Alimentation Couche‑Tard is a world leader in the convenience store and retail fuel industry, employing over 124,000 people across its network of almost 14,200 stores in 26 countries.
While it’s best known internationally for its Circle K branded forecourts and stores, the company continues to operate under its original French name Couche-Tard in Quebec in Canada, where the company was founded more than 40 years ago.
As well as celebrating forty years in business, expanding its operations to Asia and being named the top Canadian retailer among Forbes’ list of World’s Best Employers 2021, the firm continues to innovate in order to deliver on its vision and goal to “become the preferred destination for the purchase of goods and mobility around the world.“
As part of that vision, Canadian customers are now enjoying the power of car wash subscription options as an exciting addition to the popular Couche-Tard app. These new subscription packages have become an extraordinary success for Circle K stores in the US and Europe as previously showcased, so this latest expansion proves how the Liquid Barcodes car wash subscription platform is helping to delight Couche-Tard customers in more and more cities around the world.
The latest initiative in Quebec was led by Sameer Haidari, Canadian Car Wash Lead at Circle K, who shared his excitement and gratitude to the entire team responsible for the successful launch saying:
“We are proud to be the first subscription-based service where customers can sign up, wash with ease & no worries at all. Offering 3 different packages, ability to upgrade or downgrade, single washes, automatic monthly billing, 2 washes per day, half-price trial period, we have something special for everyone!”
The Couche-Tard car wash subscription product was launched with support from the marketing, operations, app development and accounting teams.
From a technical/operations perspective, along with the Liquid Barcodes subscription loyalty platform, Couche-Tard was supported by their app developer Third Bridge. The payment solution is powered by Rocket Partners, with payment service provider Moneris supporting them on the backend. The car wash machines are manufactured and supported by DRB.
Why Do Customers Love Couche-Tard’s Car Wash Subscription?
Firstly, customers want to wash their car as quickly and as easily as possible. Anything that reduces the steps needed along the way increases their overall positive perception of the brand. Eliminating the need to go in store to buy a car wash code brings “true convenience” for Couche-Tard customers.
Secondly, customers love the idea of “unlimited” benefits from their subscriptions with Amazon and Netflix, so daily car washing for one fixed price promises equally positive experiences for customers.
Thirdly, subscribers enjoy a 50% discount on their first month. Also, there is no long-term contract and they enjoy convenient monthly billing.
After a successful pilot, customers enjoyed the entire subscription service experience, with the key benefits summarised here:
Beginning with a soft launch over four weeks, the roll-out will continue until more than a hundred Couche-Tard stores are live with carwash subscription by mind-November 2021. This allows time for testing, tracking, training and of course any localisation needed to ensure the success of the program.
The Couche-Tard app now features a selection of affordable car wash subscription packages for customers.
Why Does Couche-Tard Love the Car Wash Subscription Program?
Following the success of their Circle K car wash subscription program, it became clear that subscribers tend to spend on impulse when they are near a convenience store for gas or car wash, so there is great potential for both cross-sell and up-sell from Couche-Tard car wash subscribers.
Separately, a subscription program allows Couche-Tard to set targets for 100% share of their customers car wash spend, as no subscriber will ever go to competing car wash service once they’ve subscribed to one. By being first to launch the product in Quebec, Couche-Tard can increase the lifetime value of each car wash customer, resulting in “extreme loyalty”.
We are thrilled to be supporting Couche-Tard and Circle K as they continue to delight their customers with car wash concepts that are innovative, affordable and effortless.
About Us:
Liquid Barcodes is a leading global loyalty and digital marketing technology company specialising in the convenience store and foodservice industries. Our proprietary cloud-based technology platform allow retailers to create and manage their digital marketing campaigns with a proprietary process we call the “customer connection cycle’ to engage, promote and reward customers activities in real-time across digital and media channels.
How we do it:
We have developed the most advanced loyalty and digital marketing technology platform specifically for convenience store and foodservice retailers globally.
Retailers use our self-service dashboard to create and manage loyalty driven marketing campaigns that increase purchases with their existing customers, as well as effectively target and acquire new customers through partners or paid media channels.
One core component of live loyalty is gamification. We have gamified branding, loyalty and promotions. We believe this approach is essential in order to get customers’ attention and ultimately truly engage them with repeatable actions thereby winning their loyalty.
Check out some of our exciting/proven results here:
About Me:
Chief Content Officer, Liquid Barcodes and Loyalty Podcaster
With over twenty-five years marketing experience, I specialise in loyalty marketing articles and podcasts. In addition to working with Liquid Barcodes, my clients have included Telefonica O2 Priority, Three Mobile, Electric Ireland, Allied Irish Bank and The Entertainer Group (UAE), as well as Avios – the global points currency for some of the world’s top airlines. I am also a former judge for the Loyalty Magazine Awards and proud host of the “Let’s Talk Loyalty” podcast – the industry’s first podcast for loyalty marketing professionals.
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