Almost one out of three customers do not mind being upsold to, according to ConvenienceStore.com. The question is…what do you upsell and how? Below, are five motivators that drive customers to your c-store.
Bundling. When 48% of beverage purchases include food, there is an opportunity to upsell to your customers through bundling promotions. By encouraging consumers to purchase food with their beverage or vice versa, you are not only upselling, but also appealing to the 43% of millennials whom snack more frequently and are willing to purchase from a convenience store (c-store) instead of driving home for some grub, according to Technomic.
Differentiate. If half of millennials are more likely to visit a c-store with a wide variety of beverages than those that don’t and 88% are willing to pay more for healthier foods, wouldn’t it make sense to offer different ranges of products in each category? In a world where convenience is a large part of a consumer’s decision-making process, according to investopedia.com, this is an opportunity to turn the millennial perception that c-stores are more expensive and monotone in their variety of products than other retailers. By offering a variety of products and maybe combining this with a bundle promotion, you are improving your business brand and increasing your consumer range.
Be secure. Customers are loyal to brands they know are safe to purchase from. During Target’s fraud breach several years ago, their profits decreased by nearly 50%. And even though Target today has bounced back from its horrific fraudulent incident, it took years of lost profits to get back in the game. Therefore, by ensuring you are EMV compliant as well as having your c-store hardware and software be up to date, you are increasing security, decreasing counterfeit fraud, and in turn, building customer loyalty. Click to learn more about EMV or view the EMV migration guide.
Awesome Customer Service. Besides price and quality of products, think about why you would choose one particular doctor over the rest. Would you rather go to one doctor that is cheap but treats you like branded cattle, ushering you in and out the door without any sincere eye contact? Or would you rather pay more for a doctor that meets your needs, ensures to look out for your best interests, and offers the right about of professional support?
The answer is clear - Customer service is large factor of driving business. But how can you drive exemplary customer service in your c-store? C-stores can offer an employee reward system that uses forms of goal-measuring markers (i.e. sales goals, comment cards) which in turn requires owners to reward employees with incentives (e.g, food, gift certificates). Other than this, showing you care about your employees makes a great impact. By sending birthday cards, small gifts on employment anniversaries, or bringing in donuts one morning can in turn affect an employee’s performance.
Loyalty Program.Everyone loves free stuff and everyone loves to win. Use this enjoyment as the bases of creating a loyalty program. Through punch cards for certain items, to coupons for total money spent, you will increase customer loyalty by motivating them to come back specifically to your store. Kohl’s is a great example when it comes to consumer loyalty marketing strategies. The constant deals and cash back coupons drives customers back into Kohl’s a week or a month later practically guaranteed. As c-stores, you do not have to be as extravagant as this large merchant, but offering something can go a long way.
Therefore, being aware of what drives your customers to enter your c-store will help you know what to improve on in your business strategy. Whether it involves fueling customer service, shaking up your product categories, or just needing to create better promotions, you always have an opportunity to close that sales gap.
Click to learn more about how technology that can assist with getting to know your customers.