Shell's Gasoline Giveaway Drives Customer Traffic and Increases Volume

HOUSTON -- The Shell New York Gasoline Giveaway in last year's fourth quarter generated awareness of newly reimaged Shell stations in New York and Connecticut and increased customer traffic for participating Shell-branded retailers and wholesalers, according to Shell Oil Products US and Motiva Enterprises LLC.

The giveaway included three grand prizes and gave entrants the chance to win a one-year supply of Shell gasoline. To heighten customer traffic and educate consumers about the giveaway during the promotional period, each site held customer appreciation events, including radio remotes, special offers and product sampling in the convenience stores.

During the four-week promotion, the combined volume of all participating locations increased by more than 1 million gallons compared to same-store sales for the same period in 2003.

According to sales data, the volume uplift continued at participating sites with a total increase in volume of more than 2.6 million gallons from October 2004 through December 2004 as compared to same-store sales for the same time the previous year.

More than 4,000 people entered the sweepstakes, and the three grand-prize winners were selected at a grand finale event held in November at a Shell station in Elmont, N.Y.

In other Shell news, STARZ (Shell Trading And Retail Zone) is celebrating its one-year anniversary. The free Web-based resource, supplied by Shell, helps wholesalers and retailers in the Shell network address issues and identify opportunities related to convenience retailing and site management.

According to Ian Sutcliffe, vice president of Shell Retail US, STARZ allows Shell to effectively communicate valuable information to its network. "We are trying to make it easier for our customers to do business in today's tough retail environment," said Sutcliffe. "STARZ provides operators with useful information and business-building tools, 24 hours a day through one easy-to-access Web site."