is four times more effective, so you have to get that right. And the biggest message that I can put out there is simplicity.
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