Years ago, Intouch Insight, an Ottawa, Ontario-based data analysis firm, removed loyalty from CSP's annual Mystery Shop scoring because retailers argued that it was not necessarily a reflection of their operation.
The Mystery Shop audit is completed in partnership with Intouch Insight and assesses convenience-store chains with two types of studies: a revealed audit, which accounts for 60%, and a covert audit, which accounts for 40%. A total of 1,003 store visits were conducted between April 3 and May 9. Nouria Energy, Worcester, Massachusetts, received first place; Stinker Stores, Boise, Idaho, took home second place; and Tri Star Energy, Nashville, scored third overall.
In the following years, since 2018, data around loyalty was still collected but did not count toward scores. In 2024, Intouch Insight added loyalty to count toward the score again.
“We felt that having a mobile app is now something that could be scored as everyone should have a mobile way to communicate with their customers, and generally if you have a mobile app a loyalty program is part of it,” said Cameron Watt, president and CEO of Intouch Insight.
Auditors verified if any marketing materials for loyalty programs were available at the stores and if a loyalty program was available through a mobile app.
Intouch Insight has collected loyalty data from convenience stores since 2018. Here is a breakdown of locations that had a loyalty program, documentation regarding the program and loyalty program app accessibility.
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