Marketing

Iced coffee. Cold brew coffee. Frozen coffee.

These aren’t just variations on a theme; each is a distinct member of a larger beverage category that is gaining prominence: cold coffee.

When it comes to the cold coffee category, operators need to pay attention. Here are three reasons to care about the cold coffee category.

Everyone loves a retail rebate program. Certainly all retail rebate programs are good, right? Certainly they generate more profit for my organization. Or, are they much like fuel programs that you sign up for that are supposed to generate more fuel gallons for your location via a reduced cost to the customer when in the end all they do is generate less profit on customer gallons you already have? Hence, you discount gallons that you are already servicing and the few new gallons generated do not offset the loss profit of the old gallons.

But let’s get back to retail rebates. What should you consider when developing a rebate program?

Ask anyone how to create a seasonal promotional program and I am certain you will get a different answer from each person. Hopefully the basic tactics would all be about the same and where they would differ would be in the details of the individual and how they would execute the program.

That being said, I thought I would layout the basics that I shared from the Good To Great Session from NATSO Connect 2018.

I am a fan of holiday and seasonal programs. I’d like to challenge all NATSO members to create memorable seasonal and holiday programs for the entire year. Holiday and seasonal shopping continues to be big retail success, and it is not just Christmas and winter that are successful. Whether it is tax-free days, singles day, Easter, summer drive, etc., many are becoming really, really big retail days.

I know there is still frost on the ground in some parts of the country and thoughts of summer may be tucked into the back of your mind, but in retail it is never too early to start thinking about upcoming sales opportunities. So many retailers found themselves unprepared when the cold snap hit the East Coast and missed valuable sales opportunities. Don’t let the same thing happen with summer sales!

Use of electronic shelf tags is on the rise. During a NATSO Study Tour in Europe, we saw electronic shelf tags in action. They have become much, much more common in Europe and are headed this way. Electronic shelf tags have several benefits, and the main idea is that you can change the pricing multiple times each day in a matter of seconds.

What I continue to be amazed by is the need for our industry to differentiate itself from one another. Too often in the areas of food, truck supply, and convenience we replicate what the other person down the street is doing rather than figuring out exactly who are our customers is and why are they pulling in from the street.

We all certainly agree that fuel price plays the biggest draw but from that point on, are there other reasons and do you understand those reasons? Furthermore, are you capitalizing on them?

Do you have an apparel program? If you do, are you doing all you can with it? If you don’t, it is time to get in this category. Apparel, when done correctly in our industry, can have margins of 50 to 100 percent profit depending on what types of products you’re selling and what you buy.

The fourth quarter and holiday season has come and gone, and now that the dust has settled, it is a great time to review how things went. Holiday sales at many retailers exceeded expectations. Was that the case for you? Were you prepared or are there things you wish you’d done differently?

I am so fortunate to get to visit truckstops and travel plazas across the country and see first-hand the ways NATSO members are serving their communities. As we have noted before, operators are witnessing a rapid pace of change and many are responding with new and diverse offerings to attract customers. This need to adapt is not unique to our industry, and during my travels I see first-hand the ways other businesses are reacting to our today’s reality.

We can learn from those outside of our industry in addition to each other. Here are some key trends I am seeing from other businesses working to remain relevant.