Paygo Resources –
Market Research
Before Angus Energy developed the Paygo program, it needed to make sure Paygo would be a real difference maker. And that starts with consumer reaction.
Polk-Lepson, Inc. was brought on to test the concept with customers in 7 states. It was one of the largest research projects focused on propane and oil customers completed in the last 20 years.
The findings were significant, not just because they showed exceptional customer interest in the Paygo approach. We also uncovered and quantified consumer attitudes that are at the heart of the challenges that most full-service fuel companies are facing.
A landmark consumer study
- Only 31% of customers believe their company makes deliveries when it suits the customer, not the company itself.
- Less than 24% disagreed with the statement “My company wants to make deliveries when prices are highest.” Ouch!
- Surprisingly, 37% did not believe their company would never let their customers run out of fuel.
Churn is increasing, and related to the overall distrust
- 33% of customers had changed fuel companies at least once within the past five years.
- Of these, a third had switched two or three times.
There is a connection between these patterns. As prices have gone up, and become even more volatile, the tendency to distrust has also risen. And in the customer’s mind, if my company isn’t looking out for me–or worse, trying to take advantage–why shouldn’t I switch. Couple that with a new breed of consumers, and low barriers to switching (75% said it would be easy to switch fuel companies if they wanted to) and you see the nature of the retention challenge more clearly.

What did customers think about Paygo?
The news for Paygo was exceptionally good. When the concept was explained to them,
- 39% said they would enroll if their company offered Paygo.
- 11% went even further. They said they would look for a new company if theirs didn’t offer Paygo. Another wow!
- 10% of will-call customers said they would upgrade to automatic delivery to get Paygo.
These are truly compelling numbers that should encourage all dealers to take a closer look at offering Paygo in their marketplace immediately.
What did customers like most about Paygo?

In market research,
“top box score” measures the intensity of interest in something. On a scale of 1-10, customers are asked to rate something. Only scores of 8 or above are included in the top box calculation. On the major benefits of Paygo, the top box scores were impressive.
Paygo impact on your brand:
When asked to describe a company that would offer Paygo to its customers, the top five characteristics were:

Would you like your company to be seen as having these attributes? Don’t you think this would make your brand stand out in your marketplace?
If these responses ring true for you, we encourage you to contact us today to learn more about Paygo.
More studies coming soon
Paygo is passionately interested in customer reaction to our service. We will regularly survey customers to quantify their experiences and continuously improve our program to delight them. We will also track the impact on retention and customer acquisition and use sophisticated Predictive Analytics to uncover important patterns that effect not just Paygo enrollments and satisfaction, but the overall success of our partner companies. Check back with us to see information as these studies are released.