Running a petrol station involves managing various moving parts. There are often many opportunities for processes and systems to become inefficient or unprofitable, but that also means there are ways to improve petrol station efficiency.
The following three criteria can help your petrol station deliver a high return on investments and scalable profitability.
Workforce
Recruitment is a critical part of successfully improving your petrol station. You want skilled employees that are engaged in your operations and provide excellent customer service. Placing employees in the wrong roles or hiring someone under qualified could result in disaster.
Customers drive your business, so you want a team that ensures every customer has a positive experience. This will boost your reputation, customer retention and result in increased productivity and sales.
Having a defined onboarding process for new hires can help set your staff up for success. You should provide any necessary training accordingly and give the opportunity to ask questions. You want your team to be knowledgeable, so they can handle any situation (i.e., issues, service requests, or complaints) confidently and improve the customer experience. ServoPro members have access to online training courses, ServoSkills, to ensure staff are trained in all aspects of working in a petrol station.
A positive culture is essential in the workplace. In addition to keeping customers happy, it’s vital to keep employees happy as well. Businesses with high employee retention can save considerable amounts of time, money, and effort by not needing to recruit and replace lost talent frequently.
Technology
Petrol stations can leverage forward-thinking technology to improve efficiency. It can often save time and money. It can also help improve the customer experience – a key to long-term success.
When using any technology in a petrol station, making the most of all the possible data and information can make all the difference. Simply knowing when the petrol station is likely to be busy and adjusting employee shifts to reflect the demand can ensure smooth procedures.
Technology that monitors equipment can also mean petrol stations are never faced with unexpected issues that will impact services. If a petrol station offers other services as a logical upsell, understanding how the equipment is performing prevents downtime and lost profit.
In addition, technology can reduce the need for staff to process orders and manage the forecourt. This helps scale operations and allows petrol stations to service customers without needing to exceed staffing budgets.
Marketing and Sales
Creative marketing and sales are a great way to increase petrol station profitability. Promotions and extras like loyalty cards, discounts, and special offers can help bring in new customers or encourage repeat purchases from existing customers.
There are also plenty of opportunities for petrol stations to implement upsells. This can be a great way to increase the average order amount for each customer, which, over time, can add up substantially. Everything that engages customers in your products and services will create a positive experience, translating to a strong reputation for your petrol station. Your services are a necessity, so implement an innovative marketing strategy and gain a competitive edge.
Learn More with ServoPro
ServoPro is Australia’s leading membership for petrol and convenience retailers. We provide a variety of services to help retailers improve their operations and profitability. Our team is also available to give you the advice you need to save time, save money, and grow your business. If you want to improve your petrol station’s efficiency, contact us today.