Gas Boys and Experience Design
Maybe it’s the fact that gas has hit P60 per liter. But even prior to that godawful threshold, I’ve already grown to be so irritated by gasoline stations and the way they’ve trained their pump boys.
The first thing they barrage you with is the absolutely presumptuous “Sir, full tank?” Uh, not really.
You see, all you gas station-owner readers, there’s a huge difference between suggestive selling and pester-like absolutely irritation-inducing selling. You are not McDonald’s, wherein a little nudge from the order-taker can influence your customer to Go Big Time. Chances are that people driving up already know the amount of gas they want to buy. Asking us to go full tank is just a stupid line that further reminds us just how little mileage — figuratively and literally — we can get with our money nowadays on fuel. I really wonder what % of people do go the distance because you said, “Sir/Ma’am, full tank?” I bet it’s a miniscule percentage versus those who, like me, just got pissed off.
And it doesn’t end there.
Yes, your gasoline boys are nearing Starbucks barista-like friendliness. But to have them sell so many things — all the way from engine oil, credit cards with discounts, and all of the stuff that I just don’t want to hear about — while I’m sitting there in peace is damn right an invasion of privacy. The medium is the message, and having gas boys wave fliers in front of my face and go oil snake salesman on me while I’m enjoying a brief respite from urban traffic is absolutely intrusive. It’s high-time for you to get acquainted with the term Permission Marketing. While it’s application and popularization by marketing guru Seth Godin is more online than real-world, you could definitely pick up a lesson or two there.
The fundamental fault here really is the lack of customer-centricity. I understand your need to sell more stuff, that’s just the way business is. But put yourself in the consumer’s shoes first. What’s the current mindset? What’s the receptivity level to different messages? Maybe a signboard in front of us would work better. Or an insert in the receipt with a purchase incentive for the next time I visit. In absolutely bad grammar, let us consumers consume the messages the way we want to consume them.
This is what experience design is. Mapping out step-by-step what the consumer goes through and identifying how to innovate in delivering a great experience. Starbucks has figured this out to a tee. Some amusement parks are living testaments. While some definitely need a lot of help … Retailers. Restaurants. Airlines. Etc etc etc.
Products are not the only things screaming for innovation. Services are equally as important. And in our service-slanted world, those who figure these things out the best will win.
