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Post by sketch
Don't use Unbranded unless there is absolutely zero branding on the station, pumps, and store. Leave the Brand drop-down blank (top option) if the station is generic.

I like to put the name of the store in the Name field and the gas station in the Brand field when both are obvious. For example, there are a lot of Exxon / Circle K combos around, so I'll put "Circle K" in the name field and set the brand as "Exxon". I think it'd be good to establish this as a standard.


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Post by sketch
PhantomSoul wrote:I don't see how anything other than the most prevalent sign you see by the side of the road is relevant here. Just my $0.02 ;)
Exxon Circle K has a huge Exxon logo and a huge Circle K logo on their signs. Some other places do this too (like the Cracker Barrel Store chain).

It also gives us guidance for instances where both are available in the Brand field, like Exxon and Circle K, or Shell and Cracker Barrel (IIRC). There are stations which are only Circle K, or only Cracker Barrel, but when it's both, we should put the "more gassy" brand in the Brand part.
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bye bye fuelly badge! i'm an EV guy now!

Post by sketch
PhantomSoul wrote:Circle K is a convenience store brand, not gas, right?
Not exactly. It is primarily a convenience store brand. Many of them exist at Exxon gas stations, but there are Circle K locations which have gas pumps and are branded exclusively Circle K.
Likewise, Cracker Barrel is a restaurant, not a gas station, right? Shouldn't they be indexed accordingly, separately?
Cracker Barrel is also a convenience store chain. I don't know whether the two are related. Other than that, it's the same story as Circle K. Some Cracker Barrel stores exist at Shell gas stations, but others have their own gas stations.
AlanOfTheBerg wrote:Sketch, what you're suggesting is not how u have understood how we are doing gas stations at all. In most cases the brand and name match. Maybe we missed this in the guidance thread?
Yeah, I don't think we addressed it in the guidance thread. I'm looking back, and unless I'm missing something the OP in that thread doesn't mention what exactly to put in the Name box, except that it shouldn't include the store number.

I started editing a lot of gas stations after that, and it seemed to make the most sense to me that stations where the forecourt and store are separately, but prominently, branded should have the store name in the Name field and the pumps name in the Brand field. This wouldn't apply to stores with generic- or brand-specific names (like Shell's "Food Mart" or Exxon's "Tiger Mart") but to things like Exxon / Circle K, or Shell / Dave's Travel Plaza.

Additionally, it seems appropriate to include the names of stations which are named -- it isn't super common, as far as I know, but some of the Shell stations around have names like "Edenborn Shell" or "Clearview Shell", typically stickered on the front window of the store. Sometimes these names will be shown in Shell's station locator as well.

Finally, the OP still recommends the use of "Unbranded", which should be changed, as IIRC I recommended later in that thread. "Unbranded" should only be used if there is absolutely no branding on the station at all. Otherwise, all that will show in the report list is "Unbranded", which is confusing and inappropriate for stations that aren't included in the list, like "Danny & Clyde's" or "Esplanade Discount One". They aren't unbranded, they just don't have brands in the list.
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the guidance linked above is now almost a decade old, but the link gives me a laugh every time i see it, so it stays (:
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Post by sketch
AlanOfTheBerg wrote:I think I need more info about how these fields are used/not used in the app search/station display before deciding. If I search for gas and it comes up showing "Johnsons' Food Stop" and I only want to go to a Chevron or Shell, then I'd not consider that entry because I don't know what it is. Even though it is a Shell, I can't tell that from the app right now. That's why I feel those should be named after the Brand as Shell, not the store name.
There's a station here that is branded Valero and named Discount City.

Gas search uses the Brand field, as does gas price reporting. Destination search (with Waze as the provider) uses the Name field, as do displayed landmarks.

If "Unbranded" is selected as the brand, then "Unbranded" will show in gas search and price reporting. If no brand is selected, the Name field will show for gas search and price reporting.

To use the example, looking for gas, I'll see Valero in the list. Reporting prices, I'll report at Valero. Searching for "Discount City" will get me there; searching for "Valero" will not. The map says "Discount City".

"Danny & Clyde's" (no brand) will show on the map, in gas search, in price reporting, and in destination search as "Danny & Clyde's".

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/06/14/aty6ema2.jpg
Gas search

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/06/14/u8y5a5a5.jpg
Destination search, "valero"

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/06/14/eby5ery2.jpg
Destination search, "discount city"


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Post by sketch
If they don't sell gas (no pumps), delete it.

BTW the thread you're probably really looking for is called something like "Gas Station Guidance".


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Post by the1who
Shirli,

I thought I saw a thread on list of brands, but since this is actively visible, I'll post here for now.

Casey's is known as Casey's, there is a selection for Caseys, but their brand is Casey's, even on their website.

Road Star, I see many gas stations in the region by that name, but I don't know what they are branded as. I don't know who they use for their fuel source, but it is a station here and I don't see any other branding for their fuel sources. Not sure if you wanted to know about that, for adding or not. Thanks!
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Post by the1who
Wal-Mart might have gas stations, but it isn't their brand, they use Murphy USA gasoline at those stations.
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Post by the1who
CTGreybeard wrote:I've seen a delivery truck at Costco and, IIRC, the name on the truck was "Murphy" ... who knows who refined what was inside? Barring concrete evidence to the contrary, I agree that Unbranded would be the best choice.
Partly true. I am sure if you asked the station operators they might disclose a bit more of their source, as it is going to vary across the country. If people locally know their brands, like here for Sam's and Wal-Mart it will most likely be Murphy (I know Wal-Mart is Murphy for sure), then we can brand those stations as such.

My father delivers gas for a living. Each company, be it Phillips, Quik Trip, BP, all have their special blends they will use, hence branding is important. BP and Quik Trip are the most laden detergent fuels in this market. They have the most additives for their fuels, and are quite specific. But one caveat is that no one really grasps in the public, aside from BP and Shell here, all the gas stations share the same source for their fuels. Be it Phillips to 7-Eleven, even potentially Murphy. The pipeline feeds the the reservoirs here, when a load is needed, they take the base 87 octane or 91 octane, and they add their additives to the product to claim it as their own, be it Conoco, Phillips etc. They all have the same source of fuel. I said aside from BP and Shell because they do have their own pipeline in this area (they are more strict on their fuels), but all other fuel companies all use the same source, they just add their own additive.

So for a Costco, which it even says on their website,
Costco buys fuel from major refineries and distributors in each area. All Costco gasoline is fully guaranteed, just like the merchandise we sell inside the warehouse.
[1] I guess unless you are locally tuned to what they are getting, it would be best served as unbranded.

But for the majority of Wal-Mart and Sam's, Murphy states on their site they serve this area for the most part, it might be different in some other part of the country,
Murphy’s marketing collaboration with Wal-Mart continues to grow at an impressive rate. Presently the number of high-volume retail gasoline stations operating in Wal-Mart parking areas throughout the Southeast and Upper Midwest regions is over 1,000, giving Murphy a unique niche in the U.S. marketplace. Additionally, high-volume sales coupled with very low operating costs giving us a distinct competitive advantage. In 2006 Murphy expanded its operation to include a new full size stand alone C-Store under the Murphy Express name.
[2]
Murphy USA Marketing Co. (Murphy Oil USA, Inc.) operates retail gasoline stations under the Murphy USA® brand across 23 states in the U.S. These are high-volume, low-cost retail gasoline stations, primarily in the parking areas of Wal-Mart Supercenters. Murphy Oil USA, Inc. also operates a network of 7 Company-owned terminals (C-Store presumed)
[3] The majority of these locations could presumably be Murphy.

What I'm trying to express is, the delivery truck isn't going to justify what they have. A Star Transport truck doesn't mean they are using Star oil, or a Groendyke truck doesn't mean they are Groendyke oil. Groendyke operates many trucks that are Quik Trip named on the side through their delivery contracts. But Groendyke, like Star, delivers to any station that is needing fuel dropped. Casey's runs a small fleet for their fuel, for the most part, they will deliver their fuel, except I have seen that Star and Groendyke fill in where needed. Casey's has their own brand of fuel because of their blend, just like Quik Trip and Phillips. They all rely on the same pipelines that feed this area, they just get different mixes at the time of filling the delivery truck.

Shell and BP are more strict about their pipeline and deliveries, so you'll see their own delivery vehicles, much like you'd see branded Love's. I wouldn't get to hastefully wanting to delete a brand without knowing a bit more about the source. For the case of Costco, after researching and reading their site, I can agree that we use unbranded except if there is local knowledge to the contrary. I just fear that some are going to edit the branding based on the delivery truck.

The one I am having difficulty figuring out around here at the moment is Road Star stations. All the others, aside from Costco, are pretty well laid out on their brands.

I was getting ready to post and skapur posted, and you're right, they are all placed in reservoirs, but the company that sells the oil, in order to be a Phillips station or to be a 76 or to be 7-Eleven, etc, that brand, in order to sell it as such, they have to have oil that is meeting their franchising requirements, which would be, if it has x additive, they must sell it as that brand with x additive and detergents. The delivering company will do that at the time they fill the truck. So a Star transport truck or whoever shows up, is technically carrying a 7-Eleven approved gas based on the mix of detergents/additives, or whichever brand. BP has some 16 different detergents to be added at the time the truck is filled with the fuel. In order to sell as BP, that has to be met, no matter who delivers it. So a BP station will be branded BP because they are selling, BP approved fuel. The same with any other station, they are selling the approved fuel mix to the company standards.

[1] Costco Gasoline Q&A
[2] Murphy Marketing
[3] Murphy Oil Corp
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