This article is brought to you by Patron Points.

There’s no debate that in-store traffic is what drives success in the convenience store industry. However, attracting consumers into the store can be expensive, time-consuming and overwhelming, particularly for independent convenience retailers.

“The c-store industry does a great job of marketing to customers at the pump, but what we need to do as an industry, we need to give them better reasons to walk into the store to buy that beverage, coffee, candy or snack from us,” said Erik Ogren, president, Patron Points, which develops technology to deliver customizable loyalty programs, mobile apps and scan-data reporting to the convenience industry.

The 2022 NACS Convenience Voices study shows that shoppers on average are visiting their convenience store 17% less than in 2019, and nearly 32% of consumers at a convenience store are planning to stop at a quick service restaurant within 30 minutes. These numbers tell us there is demand—we just have to remind the consumer of what we offer inside the store. This, according to Ogren, is where digital is vital—and he says, “convenience retailers need to reach the consumer where they are, not just when they are at the pump.”

An example of this could be pushing notifications to c-store consumers in the morning about a breakfast sandwich and coffee deal, or when it’s mid-morning and customers are starting to think about what they’ll eat for lunch, sending notifications about a deli offer.

“Help that consumer make the conscious decision to come to your facility over the competition, which is not just the c-store next door, it is fast food, big-box stores and the in-office vending machine. This is exactly where Patron Points can help,” said Ogren.

Patron Points is rolling out a collection of solutions that provide retailers of all sizes ways to confidently drive more traffic, more sales and more profit. From an updated mobile app linked to a store or chain’s customized loyalty program to the development and launch of Altria’s P+ and other tobacco loyalty promotions to retail stores, and in the fall a brand-new universal mobile app called formi™—Patron Points has solutions to meet the needs of c-store owners big and small.

“It’s so important that independent retailers have access to affordable digital solutions, including marketing, loyalty programs and other luxuries that a lot of the larger chains have,” he said. “The 90,000 single-store operators in the convenience industry don’t have to sit by and watch as their bigger competitors thrive in the digital era.”

This is the first installment of a two-part NACS Daily series on digital marketing for independent convenience retailers.

Discover how Patron Points helps convenience retailers drive traffic, sales and profit in the Thursday, August 17, edition of NACS Daily. Learn more about Patron Points here.