CAF: Creating a 5-star customer experience with insights from Murphy USA and Eni

What Drives a 5-Star Customer Experience

Fun Fact: The five-star rating system for hotels was first introduced by Mobil Oil in 1958. Mobil funded a project that paid anonymous assessors to review restaurants and hotels. The goal at first was to benefit their traveling employees. Now, companies like Amazon and Google allow customers to rate everything from barbershops, to restaurants, to toilet paper. Amazon’s CEO, Jeff Bezos, is quoted as saying "focusing on the customer makes a company more resilient." In today’s world it is more critical than ever to provide customers with a 5-star experience. Understanding what makes up the convenience shopper’s "customer experience" and how it impacts their behaviors is paramount.

The NACS Consumer Survey reveals that 74% of drivers would willingly spend an extra five minutes on the road for a superior c-store experience. That’s considerably higher than the 64% who say that they would drive five minutes out of their way to save five cents per gallon.

In March of this year, GasBuddy’s Tracking Convenience Report: From the Pump to the C-Store surveyed 15,000+ US consumers, then compared it against sales data from 20,000 sites frequented by the surveyed consumers to see what drove consumer foot traffic. The study found that sites with below-average overall ratings had 6.7% lower foot traffic than average while sites with above-average ratings had 4.8% higher foot traffic, a swing of 11.5% more customers.

One critical element in the "overall customer experience" is cleanliness. In that same study, retailers able to move from below to above average cleanliness ratings would expect an 8% increase in foot traffic. As such, cleanliness becomes more than just an aesthetic concern. Retailers have seen a 7-15% increase in sales upon enhancing their store cleanliness.

CAF Outdoor Cleaning provides an annual study on petrol station Google Reviews across Europe. The most recent report shows a 5% decline in average ratings after 3 years of continual improvement. When leaving a 5-star review, convenience shoppers most often cited Friendly, Food Options and Cleanliness as the reason for the raving review. The customer reasons behind the 1-star ratings were just as interesting.

CAF: Creating a 5-star customer experience with insights from Murphy USA and Eni — © CAF Outdoor Cleaning

Oscar Diamante, Editor-in-Chief at PetrolPlaza and Mike Zahajko, Executive VP at CAF, met with two industry experts that are overcoming the recent decline and providing a clean, 5-star customer experience in the US and Austria.

Key Retailer Expert Podcast Insights

Expert: Armin Springer, Head of Retail, at Eni Austria

After a long career in the Italian energy company, he currently manages the service station division in Austria. Together with his team, the self-confessed Italy lover is committed to remaining the No. 1 service station brand in Austria, where they have a network of 326 service stations.

"Cleanliness was always a big topic for us. The pandemic just made it more visible. Customers expect a certain standard and a clean shop is one of them, specially in the gastro area. Eni Austria implements the highest hygiene standards."

"If you want to make sure the customer gets the same shop and food experience across all service stations you need to have standards in place. That happens with efficient staffing, high hygiene protocols and constant monitoring. The direct relation between cleanliness and turnover must be made very clear to dealers."

Expert: John Ross, Senior Manager of Sales & Operations Planning & Portfolio Management, for Murphy USA

John shares his experience over 14 years with Murphy in store operations, leadership, new store opening, operational excellence. Murphy USA is one of the largest independent retailers of gasoline products and convenience store merchandise with more than 1,700 locations in 27 states.

"When you think about customer loyalty and what makes them come back, it's a clean, fast, friendly experience that is consistent. Shinier coins get picked up from the ground more than old ones. Appearance, hygiene, cleanliness - all these factors influence the customer store experience."

"The reality is that new store luster fades over time. Without implementing regimented programs from day one, new stores are destined to lose their bright and shiny appearance - statistically in less than a year. That's why they require upkeep and periodic refreshes. Customers place a high value on clean."

Expert: Mike Zahajko, Executive VP, at CAF Outdoor Cleaning

Mike Zahajko started in retail at Tesoro and now works closely with over 35,000 c-store retailers in North America and across Europe. CAF provides the products and partnership allowing retailers to differentiate with clean, grow sales and improve profitability.

"Standards in the U.S. have risen over the years. It's really changed. There are retail operators out there that set a high bar, and get more customers and market share for that."

"The industry is quickly changing from fuel to food. Becoming a destination and growing in-store sales is critical. Customers coming in for food have much higher expectations than those coming in for only fuel and cigarettes. We've seen that change happen globally."

Improve your Forecourt Cleanliness today

Risk Free Trials available in the US and Europe to qualifying retailers. Get started by contacting CAF at sales@mycaf.com or by phone, US 1-888-737-0025 or EU +31 20 225 4552.