How Can Fuel Retailers Earn Customer Loyalty?

May 19, 2025

At a time where fuel prices are steadily increasing, according to a Fuel Store report, what would make drivers choose your service station over your competition? More to the point, what would make a customer loyal to your business?

Loyalty is a general term signifying a person’s devotion or sentiment of attachment to someone or something. Customer loyalty (or brand loyalty) refers to a customer’s consistent preference for a particular brand over its competitors, despite competing offers or better prices. This type of loyalty indicates a deeper connection and commitment, one every fuel retailer dreams of.

Simply put, loyal customers are more likely to make repeat purchases, spend more, and become brand advocates. This in turn can lead to increased revenue, reduced marketing costs, and a stronger competitive advantage. In fact, around 65% of a business’ revenue often comes from repeat purchases of existing customers, and 57% of consumers say they spend more with brands to whom they feel loyal.

So, how can fuel retailers earn their customers loyalty?

Enhanced Customer Experience

Customer loyalty and engagement are heavily influenced by a range of factors – pricing, location, products, and services, etc. Although these aspects are important to building a “loyal customer”, customer loyalty is also derived from intangible factors such as experience, trust, quality, emotional connection, and perceived value.

Loyalty and retention are largely driven by the overall customer experience as 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.

The customer experience relies on service stations being able to deliver:

• Repeat positive interactions
• Great customer service
• Helpful staff
• Easy-to-use facilities
• Clean forecourt and onsite equipment
• Personalised offers
• Consistent quality

The level of effort required to maintain a customer is exponentially less than the level of effort to acquire a new one, as existing customers are shown to spend 31% more than new ones, and a mere 2% increase in customer retention could generate the same amount of profit as cutting costs by 10%.

Data Driven Insights

When it comes to creating an unrivalled customer experience, data plays a pivotal role. The entire service station – from the forecourt to the c-store – is a thriving hub of data; however, capturing this data and turning it into insightful information which can help make strategic decisions is often constrained. Making sense of real-time, or near real-time, customer data can help fuel retailers offer highly personalised and relevant recommendations.

The success of a service station is highly dependent on the exchange of data between various systems and pieces of equipment that exist on a fuel retail site. It's essential to align consumer expectations with retailers’ commercial objectives, while increasing efficiencies throughout the service station. These efficiencies, in turn, will make it easier for retailers to successfully manage business operations, while making the overall refueling experience better for motorists, e.g. enabling fuel payments and c-store orders to be streamlined straight to the point-of-sale (POS) system, while leveraging media to advertise loyalty and utilizing important customer data for repeat visits.

Integrating cloud-enabled solutions can help retailers manage all site data, while monitoring and analysing information faster and more accurately. The right data can help retailers understand what their customer preferences are e.g. their preferred payment method, average number of times they visit the service station, do they make additional purchases and where – car wash, c-store etc. Once this information is available, forecourt operators can start to understand their customers on a whole new level, improving the customer journey, increasing sales and profit margins, and becoming the service station motorists want to visit; thus, encouraging long-term customer loyalty.

Service Station Touchpoints

Each customer purchase is part of a bigger picture – it provides retailers with the insights they need to build the customer journey and gain a better understanding of that customer’s buying habits. Not only can this help fuel retailers build an effective sales strategy, it can also facilitate business growth through loyalty.

At a service station, there are multiple “touchpoints", and these touchpoints encompass everything from initial awareness to the forecourt and the in-store experience.

Awareness – this is the initial stage where customers recognise your service station as a business capable of fulfilling a want or a need via advertising and promotions, PR, or word-of-mouth. Aligning your business offering with alleviating customer pain points creates strong initial connections (e.g. refueling while buying coffee on route to work or groceries on route home).

Forecourt – this is the first in-person impression of your service station. A forecourt with attractive and clear signage will help guide customers to the correct dispensers and services. In addition, a forecourt should be clean and tidy to reassure customers of site safety and a smooth refuelling experience. Payment options such as cash, credit and debit cards, fuel cards, mobile payment, etc., are also essential to ensuring greater customer convenience.

In-store –The store should be well-organised and inviting. The store layout should take into consideration the customer journey and encourage customer browsing and impulse purchases. Friendly and helpful staff can help enhance the overall customer experience. Staff should be knowledgeable and attentive, while having a wide range of in-store options.

Ensuring a smooth and efficient experience across all touchpoints, from initial refuelling and in-store purchasing, to queuing and payment is vital. It is also important to note, the experience across all touchpoints should be seamless, almost as if connected.

Loyalty Programs

When it comes to the competitive market of fuel retail, there has been a dramatic shift in the way service stations present themselves. What once was considered a distressed purchase, fuel retailers now aim to provide a complete “retail experience" to customers – one which encompasses additional service offerings, food and drink options, comfortable seating, and a fully stocked c-store. Retailers now diversify their product and service offerings to supplement their traditional fuel income and win the coveted “loyal customer “.

However, with many service stations implementing the same tactics, it can be difficult to stand out from the competition, which is why many fuel retailers are turning to other added-value services, such as loyalty programs.

A well designed and implemented loyalty program can be a powerful tool for fuel retailers, helping to facilitate customer retention, as well as being a catalyst to increased sales.

Loyalty program transactions can account for as much as 50-70% of total station sales; however, participation rates are heavily influenced by the attractiveness of the loyalty program, and the overall service station offering (product range, pricing, location etc.).

A loyalty program on its own is not enough. Fuel retailers have to earn customer satisfaction, and a loyalty program, although helpful, will not necessarily generate a long-standing, loyal customer – especially given the average consumer belongs to at least 19 loyalty programs.

Conclusion

Investment in customer loyalty, although fraught with challenges, can deliver long-term value for a service station. Success is heavily dependent on retailers implementing data-driven customer insights into their strategies, while continuously measuring and optimising loyalty initiatives.

By blending seamless service, meaningful rewards, and a customer experience that goes beyond the pump, fuel retailers can turn a routine fuelling stop into a reason to return. The journey to customer loyalty is not about one big gesture; it’s about each and every touchpoint coming together to create a service station customers trust, mile after mile.

If you’re a fuel retailer looking to build and retain a loyal customer base, then reach out to us for guidance and assistance to help you improve your forecourt offering. With innovative products and solutions from secure payment and fuel retail/POS solutions to dispensers, DFS has you covered.