The customer experience begins on the forecourt. With that simple awareness in mind, convenience retailers are investing in the fuel island to mirror the in-store experience.
At Fat Dogs Travel Centers, North Platte, Nebraska, Jim Riewe, president of the seven-store chain owned by hospitality group Wilkinson Cos., aims to make travelers “regard our stores as that first right turn they consider as they get off the I-80 interstate. We want that forecourt to totally mirror their in-store experience.”
“I think if you wow the customer at the forecourt, you have a better chance of getting them into the store,” he says. “We have travel centers up and down I-80, so if we can get their business at one, we possibly get it at the other end of the state.”
No doubt, the vehicle-fueling experience continues to evolve, and retailers are attempting to ingratiate themselves to motorists through a host of difference-making technology investments.
Riewe’s team is bent on building a dynamic forecourt centered on form and functionality that resonates with customers, many of whose expectation meter has ramped up considerably.
At Fat Dog travel centers, gone are the “little digital MPD screens,” replaced by 15.6-inch monitors, all part of an ongoing Gilbarco Encore 700S Series upgrade initiative. Fat Dogs also offers touchless fuel payment
where customers tap a cellphone to initiate the fill-up process and receive receipts digitally.
The company is also in an early geo-fencing technology test to alert motorists about promotions. Meantime, GSTV multimedia technology allows the chain to produce proprietary promos with voice-overs created in-house, providing additional impulse-buying impressions.
“The pandemic taught us a lot about touchless operations, and that has paved the way for what we’re investing in today, both inside and out,” says Riewe.
As investments flow, one challenge is the emergence of electric vehicle (EV) charging systems, which means allocating space for the infrastructure and meeting EV customer needs. Questions abound around this opportunity, such as: How far away should EV charging equipment be from fuel dispensers to coexist with traditional fueling operations? What is the optimal ratio of EV charging stations to liquid fueling positions? And, would installing EV chargers on an island block liquid fueling?
“Younger consumers fully embrace technology. [They] are 100% sold on everything from tap-to-pay, multimedia ads, loyalty sign-ups and more.”
With all this forecourt investment, retailers are discovering new pockets of opportunity. For some, the customer expectation bar is lower.
“Some of our customers are actually super-annoyed by the new larger MPD screens and the multimedia, and most mute them when they walk up,” says Tammy Affolter, co-owner of Woody’s Pump n Munch, Randolph, Minnesota, a Cenex-branded retailer who invested in two new MPDs in 2021 with Cenex kicking in a percentage of the upgrade.
“It’s a case of folks not really wanting all the bells and whistles. We do offer tap to pay, but many folks actually want to pay for gas inside despite all the advantages of the new equipment,” says Affolter, whose station sells about 70,000 gallons per month in a mostly rural community. Along I-80 and other major interstates, retailers see the stakes are high, and forecourt technology to promote quick, easy transactions is critical.
“Customers traveling have time constraints, so it’s crucial to provide quick, easy fueling,” says Riewe. “If you do, it means they might be inclined to come inside the store to buy something and use restrooms. If the fueling experience is slower, many just get back on the road.”
Some retailers found their hands being forced to invest in the fuel island by the Europay, Mastercard and Visa (EMV) compliance regulations of 2021. Chip-card technology triggered retailers to invest in new fueling equipment—and make some technology upgrades while doing it.
Prior to the credit-card liability shift from banking institutions to retailers, most pay-at-the-pump dispensers used magstripe technology to verify credit- and debit-card payments,
with data from magstripe cards easily stolen and duplicated with skimmers. EMV chip technology encrypts financial data, making it harder for criminals to steal credit card information.
Fat Dogs’ fueling investments were indeed expedited by the need for EMV upgrades, which produced a “domino effect to where every one of our seven locations has or will be upgraded,” says Riewe.
Fat Dogs embarked upon its fuel island equipment upgrade initiative in late 2018 when it remodeled its North Platte travel center, with costs ranging from $20,000 to $30,000 per dispenser.
The company has enjoyed positive results—for both customers and staff—with Gilbarco Encore 700S Series MPDs. Greensboro, North Carolina-based Gilbarco Veeder-Root’s larger touchscreen, unveiled in 2022, eliminates the need for customers to use softkeys.
Historically, fueling customers tend to strike a wrong PIN and have to start over. Further, the upgrade fosters a modern experience with a screen offering one-third more screen space, enabling retailers to design proprietary branding and promotional offers.
Detroit-based GSTV, a national video network, reaches more than 40% of fueling customers monthly via full sight, sound and motion video. Retailers commonly customize content monthly, activating specials on food and beverages. Many rotate content to highlight appropriate promotions during the right daypart.
Fat Dogs’ deployment of GSTV was an opportunity that “provides a positive experience for customers, who watch news clips on the monitor and—boom—here comes a Fat Dogs ad about a pizza or hot dog promotion. We also have appealing graphics and voiceovers prepared by our staff,” says Riewe.
Citing research by Bounteous, Austin, Texas-based Dover Fueling Systems (DFS) found that a growing number of digital shoppers are primed to make add-on purchases while at the pump, influenced by GSTV or otherwise.
Retail sites using touchscreen technology offered with the Dover’s Anthem UX platform increased in-store sales, boosted the choice of higher fuel grade purchases and increased loyalty-app sign-ups, says John Morris, senior director of product innovation for DFS.
“We’re seeing a bigger appetite for dispenser upgrades as a way of meeting heightened consumer expectations,” says Morris. “The DFS 2022 Future of Fueling report found that 51% of consumers want the ability to order store items while fueling.”
One DFS consumer-facing tool, DX Promote (built onto Anthem UX), provides a digital experience to deliver targeted ads alongside entertainment and informational content.
Retailers are garnering results in the early stages of going live with DX Promote, the company says. Exxon Mobil-branded Zourob Mobil, based in Romulus, Michigan, began advertising fountain drink and Red Bull SKUs on the platform and enjoyed a 25% increase in weekly fountain sales and an 8% for Red Bull sales, says Morris.
Another retailer using the solution to promote its beer cave witnessed “an almost immediate shift in behavior,” says Morris, who didn’t name the chain. “Lawncare crews, who previously only purchased water in the mornings, began refueling their vehicles at night and picking up beer on their way home. Using dayparting can connect what consumers want at a specific time of day to products in the c-store, driving more traffic inside and helping increase revenue. ”
With all the bells and whistles sounding, some retailers have concluded that “too much technology” can have a reverse effect on top and bottom lines.
Affolter of Woody’s Pump n Munch says a rash of gasoline drive-offs led some fuel retailers in Randolph to prohibit pay at the pump, hoping to reduce the thefts.
Woody’s Pump n Munch didn’t impose that restriction.
What customers seem to value most with upgraded forecourts are the sleek appearances of new MPDs and ultra-efficiency of filling tanks faster.
“Our new dispensers mean quicker fill-up time,” says Affolter, whose store offers two new MPDs and four fueling positions. The single-store retailer also upgraded with new windshield-cleaning dispensers, as well as friendlier curb cuts to enter and exit the lot. Retailers conclude that the positives outweigh the negatives with most fueling investments. Riewe of Fat Dogs can’t quantify how many more customers enter stores to buy items, but, “We do hear some folks say to our people they saw a promotion while fueling and that triggered their in-store visit,” he says.
Some locals have provided feedback on the pump upgrades, with older consumers more skeptical because of a “technology trust” factor.
“Older customers think all the new technology is great but will ask whether their per[1]sonal account data is being compromised,” Riewe says. “Meanwhile, younger consumers fully embrace all the bells and whistles and are 100% sold on everything from tap-to-pay, multimedia ads, loyalty sign-ups and more. It’s clearly making a positive difference.”