Pro-Touch

Top Kiosk Blunders to Avoid

There are many reasons why a touch screen kiosk might fail. Thy can reap tons of benefits for a business regardless of the sector but unless you use specialists in the industry and install the right one in the correct place, you won?t see a great return on investment. What is key is that you use the technology to its maximum capability to achieve success but having poor software, the wrong features or deploying it in an inconvenient location can all result in a let-down. Here are some imaginary scenarios Protouch has created that you should avoid to make the most from your touch screen installation.

Location

Picture the scene; a woman walks up to a kiosk in her doctors surgery to input her private medical details to order a subscription but the placement of the unit means that everyone sitting at the side can see the information on screen. Fitting the kiosk in a corner, away from prying eyes will increase privacy for patients and give them self-assurance of using the software.

Features

Envisage the setting; a traveller goes to use a self-service kiosk to check-in and print out their plane tickets to find that the printing feature is not available; or that the internet is poor. It is important that the sole purpose of the machine is functional to improve customer experience. It is pointless to have a super slow printer if this is one of the main reasons to deploying the technology because this will only boost long waiting times and queues, as well as frustrate your consumers.

Numbers

How many kiosks do you need? Deploying one kiosk for example in a shopping centre is useless because consumers will have to trek from one side to the other just to use the machine. And if it includes way finding features then this is inane due to the fact that it is not accessible easily. Logically work out how many units you need to reap the benefits; an office may only require one kiosk but a hotel will need several.

Appearance

They often say ?don?t judge a book by its cover? but often or not as a society we do. First impressions count and it is reported that as humans, we make up our mind about something or someone in the first 30 seconds of meeting them. How does this relate to touch screen kiosks? Well a consumer will determine whether or not they will use the machine in the first instant so it is imperative that it looks appealing, is easy-to-use, and gives the customer confidence to use it again. Some industry experts claim that a simple screen with a small number of buttons is most engaging.

Help

The whole point of deploying touch screen technology is to give consumers the power of independence and self-service. It reduces staff numbers and gives them the chance to carry our more skilled tasks rather than menial jobs. However, as with anything, there are times that help is needed. Not everyone will understand how to use the kiosk and often or not someone will require help. But if there is none present and if the kiosk doesn?t feature any help information; this will only aggravate your consumers more at their lack of know-how. Make sure a help feature is available with adequate browsing and searching features if the person is looking for something but doesn?t exactly know the right terminology.

Touch Screen Kiosks Helping Consumers Pick Eye Wear

Many kiosks are installed in local hospitals and practices to aid healthcare professions check-in patients, take medical bill payments and provide wellbeing information.

Further touch screen units are deployed in retail outlets to provide consumers extra products to buy as well as way finding services. But it seems that the features can be combined, after a touch screen kiosk was implemented in an optician store. The “Myeyes” kiosk has been installed in the optometrist firm EyeClarity, in Melton, Melbourne, Australia. It won Business Review Weekly Australian Retailer of the Year 2011 Award for best use of technology. The touch screen kiosks help the eye health care profession by allowing customers to choose eyewear to suit their lifestyle and budget without the need of a technical and further education (TAFE) dispenser to assist. It can be complex when picking out eye wear especially in terms of finding glasses that look right on each individual’s face as well as choosing contact lenses that are suitable for the eyes. A touch screen can help when staffs are busy and sometimes people may be intimidated by the fact that vision and sight is a personal issue. By using the kiosk rather than a person, the consumer can find out which eye wear is right for them without the need to share personal details with a stranger. The kiosk can provide all sorts of information on eye facts to aid consumers in looking after their eye sight and a payment feature would enable the eyewear to be bought there and then without the need for cheques or cash-transfers. Many retail companies are reaping the benefits of touch screen technology; do the same in your business with Protouch.

Kiosk Success: What Are The Bad Ingredients?

When baking a cake, there are certain ingredients to use that make the perfect mixture. With a sprinkle of sugar and a dash of icing you can create a delicious masterpiece, so long as the instructions are followed closely and to each and every step. Just as with cooking, a kiosk has many ingredients to make it a recipe success but if certain elements and items are added into the mix that are not required, the technology can fall flat. Too often kiosk technology is manufactured without the customer in mind, so to deploy an efficient and fruitful touch screen that is beneficial to all learn from some of these common mistakes.

The main reasons why kiosk projects fail are because…

– There are not enough kiosks installed so there are long waiting times. – The units are placed in inconvenient locations that are inaccessible to consumers. – The kiosk has poor browsing mechanisms that are frustrate and turn people off from using it. So here are some top motives and obstacles that wind consumers up and irritate them to the extent, that they become not interested in using your technology; and if a kiosk in unused then what is even the point in its deployment.

– A pinch of location

This is an important aspect of installation to ensure it is visible to all. If a customer cannot reach a kiosk or doesn’t even know where it exists, it won’t be used. Locate it in a prime location so people know where it is but also balance the concept so it doesn’t stand out too much and becomes an eye-sore.

– Sprinkle some presentation

Just as decorating the cake is vital, so is a kiosk appearance. Bad first impressions often put consumers off from ever returning so keep the interface software simple and the kiosk looking appealing to attract and engage with its users. Computers can be deemed as boring, time-consuming and often associated with work. Make the kiosk design have a toy-like quality with bright colours so it is less like an ATM machine and people are encouraged to interact with it.

– A dash of multiples

Many installations distributed throughout the store will ensure people are not waiting for long periods of time behind each other queuing. It will also reduce the fact that people have to walk a far distance to use the kiosk. As well as waiting to use a unit though, consumers don’t like waiting for the software. It can be frustrating lingering on the spot waiting for a page to refresh, so all browsing delays should be limited to less than 0.5 second and put multiple products on one page so the user doesn’t have to flick from screen to screen.

– A cup of privacy

In locations like a doctor surgery or healthcare facility, privacy is vital for patients especially in terms of medical records. A larger screen is ideal for customers who are partially sighted however to maintain privacy keep the screen small. So make sure you have all the ingredients for Touch screen success with Protouch.

Source: Whitepaper by RedDotNet

How Can Kiosks Aid To Educate The Elderly?

We have written a blog post beforehand about how touch screen technology and kiosks can aid the elderly in care homes.

There are many challenges in care homes to provide both the family members and patients about information; moreover monitoring visitors and guests. But a deployed unit can help speed up administration and improve services.

As well as this type of facility, kiosks can also aid educate seniors when it comes to info on benefits and saving ideas that they may not necessarily know much about.

Recent research by a national charity showed that thousands of retired people in the UK are missing out on as much as £3 billion because they are not claiming pension credit.

The statistics, published by Turn2us, reveal that 8/10 low-income pensioners are in fact unaware of their entitlement to pension credit and therefore do not claim what is lawfully theirs.

A touch screen Kiosk that is installed in the community somewhere central for example in the community centre, town hall, main church or in the centre of town can help OAPs find out more about what benefits are on offer, if they are eligible to it and how to apply for it. What is more, savvy-saving top tips and ideas can be given on the interface to support and benefit finances.

Information on care, medicine and drugs, savings programs, home energy assistance and more can be included on the machines as well as a staff member on-hand to aid the elderly person on how to use the technology.

Income can be tapped into the data that works out for you how much to save each week to be able to remain steady and financially stable. As long as the info is kept confidential and the unit employee is trained, the technology can really enhance a pensioner’s life and prohibit things becoming destitute.

So install a Touch screen kiosk in your local community today and help educate.