LAS VEGAS – Convenience stores are often rooted in their bricks and mortar business model, even while the changing world of commerce continues to migrate to online transactions. To stay relevant, convenience stores need to learn to take advantage of developing commerce trends, said Gray Taylor, executive director of Conexxus, in a session at the NACS Show this week.
“It’s all moving to online,” Taylor said during the “Future of Commerce,” educational session. “But we are in the convenience business and no one else can do that online.”
It is important for convenience stores — and all retailers — to keep track of the newest developments in commerce and figure out how to make them work with their businesses. For example, c-store retailers should be aware of how many consumers track the price of gasoline online and want to pay using a cell phone, not a bank card.
“This is the new consumer,” Taylor said, adding that consumers will go out of their way to save pennies on a gallon of gasoline, and retailers need to be aware of their prices that are available online. They should look to make deals with suppliers who use new technology, such as beacons that send mobile marketing messages to shoppers in a store.
“Selling will be in the moment. Transactions will become more complex and consumer-centric,” Taylor said. Increasingly, consumers use phones to “window shop” — checking prices on products at different retailers — and weigh the advantages of loyalty programs to save money.
Retailers in the new world of mobile commerce may think the best option is to just create their own apps, but they instead need to think like consumers. Many consumers already think they have too many apps and do not use many of them, Taylor advised. A better option is to take the time to develop a long-term strategy and execute it.
“Every facet of your operation will be affected by new commerce. Everybody should be aware of it and should be involved in strategy,” Taylor said, adding that companies should have a chief digital officer to lead these efforts.
Other key factors to consider are using several forms of media because consumers have their own social media preferences, “like people like preferring a Chevy or a Ford,” he said. Also, retailers need to partner with other companies, tailor marketing to the smallest segment level and deliver on branding promises.
Taylor closed the session by discussing the importance of data in the changing world of commerce. Credit card companies are still controlling payments even when “mobile offers the best ultimate solution,” he said. “Card companies are taking your data.”
According to Taylor, the next big step in making a purchase may be Apple Pay because Apple “consumerizes complex things,” Taylor said. “Three years from now, when people pay with a fingerprint, they will say ‘Apple Pay.’ We know the user experience will be improved. That is what mobile payment needs.”