Self-service technology is at the heart of business evolution in the modern-day world, and at the center of this are self-service kiosks.
Having human attendants has its perks, like a personal touch and expertise.
Still, technology keeps advancing, and businesses are moving towards increased productivity. Self-service kiosks are the best epitome of that.
This is a quick look at the benefits of self-service kiosks and how they can help take your business to the next level!
What Is a Self-Service Kiosk?
A self-service kiosk is a device that a customer can use to directly interact with a business entity.
This kind of kiosk allows the business to provide service to its customers easily and conveniently.
There’s very little human involvement, which makes it an advanced form of self-service that saves time and resources.
A good example of a self-service kiosk is a ticketing machine at a train or bus station.
These days, all you need to do is get to a self-service ticket kiosk, insert a few bills, and the ticket comes out.
You can avoid waiting in long queues, ticketing errors, or having to ask for assistance. Everything is now straightforward and prompt.
Types of Self Service Kiosks
There are several types of self-service kiosks that brands are currently using to interact with their customers. Here are some common uses and applications of self-service kiosks that you should consider for your brand business.
1. Retail
The retail industry has benefited a lot from self-service kiosks.
They’ve made the movement of customers within shops much faster since customers can now make payments on their own.
Furthermore, this reduces long queues and increases efficiency.
On the business end, retail establishments do not need to employ as many cashiers with the help of these devices.
All they need now is just a handful of employees to supervise the flow and troubleshoot any device issues that may arise.
2. Academia
Finding your way around a huge university library can be tough. However, with a good interactive touch screen installed, you can check for a book right away, and find out whether it’s available or loaned out.
Aside from checking a book’s loan status, you can find out the number of copies the library is holding, the volumes associated with it, and the exact aisle and shelf it’s located on.
This is an incredibly efficient service that saves time. Kiosks like this are sure to become a frequent fixture in modern libraries.
3. Restaurants
Self-ordering kiosks, quick-service restaurants, and fast food outlets like McDonald’s and KFC usually receive a lot of customers every day, and this can put pressure on the people handling the orders.
However, with self-ordering kiosks, all restaurant customers have to do is make their own orders and only go to pick it up, or even have everything delivered to them.
This streamlines the ordering process, making it easier and reducing the occurrences of misheard orders.
4. Corporate Buildings
Without digital signage wayfinding self-service kiosks in buildings, things can quickly descend into chaos.
Some buildings are simply too big for people to find their way without any assistance. Hiring people to act as guides or navigators also comes with its own set of challenges.
Now, every piece of information about office locations and the building layout can be successfully uploaded into a self service kiosk.
With live maps and suggested routes, the kiosk makes it easy for newcomers to find their way around.
5. Hospitals and Clinics
Hospitals and clinics are other places that can greatly benefit from self-service kiosks in the market today.
Considering how much of a beehive a hospital can be, especially if it is huge, having self-service kiosks is the best way for people to find their way around and even get services rather than rely on overworked staff.
These kiosks are ideal for decimating queues and improving the healthcare facility’s efficiency.
6. Administrative Departments
Administrative buildings and places the post office can also benefit from installing an interactive kiosk. Customers who come to discuss postage, taxes, and building permits can make a selection on the kiosk and wait to be directed to the right counters.
This requires a technology overhaul that, in the long-term, is more financially viable than the pre-existing system.
A self-service kiosk of this nature can even describe in detail the exact types of services one should expect to get.
7. Entertainment
Concerts, cinemas, amusement parks, and the likes are all places that usually receive a lot of people.
Vendors need to have self-ordering kiosks and self-service machines in place to ensure customers can find them with ease.
Aside from wayfinding, self-service can provide extra information about whatever is being featured. This can be background knowledge about a band, or reviews of movies.
8. Tourism and Hospitality
If you have ever been through a major airport, it is easy to get distracted and even get lost in the crowds.
People have missed flights because they didn’t know where their terminal was.
A self-service kiosk is the most efficient way of getting around this problem.
It would give people a platform to see information on their next flights, where their terminal is, their pre-flight meeting rooms, check-in details, and the time they’re supposed to be ready to go.
This reduces anxiety and helps curb the crazy foot traffic.
9 Benefits of a Self Service Kiosk & Its Application To Improve Your Brand Business
The benefits of self-service kiosks are evident when you look around many industries in different sectors.
The following are some of the many benefits that an establishment can start enjoying when it switches to using self-service kiosks.
1. Reduced Manpower
Paying wages has been one of the leading causes of financial struggle for businesses.
Sometimes, getting the right people who understand their job is very difficult. The process and the time expended to hire more people, then train them. takes a toll on a company’s margins.
However, with a self-service kiosk, there’s less need for human interaction.
Customers can handle most of the transactions on their own by a simple tap on a wall-mounted kiosk and make payments without help.
As technology continues to improve and grow, advanced kiosks will take over more mundane and repetitive tasks in an establishment.
2. Increased Efficiency
You cannot compare a self-service kiosk to a human. The former is much more specialized, incapable of human error, and can be designed to handle the most delicate and complicated jobs around.
Therefore, if you choose to automate certain processes in your company or venture using self-service kiosks, you’ll immediately start seeing a huge difference in terms of productivity.
Take self-service ticketing kiosks, for instance. Their purchase can be completed in less than a minute, and the transaction can be done with virtually no errors.
Automation, in this case, is highly cost-efficient.
3. User-Friendly
The reason why self-service kiosks have become such a hit with people and every company is the fact that they’re easy to use.
There’s no steep learning curve with kiosks. If you have ever used a smart touch device, then you already know how to handle them since they operate using the same principles.
Operating a kiosk is fun, and the experience to the customer is further heightened and enhanced.
4. Better Customer Experience
Speaking of customer experience, while it’s great that human interaction adds a personal touch, this interaction can be a double-edged sword.
Misunderstandings can occur and conflicts may arise, leading to bad press for the company. While this doesn’t happen every day, it’s unavoidable in the service industry.
With self-service kiosks, human interactions are minimal and the customer has full control. It’s their complete responsibility to get what they want.
They can even change their mind in the middle of the transaction and walk away without losing anything or causing friction with another person.
5. Extensively Customizable
One of the other benefits of self-service kiosks is that they can be customized and upgraded at the tap of a finger.
There’s very little bureaucracy involved, and this makes implementing changes to meet the needs of the customers and other people easy.
Unlike in the past when food customers in restaurants, for instance, had to conform to the system that was already in place, now the opposite is happening.
Kiosks are designed and changed to meet the changing needs of the people.
6. Multi-Functionality
You no longer need to hire employees who are good at everything. And no, you don’t need to train your current employees to take on more than they can, either.
A self service kiosk is the ultimate multi-tasker. They can carry out many tasks without compromising on accuracy.
For example, you can have a single self-service kiosk handling payments and giving directions without making any errors in the process.
Self-service kiosks are ideal for handling several things at the same time.
7. Contactless
This is another underrated benefit of kiosks: self-service kiosks offer people a contactless form of interaction.
This makes handling large crowds faster and more efficient, and in our post pandemic landscape, it’s safer than constant human to human interaction.
8. Easy to Upgrade
The software used to run self-service kiosks is something that can be upgraded or altered at a moment’s notice to meet changing needs.
This is the biggest advantage that has made this kiosk technology a fast-rising option for just about anyone who hates long lines. T
he best part? You rarely need to foot any extra cost.
9. Real-Time Updates and Live Reporting
You get real-time updates on changes as they happen.
For example, at the airport, you can get real-time updates on flight changes, weather conditions, and any other minor and major issues that could help you know what’s up.
Speaking of real-time, you can also get live reports from your self service kiosk whenever you want.
You can find out sales numbers, and engagement data. Better yet, you can use this data to optimize the kiosk experience for your customers.
Challenges of Implementing the Self Service Kiosk
While there are many advantages and benefit of self service kiosk to your brand businesses as well as marketing, however the following are challenges of implementing self-service kiosk services.
- The initial investment is high. The money and manpower needed are immense, and it may be a stumbling block for many.
- You’ll have to deal with faulty hardware and glitching software from time to time, meaning you need to keep a tech-savvy staff member on the payroll for troubleshooting.
- There’s a lot that still needs a human touch. Things like checkout lanes and session payment still have to be monitored by humans, and this increases labor costs and physical contact.
Rev Interactive as a Solution Provider
Rev Interactive has been at the forefront of this kind of technology, and it is home to a lot of highly advanced solutions that include self-service kiosks.
These can be used in all types of establishments as well as public spaces to make the purchase of financial products, services, and transactions easier and faster.
Here are two examples of interactive kiosks provided by Rev Interactive:
Both these kiosks are ideal for dispensing information and can be turned into a digital mall directory or a similar wayfinding kiosk.
Summary
The benefits of self-service kiosks are plentiful. Therefore, start thinking of implementing them in your venture right now and invest in digital signage solutions that go well with them.
Not sure how to start or implement digital signage application to leverage your brand business? No worries, we have you cover!
For more information on retail digital signage and related technologies, check out our website.
