To learn from other customers mistakes so you don’t make them, we at Protouch have listed the top ten reasons why companies kiosk deployment fails.

Location

A kiosk need to be situated in a prime location so that it is clearly visible and easily accessible to the customer. Stuck behind a shelf or wall will not do you any favours and you can say goodbye to that return of investment before you have even started.

If you haven’t the floor space why not consider a wall mounted kiosk.

First Impressions

Everyone judges a book by its cover and most people do it within the first 30 seconds.

Kiosks systems that make a bad first impression:

• Are complex with many choices leaving the customer thinking, ‘I don’t have time to learn.’
• Play a video leading a customer to think, ‘I’m just being sold something, this won’t help me.’
• Has an opening ‘Touch Here to Begin’ button which leaves them thinking ‘What am I starting and how long will it take?’

Make your kiosk system simple and easy to use. Provide easy to use steps and don’t bombard your customer with reams of information which will be of no interest to them.

Work or play

A kiosk to many equals a computer and most people often associate that with work and stress, and are more likely to carry on walking by. To attract your customers attention you should carefully design your kiosk to make it user-friendly with bright colours and non-standard shapes making it more engaging and encouraging to use.

More is more

We understand that people’s budget doesn’t stretch that far when it comes to new applications an systems, but if you can afford it, then we recommend you spend it. There is nothing worse than having to queue to use a system that is supposedly designed to make you processes quicker and easier. Install multiple kiosks where and when you can.

Multiple kiosks are always a good move in keeping customers happy

Please Wait

A turn of phrase that most people hate and won’t go down well if written on your kiosk screens. Make sure you keep on top of your product and its software. Check that it isn’t running slow and your server can handle the information. Try not to keep them waiting for more than 0.5 seconds, else they are most likely to walk away.

Privacy

Many companies think the bigger the screen the better the system; but not necessarily. If you are running a healthcare company or doctors surgery, for example, it’s not wise to have a huge screen advertising your patients details to the world and its dog. Think about your customer and what information you are displaying and how much privacy they need.

Kiosks asking questions

Many kiosks already deployed have failed due to the millions of questions they ask the customer. A kiosk is meant to provide the support and help for the customer but that won’t work if they feel they are doing all the hard work. Install a system that allows your customer to feel happy with the service you are providing.

Browsing

Most browsing pages on kiosks appear clumsy and irritate the customer. Many display tiny pictures of their products with about 12 displayed on one page which leaves the customer clicking here there and everywhere to find all the pictures and information of the actual product they want to purchase.

Scrolling mechanisms work brilliantly as customers can scan through the products rather than clicking on and off pages which usually slows down the process.

Bright and colourful kiosks catch the customers eye

Searching

A search bar generally allows customers to type in a word or question and results will appear on the page. While this is an effective tool, any misspellings or words the kiosk doesn’t recognise can bring back irrelevant results or no results at all.

A good idea would be to display the results in real time, meaning when a person types in a word,suggested results appear below. For example if a customer is typing in “shop” results below would appear, “shops” “shopping”.

Website kiosk

A website is designed for a person sat at a computer with a mouse and keyboard with a little bit of time to browse. A kiosk system is completely different and you need to make sure that all information, links on their system is easy to navigate around and provides the relevant information and no waffle.

Internet kiosks are a great idea but provide access to sites with relevant and to-the-point information so your kiosk is quick and easy to use and accessible to all customers.

For more information about kiosk systems today visit Protouch, Europe’s number one manufacturer and distributor of touch screen equipment.