Brazilian Gas Station Operator Boosts Sales By Adopting Planar LED Display Technology

Ipiranga is the largest private player in the Brazilian fuel distribution market, with approximately 7,200 service stations nationwide. Up until 2015, Ipiranga used printed materials on the exterior façades of its gas stations for promotions and keeping customers informed on company news. But efforts associated with the need to continually update these materials — including producing, distributing and installing printed banners — was a cumbersome, inefficient and expensive process that had become increasingly impractical.

Seeking a more efficient way to disseminate marketing messages, Ipiranga began to explore digital display technologies and eventually selected a Planar 10mm outdoor LED video wall display, confident in the quality of the images and the dependability of the product — essential factors for a digital technology that would eventually be installed in over 1,000 stations.

Ipiranga began with a pilot project in 2015, installing Planar LED video walls in 50 gas stations. The pilot program was such a success that by the end of 2017, Ipiranga had installed displays in over 700 stations.

In addition to highlighting the main promotions offered at the stations, the LED video walls also display information of public interest such as sporting events and movie advertisements. The data is updated in real time, bringing the most complete and efficient information to those who pass through the stations.

"The use of LED video walls is a way to establish an immediate connection with our customers. We are a stopping point for anyone who is moving from one place to another and so the more relevant the information is, the more customers will realize that they can count on Ipiranga," explains Jeronimo Santos, Ipiranga Retail Director.

The digital display solution also demonstrates Ipiranga's mission to employ environmentally sustainable ways to communicate with its customers.

Greater agility, simplified logistics

The shift to digital marketing was a logical choice for a company with so many locations across Brazil. With marketing communications now conducted through the Planar LED displays, Ipiranga has eliminated the previous, exhaustive process of replacing banners in hundreds of gas stations spread throughout Brazil.

Using specialized software, Ipiranga can now launch new campaigns with the click of a button. After digital content is created, Ipiranga can quickly dispatch it to the entire digital display network, immediately updating all LED displays in several cities across the country.

Return on investment justifies expansion

As Ipiranga implemented Planar display technology, starting with the pilot project in 2015, increases in oil changes and gasoline sales from improved customer engagement provided major support for expanding the project, according to Orlando Custódio, CEO of Planar Brazil and Latin America. "While change is always difficult to manage, results from the already-installed LED displays more than validated Ipiranga's continued adoption," he said.

With the LED video walls, we've had twice as much in high-grade gasoline sales compared to other gasoline types," said Manoel Pereira, a station owner in Rio de Janeiro.