Have You Mapped Your Customers Journey?

July 15, 2025

Traditionally, fuel stations were seen as a place to refuel where fuel retailers had little to no input on something that was considered a distressed purchase (e.g., “fuel-and-go”). Today, this is simply not the case.

The fuel retail industry is constantly evolving, which means the traditional business model no longer applies. Consumers have more purchasing power, and their expectations…well, they’re increasing. Most consumers expect the fuel station to function with the same speed and autonomy they get from other retail experiences; however, many fuel retailers have little understanding of their customers’ behaviour or journey while on site.

How well do you know your fuel station customers?

In this article, we look at the importance of mapping your customers’ journey and unpack how retailers can adapt their fuel station to become more customer-centric and resilient.

The Importance of Mapping the Customer Journey

Many retailers underestimate the value of mapping their customers’ journey on the forecourt, but without it, no fuel retail site can provide a truly great customer experience. Mapping the customer journey means identifying key touchpoints (on the forecourt and in the c-store), understanding customer actions, and analysing behaviour at every stage. In fact, a well-mapped journey can reveal opportunities for business improvement, increased customer satisfaction, and enhanced brand loyalty. There are several key stages of the fuel retail customer journey:

Awareness – customers become aware of your fuel site location and offering (e.g., fuel or energy types available, c-store items, loyalty programs, etc.).

Consideration – customers evaluate their fuel station options, considering factors such as location, price, cleanliness, fuel type/quality, and additional services (e.g., parcel pick-up and drop-off, car wash etc.).

Decision – customers decide where to purchase their fuel and additional services based on the factors they consider and value most.

Purchase – customers complete their purchase and evaluate their overall experience.

Retention – customers revisit their experience the next time they need to visit a fuel site and determine to return to the same site if their experience was a positive one.

Although the mapping process will enable retailers to become closer to their customers, it is only the beginning. Once retailers have identified key touch points on site, consumer actions and behaviour still need to be analysed. The best way to do that is to collect customer data.

Data and the Connected Customer

Customer data is the most powerful tool available to a fuel business. Each customer interaction, and subsequent purchase, is part of a bigger picture – it provides retailers with the insights they need to gain a better understanding of each customer’s buying habits. Not only can this help fuel retailers build an effective sales strategy, it can also facilitate business growth and help them gain a unique competitive advantage.

The right data can help retailers understand their customer preferences. For example, it can help identify customers’ preferred payment methods (e.g., cash, card or contactless), the average number of times customers visit their forecourt, or if customers use any additional services while on site (e.g., car wash, coffee shop, parcel pick-up and drop off, etc.). Once this information is available, retailers can start to understand their customers on a whole new level, improving the customer journey, increasing sales and profit margins, and becoming a fuel station motorists want to re-visit.

Business success is heavily dependent on the exchange of data between the various systems and equipment at a fuel site. It's essential for retailers to align consumer expectations with their commercial objectives, while increasing efficiencies throughout the fuel station. These efficiencies, in turn, will make it easier for retailers to successfully manage business operations, while making the overall refuelling experience better for motorists by enabling fuel payments and c-store orders to be streamlined straight to the point-of-sale system, leveraging media to advertise loyalty and utilising important customer data for repeat visits.

With enhanced connectivity, a fuel station can meet, or even exceed, customer expectations of convenience and innovation. Digital solutions support retailers in establishing a smooth customer journey. For example, the ability to accept various payment methods (e.g., bank/fleet/credit cards, cash, and mobile “tap to pay”) for all fuel types, including clean energy, makes the refuelling process stress-free for motorists. This enables customers to seamlessly complete the tasks they need to, to move on with their journey, such as rapidly refuelling and paying for their fuel purchase or being able to take care of additional tasks while at the fuel site (e.g., parcel collection or food shopping). This all adds to the expected experience and convenience many motorists require while on a fuel site.

Optimising the Customer Journey on Your Fuel Site

Today’s consumers are digitally literate, and their expectations have been shaped by other retail and service providers creating a harmonised and cohesive experience across all channels. As a result, most consumers now expect the businesses, they interact with, to know their preferences and buying habits. Therefore, fuel stations need to become more than just a place where people refuel.

A consumer’s experience, driven by the success of analysing customer data and having a better understanding of the customer journey, can have a significant impact on a fuel retail site. 86% of consumers are willing to pay more for a great customer experience, with those customers spending up to 140% more than those who experience negative interactions. In addition, approximately one in three consumers (32%) would walk away from a brand or company they love after just one bad experience, and 92% would completely abandon a company after two or three negative interactions. Can fuel retailers afford to not devote serious time, money, and resources to improving the customer journey?

Retailers should look to:

• Analyse data to provide personalised experience and offers.
• Ensure a consistent and connected customer experience across all channels.
• Foster a customer-centric culture that prioritises the customer experience above all else, while aligning commercial objectives and employees with the same goal.

The truth is, most fuel retailers overlook the importance of the customer journey, which provides some retailers with a unique opportunity – providing an exceptional customer experience gives retailers a vital competitive advantage.

Optimising the customer journey is an ongoing process, one that needs to continue to evolve with changing customer needs and ongoing market trends. If retailers commit to optimising their customers journey, long-term, happy, and satisfied customers will return time and time again.