Digital Ranking Profile: Spinx (May 2018)
By Jackson Lewis on May 21, 2018GREENVILLE, S.C. -- While Spinx is a midsize convenience-store chain with 81 locations, its digital capabilities compete with the big retailers, according to Stuzo’s digital c-store ranking.
The Greenville, S.C.-based brand holds an overall score of 2.04 as of May 21. The score was recently updated to reflect Spinx’s more frequent posts on Twitter and Facebook.
“Spinx was one of the first convenience-store operators in the U.S. to launch mobile commerce capabilities,” said Josh Skaroff, director of product management and delivery for Stuzo. He oversees product design and engineering for fuel and convenience mobile commerce products. “This is a testament to the innovative team at Spinx, who saw the opportunity to start transforming the digital customer experience, making payments and loyalty more seamless.”
Click here to see Stuzo’s complete online ranking. Stuzo is a digital-product-innovation company focused on the convenience-store and fuel-retail industry.
The ranking covers 100 c-store chains, measuring each chain’s digital presence, including mobile commerce, mobile employee activation, connected car, website and social media. Each company is ranked on a points-based system with a score of zero to 5 for each metric. Each metric is calculated using four more specific metrics. While this article examines the details behind the Spinx ranking, it is meant more as a profile than an attempt to compare it to competitors.
Click through for details on where Spinx stands in Stuzo’s C-Store Digital Ranking and information on the brand’s digital capabilities …
Mobile Commerce: 2.01
Spinx’s overall score for mobile commerce is 2.01. Here’s how it breaks down:
App Performance: 2.78
Mobile Payment: 2.5
Loyalty Program: 2.75
Mobile Ordering: 0
The Spinx Xtras app allows customers to manage and redeem their rewards by linking a fuelperks card. It also allows them to pay at the pump and pay in-store by linking a Spinx Xtras card to the app. Customers can use the Spinx rewards program to earn 5 cents off per gallon every time they spend $25 at Spinx.
Aaron McLean, chief operating officer of Stuzo, said the program could be improved by including savings on c-store items in addition to fuel and by providing order-ahead capabilities.
Website 3.03
UX/UI: 4.67
Loyalty Program Promotion: 3
Personalization: 3
App Promotion: 4.5
Mobile Ordering: 0
Spinx wins points from Stuzo for promoting its mobile app on the homepage of its website. Stuzo also awarded points to the chain for the simple and easy-to-navigate user interface on the Spinx Store website. Members of the Spinx Xtras loyalty program can log in from here to manage their rewards; however, Stuzo was withheld some points, as there is no information on the features of this app or what it gives customers access to on the website.
Social Media 3.13
Previous Score: 3.00
Brand Responsiveness: 4.25
Frequency of Posts: 4
Creativity of Content: 2.25
Level of Engagement: 2
Spinx Store has a presence on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Spinx typically posts content about its various community service efforts, its food and beverage items, and contests and giveaways. Spinx shares a post on social media every other day and receives what Stuzo deems a decent amount of engagement from consumers. Spinx interacts with its consumers regularly by retweeting consumer tweets on Twitter; however, McLean and the Stuzo team see an opportunity to promote Spinx's app and loyalty program to increase app downloads.
Connected-car and mobile-employee activation: 0
Spinx did not score in either the connected-car or employee-activation metrics, though this score is not unusual for c-store chains on Stuzo’s list. These metrics are focused on the future. Stuzo predicts chains will put more resources into such initiatives as the industry evolves and becomes more technology focused.
The mobile-employee-activation metric measures how chains increase employee productivity and work satisfaction through mobile-based programs. Connected car measures the chain’s use of a car’s "infotainment" system on the dashboard, which will become more common as the capabilities of car platforms expand further.
Spinx runs 81 locations in the United States and is based in Greenville, S.C.
Philadelphia-based Stuzo is a digital-product-innovation company focused on the c-store and retail fuel industry. It's goal is to help organizations humanize technology by designing, defining and delivering digital products that drive business outcomes.