Membership in the Fuel Rewards Program Doubles in Just Two Years

ATLANTA — The Fuel Rewards program hit two milestones in June: It reached more than 20 million members since 2017 and its members saved more than $1.7 billion on the cost of fuel.

Fuel Rewards is a loyalty program that connects national and regional brands and consumers to save on fuel at more than 13,000 Shell gas stations across the United States.

"Consumers have shown their preference for cents-per-gallon rewards time and again through changes in their spending behaviors," said Brandon Logsdon, senior vice president, Marketing Cloud Solutions at PDI. "The brands that participate in the program see the power of the currency and the flexibility of the platform to meet their specific marketing goals.

"Our 20 million Fuel Rewards members are a testament to the success of Instant Gold Status that launched at Shell in June 2017 and the program's ability to drive consumer participation, which translates to incremental revenue for participating brands," he added.

Membership growth came at a time when average per-gallon gas prices fluctuated from $3.99 in early 2012 to the current U.S. average of $2.72. Citing a Road to Rewards survey, PDI pointed out consumers say it's important to them to save on fuel costs both when gas prices are rising (73 percent) and falling (58 percent).

Excentus launched the Fuel Rewards program in 2012. Since Excentus was acquired by PDI in 2018, the program is now powered and run by PDI Marketing Cloud Solutions.

According to Atlanta-based PDI, the Fuel Rewards program's popularity among consumers has attracted brands across different categories to become participating merchants. With more fuel savings passed on to loyal customers, brands and retailers benefit from a growing member base, ongoing loyalty and increased brand awareness, it added.

The Fuel Rewards program also leverages its substantial investment in marketing technology — including next-generation customer relationship management, data analytics, mobile app development, geotargeting and dynamic digital customer engagement tools — to help brands meet their marketing objectives by participating in the program, according to the company.