The Irresistible Wawa Cross-Sell

If it's not already obvious, I'm developing something of a Wawa Obsession. From their amazing convenience store coffee bar, 'Coffetopia,' to the fee-free PNC Bank co-branded ATMs, and now my quickening addiction to their breakfast sandwiches, I'm fully in the gravitational pull of the Wawa Blackhole.

Strangely, I can't tell if its due to the quality of the products, the service, the convenience, the whole Wawa experience, in short, or my corporate jealousy as a marketer of what seems to be an enviably customer-centric and well run company pulling the strings behind this amazing retail experience. In the wildest skews of my self-image, I'd never foreseen myself gushing over a convenience store.

As an example of this crush-worthy ingenuity, I'd like to highlight the custom, electronic sandwich-ordering process pictured above, which removes the element of dual-operator error acute to traditional human-to-human sandwich ordering by giving the user no less than 3 chances to include bacon.

As an up-selling system, this is absolutely brilliant, at one stroke delivering mass-customization, ensuring order accuracy, and possibly doubling or tripling Wawa's peripheral bacon sales.

Would I like bacon? Of course I would.

Bacon is but one of dozens of up-sell possibilities baked into this interface from cheese to bread to veggies. In navigating this digital labyrinth of temptation, my accomplice Ben has already been tricked twice this week into upsizing from the 4" Breakfast Ciabatta to the 10" Breakfast Hoagie. But the great thing is both Wawa and Ben came out feeling like winners.