How Kiosks Make a Difference on College Campuses
By Site Services Now! August 15, 2018
It’s back-to-school season, but just because you aren’t a student anymore doesn’t mean you can’t participate. Kiosks play a major role in our educational communities, especially college campuses. As centers of innovation and growth, college campuses are expected to keep up with emerging and new technologies, and kiosks are a great way to add that extra edge. As a business owner who at least partly depends on kiosks, have you considered marketing your kiosks to universities?
At Site Services Now, we are passionate about making sure our clients’ kiosks stay up and running all year long. We accomplish this by providing rapid, excellent, onsite support. In our years serving kiosk owners, we’ve seen a lot of creative kiosk applications and we’d like to share some of the best applications we’ve seen on college and university campuses.
How Kiosks Make a Difference on College Campuses
Building Directories
- Due to the way that universities develop over time, you’re never sure what you’ll get when you step into a building on the first day of class. Some buildings are straightforward with only a couple floors and rooms laid out in a logical way. However, a majority of buildings have many floors with hundreds of rooms. You’ll also run into buildings that have been added onto over time, resulting in different room numbering systems and confusing transitions. Lastly, depending on the building, you may need to go through security to notify the department when you come and go. An outdoor kiosk can allow people to locate the department they need, print badges, or even check into the building.
Event Calendars
- There’s always a bunch of things going on at any university. It seems like every college and every organization has something going on at least once a week. Keeping them all straight and making sure each organization can get the word out only happens when you have a good calendar system. If a university still depends on paper submissions, it’s time to upgrade! Calendar software can function on kiosks, phones, and computers while allowing administrators to approve the event with a single click.
Printing
- Though a lot of homework and syllabi can get distributed via the internet, it isn’t always an adequate medium for universities. Students need to be able to print school work and important documents, and while computer labs can carry a majority of that weight, there are places where it can be very helpful to have printing capacity but a computer lab isn’t necessary. For instance, students may need to print off registration documents, financial aid paperwork, research papers, and beyond. Kiosks can be the perfect solution and really enhance the experience for users.
Information Displays
- Kiosks can be incredibly powerful when it comes to spreading information. Whether it’s safety alerts, canceled/rescheduled classes, or an exciting event, kiosks can make sharing information practically effortless. They also make it possible to reach students who have changed their phone numbers or emails and don’t receive updates anymore.
Queuing for Services
- There are certain parts of campus that get crazy-busy, especially at the beginning or end of the year. We’re talking about the financial aid office, advising, career services, and registrars’ offices. It can feel like a constant struggle to keep wait times low. This is where queue software can make a radical difference. It not only keeps the team on-track, it allows students to monitor their wait times on their phones or tablets. This means you won’t need to deal with stuffed waiting rooms or long lines — students can enjoy the sunshine on the quad while they wait.
Sharing Nutritional Information
- It is now normal to be completely transparent about the nutritional information of the food your students eat. This is especially important in light of the fact that your cafes and cafeterias will serve students with allergies or sensitivities. Kiosks displaying meal options can empower students to choose the best foods for them and make them aware of special dining hall meals and hours.
Alumni and Hall of Fame Presentations
- The story of your university or college is integral to what the institution is today. If you have a hall of fame or other historical display, it’s important to make it as interactive as possible. Kiosks can show video, share audio clips, and display other important information.
Appointment Check-Ins
- There are many offices on a college campus that can benefit from an automated check-in process, especially the student health center. You can save on overhead salary costs, monitor your facility more closely, and make sure everyone gets seen thanks to kiosks that make it easy for students to check in.
Recruitment
- Drawing in new students is a year-round operation. By putting kiosks in effective locations, you can encourage prospective students to enter their emails. You can use that information to keep them up-to-date on application and financial aid deadlines. You can also open their eyes to fantastic programs unique to your college and the accomplishments of alumni.
Campus Navigation
- Modern students expect to be able to access maps and other navigational tools digitally. They are ready to use self-service technology to navigate campus. You can give them the tools they need to tackle that first intimidating visit to campus.
Turn to Site Services Now! for Kiosk Repair
Kiosks can form a powerful backbone for your business. However, they need to be maintained or you’ll get frustrating results. Let our kiosk maintenance experts serve your business with our world-class knowledge today!
