This article is brought to you by dunnhumby.

Today, dunnhumby published its first-ever Convenience Retailer Preference Index (RPI), which is a tool designed to help retailers plan for the future.

“The Convenience RPI will help the industry evolve and grow. It introduces a new framework for how people think about the customer value proposition from a customer’s perspective,” said Erich Kahner, senior director of strategy and insights, Americas, dunnhumby. The report is available to download for free.

Here are some insights from the index:

Convenience and speed were found to be least important quality for consumers within the customer value proposition. In order of importance in driving growth and emotional connection, the six dimensions of the c-store customer value proposition are:

• Quality
• Affordability
• Frictionless transactions
• Visibility
• Product variety
• Traditional convenience/speed

“The fact that convenience/speed was found to be the least important factor in the customer value proposition seems counterintuitive,” Kahner noted. He explained that the need for convenience and speed is well met for customers in c-stores. “All c-stores in our study scored really high on location, convenience and speed to shop. Because it's a really saturated need, and everybody's doing it really well, it’s basically table stakes. It's hard to differentiate on that to drive superior results.”

There’s no single strategy or type of c-store that dominates the top rankings. dunnhumby split the retailers into terciles (top 13, middle 14 and bottom 13), and among the top ranked c-stores, there’s a lot of variation. Both national and regional brands top the list, along with a few chains that are operated by large grocery brands and more. The top five c-store brands in the overall Convenience RPI ranking are Buc-ee’s, Sheetz, Wawa, Kwik Trip, and Walmart c-stores, with Kahner noting that each chain has distinct strategies for success.

“This research shows that the grocery-owned c-stores are a big potential threat to more traditional c-stores,” Kahner said. The ones ranked in the top tercile have “really strong customer value propositions that are driving growth and emotional connection at a greater rate than many traditional operators.”

The top-tier retailers are showing growth at a rate nearly two to three times faster than other c-stores. dunnhumby incorporated Placer.ai foot traffic data into its RPI analysis. The c-store operators ranked in the top tercile are maintaining positive foot traffic in a time when the industry itself is seeing foot traffic decline, Kahner said. In the past year, the top tier has grown foot traffic by 0.8%, while foot traffic in the bottom tier declined 2.7%.

“The survey data shows that the retailers that have stronger customer value propositions are showing better foot traffic. Retailers who have customers who perceive strong value propositions, especially in the areas that matter most to driving success, are the ones that are going to be going to be winning now and in the future,” Kahner said.

This is part two of a two-part series brought to you by dunnhumby. To learn more about the Convenience RPI, read part one or download the report.