HOUSTON -- Phillips 66 launched its first enterprise app for mobile phones for the company’s fuels customers. The “BizLink for iPhone” app, first announced at Phillips 66’s Marketing Conference and Trade Show in May, brings the experience of the company’s web portal to its customers’ handheld devices.
The first of its kind in the energy segment in the Apple App Store, the app allows Phillips 66 customers to view fuel pricing information while on-the-go. This marks the first step in a series of planned advances into mobile technology solutions for Phillips 66 fuels customers, according to the company.
“This app is designed to boost the efficiency of our busy customers,” said Mike Krampf, manager, brand value for Phillips 66. “Phillips 66 is committed to developing technology to make our processes easy to use to help our customers drive cost out of their business.”
Calling fuel-price information time sensitive, David Lynch, communications program manager for the company told CSP Daily News that access to data was key. “Our customers are busier than ever, and we can’t assume that they always have access to a desktop PC,” Lynch said. “Now they have access to accurate fuel prices whether they are at home, at the office or on the road.”
Special features of the app allow users to get the information they need more easily and more quickly. This includes the ability to filter views as desired and create bookmarks for near-one-touch access in subsequent sessions.
“I really enjoy using the app,” said Nichole Barker, Flyers Energy, Auburn, Calif. “It’s very user friendly and takes you directly to your pricing, which has been nice, especially when out on the road or without a computer.”
Speaking to the development of the app, Lynch said that as with any new project, there was a learning curve. “As we developed the app, we were able to fine-tune and perfect it before launch,” Lynch said. “With this app, the first for Phillips 66 customers, our focus is on accessing the customer’s prices; however, we also built in some utilities, such as filters and bookmarks that will be useful for larger customers that have more prices to work with or who do business in several classes of trade.”
Lynch said these features allow the customer to consume smaller bits of information per screen, which helps with ease of use. Further, the speed of the app and its usability were a priority.
The app is currently only available on the Apple IOS mobile platform. Future updates for the app will include a version for the Android operating system and new features for viewing supply allocation and receiving important news alerts, the company said.
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