DATS 24 launches mobile refuelling with the XTRA app
The Colruyt Group Xtra app has a brand new function: mobile refuelling. Mobile refuelling is now possible at DATS 24, the fuel supplier that forms part of the retail group. After a successful test period with around 80 employees, smartphone refuelling is now also available for private customers. The entire focus is on speed, simplicity and customer experience: driving in, selecting the pump, refuelling, placing the nozzle back and driving off. Just like with the Xtra card, payment is made by direct debit.
Thursday, January 10, 2019
Listening to the user
Xtra is the loyalty card and app for 10 Colruyt Group store formulas and webshops, with its main aim being to offer customers added convenience when shopping with the group. In the autumn of 2017, this card also replaced the DATS 24 fuel card. "Although the process ran smoothly, our customers experienced some hiccups. And so we called 1,000 customers who were using the Xtra card to fill up. We took their experiences into account when developing the tank function on the app", says Raf Flebus, Business Unit Manager of DATS 24.
"The process of refuelling a vehicle is hardly ever considered as something pleasant. With the help of the easy-to-use Xtra app, DATS 24 wants to change this: we are now making things even easier for customers. We also want to be relevant for younger customers. For them, digital payment has become the norm wherever they are", Raf Flebus adds.
Mobile refuelling in just 3 clicks
Once the Xtra payment function has been activated, all that's needed is to download or update the app. After acceptance of the general terms and conditions and registration of the mobile number via the app, the tank function is activated. Customers can then refuel the very next day using their smartphones.
Mobile refuelling is done in just 3 clicks:
- click 1: open the Xtra app
- click 2: click on tank function. The app automatically registers which petrol station the user is at
- click 3: choose the pump number
Immediately after that, you can refuel. After refuelling, the user simply places the nozzle back in the dispenser. By the time the customer gets back into the car, the invoice is already displayed on the smartphone screen - which by the way, stays in the car while the customer is filling up. This means that printing off a till receipt is a thing of the past. The refuelling information is available the next day in various formats in the Xtra customer profile history.
Raf Flebus: "And for those customers who still need to activate the payment function, we make sure that this can be done just one week after the request. The user can therefore go through this entire process digitally".
More than 450,000 Xtra payment functions active
Of the +4.5 million Xtra cardholders, about 10% have activated the payment function. This means that they pay for all their purchases and possibly their refuelling by direct debit. On the next day after the purchase has been made, the amount is debited from their account and the overview appears in the customer's Xtra-login. A quarter of a million customers also use the Xtra app regularly. If desired, they can therefore quickly make the transition to mobile refuelling.
The tank function on the app works just like purchases with Xtra. Immediately after refuelling with the smartphone, the app indicates how much was refuelled and what it cost. The day after refuelling, the amount for refuelling is debited from the customer's bank account and the amount appears in the customer's profile history. There the customer also has an insight into the discounts he enjoys.
Test audience particularly enthusiastic about mobile refuelling
DATS 24 selected around 80 employees within Colruyt Group to test the tank function on the app. Each employee has customer contact in one way or another. Straightaway, this means that they are well equipped to assist customers switch over to mobile refuelling. Linda Van Gugte, an employee at the Colruyt Group contact centre, was one of them. "The whole process went surprisingly smoothly and simply. The day after I linked my smartphone to the tank function, I was able to fill up using my mobile phone. And it was really quick and easy to do. I'm definitely convinced and will use this app in the future for all my refuelling sessions."
Mobile refuelling: easier and more sustainable
DATS 24 is convinced that refuelling with the smartphone makes refuelling easier for the user. In addition, mobile refuelling has benefits for the environment compared to traditional refuelling with a fuel card or bank card. Less tickets means less paper and ink consumption. Finally, it is expected that there will be less need for plastic cards. Flebus: "This way, the refuelling process becomes a little more sustainable."