CxVG Clip and Save: The Future of Digital Coupons

Gary Wren , director of IT at Midwest Petroleum and guest of Kristina Anderson , Midwest Petro- leum’s chief service officer, and Brad Miller , senior director, IT at Coen Markets, shared their positive experiences with Twilio. Wren uses Twilio for cus- tomer text messaging, advertisements, and rewards program sign-ups. He highlighted that it ties into their app but is independent, meaning an app is not required. Wren’s costs are between $300 and $500 a month for approximately 35,000 messages. Twilio allows for programmable message flows and responses based on customer replies, such as collecting information for rewards sign-ups. Miller’s company uses Paytronix for its loyalty program, but found its texting capability “prohibitively expensive,” he said. They are now using Twilio for streamlining job applicants, recruiting, and communication with potential hires, noting its inexpensiveness for vol- ume. Sultan confirmed similar success using QR codes or text-in numbers for job applicants, finding it an easy sign-up process. Wren also noted that his company now primarily uses texts over emails for customer reach. Former retail CIO Robert Hampton , now Vision Group Network director of strategic growth and initiatives, described his previous experience using an API to build a custom front-end solution that sent

SMS messages via an external service. Although used for employee interaction (e.g., filling open shifts) rather than customer service, he suggested it could be customized for customers. Sultan then shared how his company is using text messaging internally for training. For making spe- cialty coffee, employees can text a specific menu number to receive word-for-word instructions. They have further enhanced this by adding unlisted You- Tube links for short video tutorials, such as how to process gift card transactions during peak seasons. Sultan emphasized that the power of text messaging is limited only by the operators’ imagination, making it valuable for both internal and external use. Maxey added that it leverages devices already in employ- ees’ hands.

to improve its drive-thru experience, drawing inspi- ration from businesses like Chick-fil-A, which they identified as having the best drive-thru experience due to their seamless order taking and payment processing. Favtrip’s drive-thrus operate 24/7 and offer nearly everything available in the store, including recently added coffee and fountain drinks. They do not sell lottery tickets, alcohol, or money orders, which helps prevent line slowdowns. To combat long lines, Sultan shared that they overstaff during peak hours, often having four people instead of three, espe- cially on Fridays. Staff members go outside to take orders, ring them up inside, and deliver products. They also offer solutions for customers who are uncomfortable handing over cards, such as a direct swipe option. While they aim to quickly serve the customer, very large or complex orders may prompt staff to ask customers to pull aside or come inside the store. A major challenge, according to Sultan, is their current use of a Clover device for drive-thru sales that is not integrated with their main Verifone C18 point-of-sale solution. This lack of integration neces- sitates printing separate reports, and discrepancies between reports occur. Their goal is to combine

Drive-Thru POS: Scale, Integration and AI-Driven Optimization

Sultan’s company implemented drive-thrus long before the COVID-19 pandemic, but said that the pandemic made them “necessary.” They operate two drive-thru locations, which have distinct de- mographics and customer behaviors that influence product offerings. The company continuously seeks