TL;DR: Despite the potential for significant cost savings, a transportation company struggled to get their partners to utilize non-petroleum fueled vehicles. To overcome this reluctance, a digital tool was created that enabled executives to quantify the potential cost savings. By building confidence and addressing key customer concerns, the company gained 26% increase in annual revenue for non-petroleum fleets.
Background
A transportation and logistics company recognized the potential of non-petroleum fuels for reducing the operating expenses of their partners, while promoting environmental sustainability. Given that fuel represents the second-highest expense for companies in this sector after labor, transitioning to more cost-effective alternatives directly impacts profitability. Despite this compelling financial incentive, both company executives and their drivers exhibited reluctance in adopting alternative fuel vehicles
Challenges
Customers faced two key barriers:
- Executive Buy-In – Despite the desire to position their organization as environmentally conscious, executives struggled to quantify the bottom-line benefits of non-petroleum fuels.
- Operational Limitations – Drivers and dispatchers encountered considerable difficulties locating suitable fueling stations. Upon identification, many stations proved to have inefficient fueling capabilities or challenging fueling accessibility. This led to increased driver fueling times, higher operational costs and a negative impact on profitability.
Solution: Digital Tools to Increase Adoption
To address these challenges, two digital solutions were created:
- Savings Calculator – A user-friendly online tool that enabled fleet operators and executives to calculate their current fuel cost and potential savings. Using inputs of annual mileage, fleet size and local fuel pricing an organization could quantify the financial value of transitioning from traditional fuel to non-petroleum fuels.
- Fueling Station Locator – A real-time digital map that provided turn-by-turn navigation to nearby alternative fueling stations. These maps included key details such as fuel pressure, fuel types available, and hours of service empowering drivers to identify stations offering the most efficient fueling. This also enabled dispatchers to guide drivers along optimized routes, minimizing refueling disruptions and maximizing delivery stops during each shift.
Results and Impact
The implementation of these digital tools led to a significant increase in adoption rates among existing customers. Within a year, the company achieved:
- Improved confidence among executive leaders and their drivers regarding the feasibility of non-petroleum fuel options for their fleets
- An efficient fueling process with reduced fuel operational challenges for drivers
- A 26% increase in annual product revenue related to non-petroleum fleets
Conclusion
By effectively overcoming adoption challenges and introducing innovative digital tools, the organization firmly established itself as a leader in non-petroleum fuel solutions. Demonstrating the potential net-positive financial impact to partner executives was instrumental in securing their support. This highlights the importance of aligning technological innovation with business priorities to drive transformative change.
