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Avoid
the Lines; Fridays are the Busiest at the Pump,
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According
to GasBuddy’s 2018 Annual Foot Traffic Report
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Costco captured the most foot traffic
per station of any fuel brands;
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Speedway, Thorntons lead respective
segments
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Boston,
MA – February 2019 / Newsmaker Alert /
For
drivers looking to fill up their tanks before a big weekend, they may want
to consider filling up earlier in the week to avoid the lines. That’s according
to the annual report examining foot traffic throughout 2018 in the $600
billion convenience store and fuel retailing industry released by GasBuddy,
the only company connecting drivers with their Perfect Pit Stop.
The
report found that consumers frequented gas stations the most during the
end of the week – Friday, Saturday, and Thursday. Contrary to the popular
‘morning coffee run’, people most frequently visited gas stations on Fridays
between noon and 5 p.m., staying an average of 7 minutes per visit.
Costco
captured the most foot traffic per station of any brand in any segment
– more than five times the industry average in 2018.
“It
is now confirmed that filling up at Costco on a Friday afternoon is the
worst idea ever unless you enjoy waiting in line,” says Frank Beard, convenience
store and retail trends analyst at GasBuddy. “While it’s not shocking that
Thanksgiving and Christmas had their share of increased retail visits,
Memorial Day weekend saw the highest uplift in foot traffic across all
categories, including hotels, auto rental, restaurants and coffee shops,
making it the best opportunity for retailers to excite customers with promotions
and meaningful in-store experiences.”
Report
highlights include:
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Costco
Claims the Top Spot in 2018 – Washington-based Costco (250 - 999 locations)
captured the most foot traffic per station of any brand in any segment—more
than five times the industry average in 2018. Other annual segment winners
include Ohio-based Speedway (1,000+ locations), Kentucky-based Thorntons
(50 - 249 locations), and Indiana-based Ricker’s (30 - 49 locations). Ricker’s
was recently acquired by GetGo—another top-performer. (#5 in the 50 - 249
locations)
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Fueling
on Fridays – Friday was the busiest day for fuel and convenience retailers
in 2018, followed by Saturday (2) and Thursday (3). Friday at noon and
5 p.m. Saturday at 4 p.m., Friday at 3 p.m. and Sundays at 1 p.m. round
out the top five busiest times.
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Memorial
Day Weekend #1 Holiday for Retailers – Examining the major driving
holidays of 2018 including Memorial Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas,
Memorial Day saw the most uplift in foot traffic across fuel and convenience
(45%) as well as other major on-the-go retail categories, including hotels
(100%), auto rental (40%), quick service restaurants (35%), casual dining
(33%) and coffee shops (38%).
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Pilot
and Wawa Tie for #1 in the Most States – Two brands, Pilot and Wawa,
tied for the number one spot by achieving the highest average foot traffic
in five states. Costco and Cumberland Farms came in a close second with
four wins, and Kroger and Speedway round out third by winning three.
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Customer
Service: Love it or Hate it – Whether it’s good or bad, customer service
makes an impression. Less than five percent (4.91%) of GasBuddies’ written
reviews for customer service were neutral, while reviews with positive
or negative sentiment comprised the remaining 95 percent. This also has
an impact on consumer foot traffic. In 2018, fuel and convenience retailers
with above-average customer service ratings attracted 25 percent more foot
traffic than their below-average counterparts.
See the
full report here: go.GasBuddy.com/2018FootTrafficReport
Methodology
From
Jan 1 - Dec 31, 2018, GasBuddy analyzed anonymous, aggregated location
visit data at more than 100 fuel and convenience store brands and retail
locations across the United States to understand foot traffic trends, provide
geo-behavioral and consumer insights, and identify the impact of key factors
such as ratings and reviews on POI visits. To be considered a “visit,”
a user must be within 30 meters of a fuel pump for between 2 and 30 minutes.
About
GasBuddy
GasBuddy
is a company that connects drivers with their Perfect Pit Stop. As the
leading source for crowdsourced, real-time fuel prices at more than 150,000
gas station convenience stores in the U.S., Canada and Australia, millions
of drivers use the GasBuddy app and website every day to find gas station
convenience stores based on fuel prices, location and ratings/reviews.
GasBuddy’s first-of-its-kind fuel savings program, Pay with GasBuddy, has
saved Americans more than $4.5 million at the pumps since its launch in
2017. The company’s business solutions suite, GasBuddy Business Pages,
provides Fuel Marketers and Retailers their best opportunity to maintain
their station information, manage their brand, and promote to their target
consumer audience. For more information, visit www.GasBuddy.com.
GasBuddy
Contact:
Allison
Mac
626-383-8371
Director
of Marketing and Communications
Source:
Avoid
the Lines; Fridays are the Busiest at the Pump, According to GasBuddy’s
2018 Annual Foot Traffic Report |