wind out of the sails, and customers just stay longer.” Finally, it addresses a key selling point gas companies often use in pitching conversions. “I actually got the idea for Paygo when one of my clients pointed out a utility ad that was harping on how you won’t have to pay for gas before you use it,” said Baratz. “Paygo is the antidote for that attack.” Boosting Sales When you look at our industry through the customer’s eyes, it’s hard to tell companies apart. Virtually every full service company has been in business for decades and offers service plans, budget plans, auto deliveries, etc. There are big differences in reality, but we’re talking about customer perceptions here. It’s no wonder it so often comes down to price. According to Baratz, Paygo steps into this mix, and allows you to say something unique. “No one else is letting them hold onto hundreds of dollars in their own pocket—which they really like. No one is playing things this ‘fair.’ Few companies offer no-run-out guarantees (which are much easier to provide with Paygo’s monitoring system). The market research showed that 11% of fuel customers surveyed would actually look to change companies to get Paygo. That’s a lot of potential customers.” Because Paygo can work with variable, capped or fixed prices, it doesn’t restrict offerings. “Propane sales people have especially loved the fact that they can tell a prospect, ‘We can fill your new tank up, and it may take months until you have to pay us for it,’” said Baratz. Finally, Paygo’s roll out will be restricted to a reasonably small portion of the market place. “We’re not looking to saturate the market,” said Baratz. “Our plan calls for Paygo to be offered by perhaps 20% of the full service fuel companies, which will maximize its advantage to our clients.” Improving Delivery Efficiency Paygo can estimate the customer’s monthly fuel use by tapping into a dealer’s own automatic delivery system (degree days/k factor). While this is obviously just a good guess, the system automatically “trues up” the account every time there’s a delivery, much like when the utility company reads the meter. Ultimately, the bills all tie back to the certified metered delivery ticket. Even better, Paygo can provide tank monitors that give estimates Continued on p.18 14 ICM/Machr/April 2015
ICM September-October 2014
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