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Retail Self-Service Kiosks - Have They Come of Age?
Learn from the past
The retail kiosk industry started in the early '80's of the last Millennium. (Cue Star Wars theme song.) Companies such as IBM, NCR, and Compaq, were developing strategies to help their services and enterprise clients utilize the technology promise of personal computers and consumer-friendly software. These clients were retailers that were drinking the Kool-Aid that was flowing with the visions and promises of retail self-service technology. The promise was a tool that would reduce the need for having trained store staff to “man” every step of the customer sales process.
The early vision was a self-service kiosk that the customer would access to navigate, answer questions, and move to the checkout counter as fast and efficiently as possible. This concept was successful in some instances to move people in and move people out. These early kiosks, while slow … and sometimes painfully slow … were able to capitalize on the novelty of the technology. Their success relied on early adapters' ability to look past the shortcomings in the hope of a new avenue to lower store associate labor costs and realize greater profits.
The technology sell concept spread throughout the retail sector with a few sojourns in the service sector and the government sector, but the basis was the excitement of new technology and automation of a process. The kiosk industry presented itself as a technology industry first. The array of tools and platforms expanded exponentially. Trade shows consisted largely of individual vendors and the latest deployment in the marketplace to reinforce the success of the technology.
The close of that chapter brings us to an era when the availability of tools … from affordable touch screens, to Internet access, to iPad applications, to mobility … will transform the retail environment. The catalyst for this innovation is not the availability of gadgetry but marketing differentiation and consumer expectation.
Grasp the opportunities of the present
The technology, process-oriented focus of the past need not be the future of self-service retail. The return comes to all parties when a brand and retailer find a kiosk marketing partner with an inclusive perspective; one that can assemble all the elements that focus on elevating the brand, the shopping experience for the consumer and the equity of the retailer.
How do retailers benefit?
• Better retail placement
• Better product information for customer
• Real-time retail performance feedback
• Reduced retailer overhead costs to sales
How does everyone - consumer, retailer, and brand marketer - benefit?
• Product knowledge
• Brand trial & loyalty
• Convenient customer service
• Better customer experience
Focus on the right elements for future success
Any client relationship that doesn't begin at the beginning is destined to waste resources and maybe even brand loyalty in the end. Deploying a successful retail self-service kiosk program can be a complicated and daunting business strategy if not executed correctly. The convergence of retail channels, the proliferation of digital screens and differing consumer expectations add both complexity and opportunity.
It is critical to start any project with an understanding of marketing and merchandising strategy, a detailed needs assessment discussion and a thorough due diligence process for determining a successful ROI and proper lifespan for an interactive merchandising program. A conscientious partner will ensure the development of a detailed functional requirement document that embodies the vision for the project. An experienced deployment team will translate that vision to achieve measurable success.
A strong retail kiosk merchandising company can successfully marry the understanding of brand marketing, customer interaction, design, engineering and technology. The product of collaboration and experience in all of these areas is far more important than the features or price of an individual piece of technology. Paco Underhill (Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping) warns us not to "get lost in the technology." It isn’t the individual ingredients but the strategy of the whole that produces a winning solution.
In analyzing the results of their study, 'The Customer Centric Store 2010', RSR concluded, "the number one opportunity in the current market is to refine the customer’s in-store experience." Indeed, the number one use of in-store technology, identified by 76% of retailers was to "maintain and/or improve the customer experience."
• Interactive merchandising, whether delivered by a kiosk, an iPad app or digital signage is no longer an add-on option for the early adapter. It is a crucial differentiator in the retail setting.
• All retailers and brands have access to the same marketing, merchandising and technological resources. It is the savvy and experience with which they employ these means to create awareness, satisfy and delight consumers, and convert shoppers into loyal buyers that will translate to success.
It's not the paint; it's the painter. It's not a single note; it's the composition. It's not the player; it's the team. Well … you get it.
It’s not the technology it’s the merchandising solution at retail!
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