According to AAA, we’re headed into a record-setting July Fourth traffic weekend; be ready for all those travelers and you won’t miss out on record profits.
June 27, 2016 | AAA: Americans Will Take More Trips than Ever This Independence Day Weekend
ORLANDO, Fla. (June 27, 2016) – AAA projects nearly 43 million Americans will travel this Independence Day weekend. This represents the highest fourth of July travel volume on record and five million more travelers compared to Memorial Day weekend. The holiday travel period is defined as Thursday, June 30 to Monday, July 4. [Keep reading at Newsroom.AAA.com]
Eighty-four percent of holiday travelers–more than 36 million people–will drive to their Independence Day destinations, which means stopping for gas, and hitting convenience stores, is definitely going to be part of those travel plans (check out AAA’s cool travel forecast infographic for more details [1])
Turn July Fourth C-Store Traffic into Foodservice Profits
Here in Wisconsin we take advantage of summer as much as we can, since the nice days go by so quickly. Most weekends the roads are packed with cars traveling to the lake, beach, or a backyard BBQ. Convenience stores are the perfect one-stop-shop for these busy travelers and there’s no better time than the busiest holiday weekend travel ever–Fourth of July–to take advantage.
Before the traffic starts rolling in, take a minute to re-evaluate your store layout, product placement, and clean the store. (Convenience Store Decisions reports that if customers view your store as dirty, they are considerably less likely to make foodservice purchases from your location [2].) Consider what your customers might be coming in to purchase and highlight these products. Make sure the shelves are stocked, the signage is clear and the product is fresh.
Gas prices are, on average, 47¢ cheaper per gallon than last year.
With gas prices averaging 47¢ cheaper per gallon than last year [3], try using signage to advertise in-store specials at the pumps to entice gas-only customers to come in and purchase other products. This weekend would be a perfect opportunity to give free in-store samples a try; free samples are a relatively easy way to entice customers intro trying your foodservice options that might not try otherwise. Check out Andy’s “Untapped Potential of Free Samples for C-Stores” for more information on sampling. And definitely keep the bakery fresh and make sure the coffee and food are hot and ready.
Feeling overwhelmed? Not as prepared as you had hoped to be? Take this time to get all of your Convenience Store Supplies and be ahead of the game for the rest of the summer festivities and Labor Day travel.
[1] http://newsroom.aaa.com/2016/06/aaa-americans-will-take-trips-ever-independence-day-weekend/
[2] http://www.cstoredecisions.com/2014/04/09/boosting-sales-store-cleanliness/
[3] http://gasprices.aaa.com/gas-prices-ahead-independence-day-weekend-11-year-lows/
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