5 Killer Marketing Strategies for an Oil and Gas Company

Now when it comes to running a business and sourcing for customers, I want to state clearly that there is no magical spell and no short cut to success. You have to start from the scratch and learn fast, or your business will die. Secondly, I want you to understand that there is no laid down rule for finding customers or selling your products. You just have to try a lot of tactics and strategies; then you choose the ones that worked best and replicate it. Before I go any further, there’s a very important question you must answer. In fact, finding an answer to this question may be the beginning of your breakthrough in the oil and gas marketing business. And the question is this: Why should the petroleum product retailers or consumers boycott their existing supplier to buy from you? Yes, this is a very critical question you must answer. It is a known fact that petroleum products are commodities that can hardly be branded and the price is strictly regulated. So why should the filling stations and telecom companies buy from you? What is your competitive advantage? What separates you from the other marketers? Can you compete with faster delivery? That’s left for you to find out but the truth is that you need a key point on which to convince the gas stations and companies to patronize you. 1. Send Business Proposals This might work for hotels and telecom companies because these companies often require formal applications and protocols, but it may not work for filling stations because most fuel stations in Nigeria are run informally by low skilled workers. You can write proposals to these companies highlight why they should consider you as their petroleum products supplier. But bear in mind that the chances of failure is higher when applying this tactics because you will almost never get a reply. 2. Talk to those that matter This is the most difficult but effective way to look for customers for your petroleum products. Walk to filling stations or your target customers and speak with them face to face but make sure you are speaking with the owner, manager or decision maker, so that you won’t be wasting your time and effort. 3. Concentrate on finding just one customer Sometimes in life, you just need one customer to grow speedily. So concentrate your effort on pursuing just one customer, provided you have established the fact you have a good chance of winning a deal. If you are lucky to get the deal, go all out to impress this one customer by delivering on your promises; then politely ask your customer to recommend you to his/her friends and associates in the industry. 4.Look within your neighborhood Don’t despise the days of little beginning, so look within your neighborhood. Consider the roadside or street retailers of Kerosine (DPK); I mean those that have mini storage tanks. These retailers are often a source of supply to majority of populace that fall within the poor and middle class range; so they are constantly in demand for supplies. You can talk to them face to face and see if you can cut a deal. 5. Advertise on mass media If you have got some money to spare, you can choose to advertise your services on newspapers, magazines, or any other media that will connect you to your targeted customers. And lastly, I want to encourage you not to give up. You have come this far, therefore, it’s too late to quit. Always remember that all it takes is just one customer to set the ball rolling. Secondly, you must never forget that integrity is the most important business asset. Call it honesty and you won’t be wrong. Even if you lose everything, provided you uphold your principle of integrity; you will surely bounce back. I sincerely wish you all the best and I look forward to seeing you a success.