There’s a lot of talk these days about how to improve the brick-and-mortar experience to attract customers and drive sales. Much of it focuses on future-forward innovations like augmented reality, magic mirrors, robots and more. And while that’s all well and good, there’s a smarter, more immediate way to serve your customers today: self-service stations.
Slash the Queue
Waiting on long lines to pay for an item or two is among the biggest customer grievances — and one that’s avoidable. Self-service stations can remove this pain point and deliver two key benefits. First, the customer opting for speedy self checkout is happy to move the process along more quickly, and second, skipping the regular checkout lanes means shorter lines for those who need to use the traditional cash wrap.
Information Station
Self-service stations can function as information central for customers seeking answers to a variety of questions. Many customers appreciate a do-it-yourself approach to shopping in stores. After all, the process of tracking down a sales associate to ask about stock availability just to have the worker disappear and come back empty-handed isn’t exactly efficient. By loading your self-service station with product, price and inventory details, you can save your customers from frustration, empower them to make informed purchase decisions, and create a better experience with your brand.
Expand Your Services
There are plenty of in-store services that can drive revenue but don’t need a ton of customer-associate interaction. So why tie up your employees’ valuable time with tasks that customers can handle on their own? Consider which self-service-friendly functions — such as key cutting, photo processing and check cashing — might be a good fit for your particular retail business. What’s more, by expanding into new areas via self service, you can, not only attract a new pool of customers, but also drive foot traffic, which can lift conversions store-wide.
Keep Customers Happy
Last but not least, customer satisfaction is at stake. A great many customers are happier when they have greater control over their in-store experience and self service is a key enabler.
With all of the store technologies clamoring for your attention, self-service stations are a wise, budget-friendly investment that should rise to the top of your priorities list.
