Much
like restaurants and grocery stores convenience stores are edifying customer
relevance with technology at both Gen Z and Millennials have adopted, liked,
and want including mobile pay options, contactless shopping, ordering ahead for
fast pickup.
Steven
Johnson Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® stated,
“Consumers don’t think about retail channel differences they want a seamless
‘lifestyle’, they like technology that saves them time, money, and direct
personal interactions.”
Convenience
stores must keep up with branded chain restaurants and branded grocery stores
technology offering or the consumer will leave them behind.
In
a recent article Blake Weber, retail technology project manager at
Atlanta-based Clarkston Consulting stated, "At a broad level, the mobile
phone is this powerful tool in the hands of the shopper and provides retailers
with a connection point through all aspects of the shopping journey,",
told Convenience Store News. "Retailers that utilize mobile
benefit by driving more customers into the store, driving repeat customers —
especially through loyalty — [getting] better engagement and capturing data to
provide a more personalized experience." Here is more from the article:
“With
so many ways to utilize the mobile phones that are in the hands of customers
every day, the best place to start is with a mobile-first website since this is
the first place many people turn to when searching for a brand online,
according to Mike Templeton, director of digital experience for Ankeny,
Iowa-based Casey's General Stores Inc., operator of more than 2,400
convenience stores in 16 states.
"Then,
for those who are more engaged with your brand, getting a dedicated mobile app
into their hands should be a top priority," he said. "When your brand
is a tap away — and they can control their experience with their loyalty
program, the offers they like and the messaging they receive — that's true
convenience for today's convenience channel consumers."
The
goal of any retailer, especially convenience store operators, is to make the
shopping experience easier and more convenient, and mobile phones can achieve
this in a variety of ways. When designing and implementing a new mobile
experience — whether it's a website, app or payment option — c-store retailers
should ask themselves: "How will this mobile experience deliver a more
convenient shopping experience?" advised Kevin D. Struthers, associate director
of digital at W. Capra Consulting Group, based in Chicago. If there is no
"clear and concise answer to that question," then the plan and design
need to be revisited, he said.
"Convenience
retailers need to understand that adjacent verticals like grocery, mass
merchandise, dollar stores and drugstores are now competing for the same-day
consumption customers, and QSR [quick-service restaurant] and coffee companies
have also achieved high customer participation in mobile programs. Therefore,
they must understand what consumers expect because of the mobile experience
delivered in those verticals," Struthers explained, noting that the most
popular offerings, measured by driving retention, are order ahead and
personalized offers.
Mobile
Interactions
Consumers
today are used to interacting with retailers and restaurants via mobile
devices, be it placing an order, paying for products and services, or cashing
in loyalty perks. In fact, thanks to mobile websites and apps, the interaction
with a brand often starts before a person even gets to the store.
"Maybe
someone is at home and wants to see what products are available and the
pricing, or they can place an order for delivery or pickup, all from sitting on
their couch at home," said Weber. "Then at the store, there is a
variety of ways a mobile phone can come into play, whether it's mobile checkout
to skip the line, contactless fueling, or interacting with an app to check a
receipt or loyalty points."
Mobile
ordering has been a driving factor for Casey's since the convenience store
chain launched the modern version of its app in July 2019. As the fifth-largest
pizza chain in the United States, the app allows Casey's customers to order
foodservice along with "hundreds of other items" available for pickup,
said Templeton, noting that orders placed within the app and on its website
represent more than two-thirds of the chain's total pizza orders.
"Within
the app, loyalty rewards members can also see their points balance, browse
personalized offers, and see what is happening at their local store,"
Templeton continued. "Having the ability to control the entire app
experience, including the features available, the technology integrations and
how the app syncs with in-store interactions, is crucial to offering the
personalized experience our guests crave."
Today's
shoppers have come to expect both mobile ordering and mobile rewards, Weber
echoed. "Mobile ordering especially is becoming the standard right now.
It's commonplace to place an order from home or the car and then just go in the
store to pick it up," he said.
On
the rewards front, the data c-store retailers are able to gather from mobile
interactions can help them take their loyalty programs to the next level and
offer personalized rewards, along with deals and promotions — as Casey's is
doing with its app.
"Consumers'
expectations on personalized promotions are going way up, and most retailers
are fairly far behind," Kevin Hart, senior vice president of fuel sales
and new markets at Washington, D.C.-based Upside. Upside's technology helps millions of people
get more purchasing power on the things they need, while tens of thousands of
brick-and-mortar businesses earn measurable profit.
Hart
explained that personalization starts at the front door, knowing who walked into
the store and that they have not purchased a sandwich in two weeks, so a
promotion to order one is sent. "That is becoming top of the list and
those that fulfill it are the ones that will win this," he said.
With
more and more convenience store retailers offering loyalty programs, mobile
apps and even delivery services — so much so that it's becoming an expectation
for common practice — the key will be to stand out, even amongst markets
outside of convenience, according to Casey's Templeton. "The challenge
ongoing will be the way in which these retailers use their offerings to
differentiate their brand from others in the marketplace," he added.
In
May 2023, the company refreshed its Casey's Rewards experience in its app to include
a quick-redeem option for customers to easily choose rewards, and a lifetime
savings tracker so that guests can view how much has been saved as a Casey's
Rewards member. More than 95 percent of Casey's customers who use the app are
also members of the loyalty program.
"We're
excited to look for more ways the app can help put the guest in control of the
experience, almost like a remote control for whatever they want,"
Templeton shared. "Our guests know what they want, where they want it, and
how quickly they can get it — and that's what being a convenience retailer is
all about."” Now then the question is what should you start with?
Invite Foodservice Solutions® to complete a
Grocerant ScoreCard, or for product positioning or placement assistance, or
call our Grocerant Guru®. Since 1991 Foodservice
Solutions® of
Tacoma, WA has been the global leader in the Grocerant niche. Contact: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or
253-759-7869
