Photograph by CSP Staff
How convenience-store operators can take advantage of technology was a dominant topic of the 2024 NACS Show.
Whether it’s artificial intelligence (AI), technology to manage fuel payments or retail media networks (RMNs), there are many areas for c-stores to consider.
AI’s Rapid Growth
AI is growing at a faster rate than any other technology has, said Brian Gray, managing director of Accenture during a NACS Show general session. Hiring and retention increases in the convenience retail industry is one of the use cases that Gray shared.
He walked through the potential process, starting with a customer scanning a QR code at the fuel pump to learn more about a job opening. This could also lead to a portal that shares realistic expectations for the job so that a candidate knows what they’re getting into, potentially raising retention rates. When the customer scans it, an AI assistant can start conversing with the customer via messaging and ask about prior experience and availability.
This “screening” saves time for the hiring manager, who can then get a simple breakdown from the AI of who the top candidates are and why they should consider offering them interviews. After someone is hired, Gray said, AI can keep tabs and converse with employees on how they are performing, what they need help with and more.
Gray highlighted that this example of AI is not taking away jobs, it’s reallocating resources.
Technology at the Pump
Technology should be about enabling easier transactions, Derek Gaskins, chief marketing officer at Fort Worth, Texas-based Yesway, said on a panel for Fuel Market News’ leading fuel retailers of the year. Gaskins was joined by Doug Yawberry, president of Knoxville, Tennessee-based Weigel’s, and Keith Reid, editorial director and founder of Fuels Market News.
“Make it easier to do business with you, do more business,” Gaskins said.
There is a lot of technology that’s been introduced to help with digital payments for diesel fuels and logistics at the forecourt, the retailers said. And these require multiple tablet-based apps. But it needs to be simplified for customers as well as convenience-store and truck stop employees.
Managing this technology after it’s implemented is a huge focus for Weigel’s, Yawberry said.
“It’s very important you don’t lose sight of what’s happening on your internal processes in order to continue to make it seamless for your customers,” he said.
Looking ahead, Gaskins said there are opportunities in digital receipts at the pump.
“We could shape the future right now. As things become more mobile, more digital, more app-based, something as simple as e-receipts is high on my list. I mean if as an industry we can normalize that, it’s no different than what we’re getting when we do ride share,” Gaskins said.
It should be the norm for a customer to pull up to the fuel pump, fill up, leave and a receipt comes through SMS, in their wallet or in their loyalty app.
Retail Media Ready
In an era where retail media is set to exceed $100 billion by 2027, convenience stores have a right to win in retail media, Art Sebastian, said.
Sebastian, a convenience-store technology expert and industry veteran who is now CEO of NexChapter Inc., a growth-advisory firm, told a room full of c-store retailers that “they have the scale.”
For many c-store retailers new to their digital journey, data from a loyalty program can be the first step when it comes to retail media, said Abigail Cerra, loyalty marketing manager at Chestnut Market, New Paltz, New York, during the session.
“With a loyalty program you are collecting data on your customers and you’re able to engage with them and it is a great foundation for retail media network,” Cerra said.
When it comes to building retail media, loyalty is the essential building block, said Fidaa Mohrez, senior director of operational systems at Orange, California-based H&S Energy Group.
“Loyalty is an opportunity which allows you to build a long-term relationship with your customers, Mohrez said.
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