A kiosk is a small structure or digital display that businesses place in high-traffic areas to provide information or self-service options. Kiosks provide a great opportunity to improve store functions and the customer experience in today’s fast-paced environment. Throughout this article, we will look at the various types of kiosks.
Kiosk Varieties
Kiosks were once limited to digital directories seen at shopping malls and big-box businesses. Today, however, there are many more types of digital kiosks display from which to choose. Depending on the utility you can choose whichever you want for your business. They all have something unique to offer, and in general, they fall into one of two categories: interactive or non-interactive.
Kiosks that are Interactive
Customers can interact with interactive touch screen kiosks, which are not static. Retailers, restaurants, service businesses, and tourist destinations such as malls and airports all use interactive kiosks.
Customers can use interactive kiosks to help with wayfinding and navigation, self-service ordering, or check-in. Also used in making purchases, and even accessing the internet.
Kiosks for Directions
As previously stated, this is frequently what people think of when they think of a kiosk. Wayfinding kiosks, which include directories, maps, and directional displays, assist customers in navigating your space.
Whereas static wayfinding kiosks were once common, you can now find ones with a touch-screen feature that shoppers can use to search or explore your map.
Customers are at risk of becoming disoriented and losing their direction in your space.
Being unable to find what they are searching for without assistance.
As a result, malls and big-box stores are the most common locations for navigation kiosks.
Kiosks for Self-service
The self-service kiosk is another popular type of interactive kiosk. Customers can use this to do their own shopping without having to recruit or wait for the assistance of a store associate.
Customers prefer this because it reduces wait times and gives them more control over their shopping experience. It may even help to increase your sales.
Self-service kiosk revenue is predicted to reach $14 billion in 2022, up from less than $10 billion in 2017, according to a poll done by The Insight Partners.
Self-service kiosks can be found in restaurants, motels, grocery stores, and convenience stores, among other places.
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Restaurant Ordering Kiosks:
These are digital touch screens that customers can use to create orders and send them directly to the kitchen.
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Check-in Kiosks:
Self-service kiosks are also commonly used for check-in services at hotels and other hospitality businesses. These kiosks provide a digital display where customers can check into their rooms, flights, events, or anything else, and they help to speed up the check-in process and reduce lines.
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Checkout Kiosks:
Another type of kiosk you’ve probably encountered is the checkout kiosk, which is most commonly found in grocery and convenience stores. This provides shoppers with a digital display that guides them through the scanning, bagging, and payment processes.
Allowing them to complete a purchase without having to wait in line or interact with a store associate. Checkout kiosks with item limits can be found sometimes, but they are not necessary and can be used to check out any size purchase.
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Photo Kiosks:
A photo kiosk is an interactive kiosk that can be found in a variety of drugstores, discount stores, art stores, and grocery stores. Photo kiosks have a variety of features, but the majority allow you to submit photos for printing, resizing, or enlarging.
Customers frequently prefer to process photos in this manner because it saves time and gives them complete control over the development process and finished product.
Kiosks with Purchasable Items
Shoppable kiosks, or kiosks that customers can use to browse merchandise and make purchases, are the next type of interactive kiosk we’ll look at. There are two types of shoppable kiosks: vending kiosks and product catalog kiosks.
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Vending Kiosks:
Vending kiosks are exactly what they sound like: large vending machines stocked with your store’s merchandise. Customers can use them to make purchases while they are outside your store.
These can be found in airports, huge malls, and hotels, and they usually have cosmetics, accessories, tech things, and other trinkets. They are an excellent way to broaden your reach, improve brand recognition, and inspire purchases outside of your physical store.
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Catalog Kiosks:
A product catalog kiosk is another type of shoppable kiosk that provides a digital display where customers can view all of your products and even place orders. These are particularly popular in retail businesses that sell home products, appliances, technology, and other items.
Large items that can’t all be housed or shown in a store, as well as items that come in a number of sizes or other variations.
Internet Kiosks
Internet kiosks are digital displays that give public internet access with the goal of improving the customer experience rather than increasing sales.
Airports, hotel lobbies, apartment buildings, and other hospitality establishments frequently use interactive kiosks. Internet kiosks may include credit card swipe and bill pay capabilities in addition to a monitor, mouse, and keyboard.
Non-interactive Kiosks
Businesses use non-interactive kiosks in addition to interactive kiosks to deliver information or advertise goods and services. They’re a great method to see how the general public reacts to a product or concept, and they may also be used to keep vital information on hand to make the purchasing process go more smoothly.
Informational Kiosks
The first sort of non-interactive kiosk is the informational kiosk. It’s a self-contained digital display that retailers use to provide crucial information about store operations or new products.
While informational kiosks can be used as a marketing tool in stores, they can also be used to expand your brand’s reach in your immediate area or further away.
Restaurants, retail, and hospitality are just a few of the industries that use informational kiosks. Because there are no restrictions on what material is appropriate, informational kiosks can be personalized to any business.
Product Kiosks
The product kiosk is one of the most common types of non-interactive kiosks you’ll come across. This is to demonstrate a new product. These are ideal for spreading the word about a new product, giving customers information, and getting feedback on your ideas.
Retail enterprises are the most typical location for product kiosks. Used to promote new products and services at restaurants and hotels.
Promotional Kiosks
The promotional kiosk is the last type of non-interactive kiosk we’ll look at. Made to display information about your promotions or events. Promotional kiosks, as opposed to product and information kiosks, should be located in your store or nearby. What if it can capture people’s attention and pique their interest in your sale?
The last thing you want to do is create too much inertia by putting too much distance between the event and the ad.
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Improve Store Operations:
Kiosks can fill a variety of roles in your store, helping to improve operations and making things easier for you. Kiosks provide an automated solution to improve store operations. Whether they are speeding customers through the ordering process or sharing important information. Assisting customers in finding their way through your space.
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Reduce Customer Dissatisfaction:
With the modern customer emphasizing convenience, incorporating kiosks into your store will help empower shoppers and improve their experience by
- Giving them self-service options for things like ordering food, checking in for their stay, or printing services. So they can do things on their own time and avoid long lines.
- Having vital information at their fingertips
- Enabling them to find items in their store without the need for assistance
- Making internet services available to them
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Fill Staffing Gaps:
As we all know, in the post-COVID-19 world, staffing has become an increasingly difficult challenge for businesses. In fact, according to the National Restaurant Association’s April 2021 survey, 84 percent of operators said their staffing was lower than the industry standard.
- According to the Square 2022 Future of Restaurants Report, 21% of positions in restaurants reporting labour shortages are unfilled.
While you could stick with traditional hiring methods, incorporating kiosks into your business may be the best option. In 2021, 36% of restaurant businesses chose to upgrade their technology during the hiring desert. 62% of restaurants said that automation would fill critical gaps in managing their establishments and assisting customers.
Save money by using interactive kiosks instead of staff. You’ll save a lot of money because you won’t have to pay a kiosk’s salary. Furthermore, kiosks can answer many of your customers’ purchasing questions. So you can focus on your labor costs sales professionals, increasing your total sales volume.
Choosing a kiosk over a traditional retail space allows you to save money on rent. Also helps overhead while still benefiting from increased visibility.
Increased Reach:
Because kiosks are frequently placed in strategic locations outside of your physical storefront, you will be able to reach more potential customers. This helps to increase your customer base, which in turn increases your company’s ability to sell more products.
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