Simplify Your Kiosk Support Strategy
Deploying a kiosk (or a number of them) is an exciting thing. It can engage your customers, boost your profits, and cut down on wait times. It can also allow you to move tasks to the kiosk that an employee would otherwise have had to do, such as taking orders, checking in passengers, and fulfilling requests.
However, for the kiosk to work correctly, you need it to receive regular maintenance and support. This part of the strategy is one that often gets shuffled to the future, but you shouldn’t embark on your kiosk journey with the attitude that, “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.” If you fail to plan for the right support strategy, you could run into some headaches in the implementation of successful support.
Failure to Plan for Kiosk Support
When your kiosk support strategy isn’t what it ought to be, you can put yourself at risk of several problems, including these:
Unplanned downtime
When you didn’t intend for your kiosk to be out of commission, you can find yourself scrambling for a solution or workaround.
Lost profits
Your kiosk is supposed to make you money, but it can’t do that when it is broken or waiting on support.
Customer frustration.
If your customers get frustrated with trying to use your kiosk, they may give up and never try again, leading to lost customer loyalty and lost sales.
Delay in repairs.
It’s one thing to have your kiosk go down, but it’s quite another to suffer unnecessary delays in getting it back up, simply because you didn’t have a strategy in place to fix it.
Kiosk Support Doesn’t Have to Be Complex
If you’re wondering just how you’re going to pull off all the needed maintenance to your kiosk, you’re not alone. The fact is, your kiosk is a blend of hardware and software, and if you have to get a different technician for every different part of your kiosk, you’ll be running yourself ragged with site visits. It’s easy to overcomplicate your kiosk support strategy.
Updating your kiosk’s software.
Software updates should be able to be pushed to the kiosk every few months so that it remains easy to use for your customers and optimized according to the newest best practices. This may be done by your kiosk provider, and it should be able to be done through an internet connection. However, if your kiosk is in unique circumstances, you may have to have someone manually install the software update onsite.
Maintaining and repairing your kiosk’s hardware.
Think about all of the things that can break or need to be fixed on your cell phone. Then multiply that by two or three times for the hardware repairs that your kiosk could need. From a cracked screen to bad electrical circuits to a glitchy cash dispenser, your kiosk will need repair and maintenance from time to time.
Refilling consumable parts.
Many kiosks dispense something, and even if it’s just a simple receipt, you’ll need to be able to refill the paper and toner. If the kiosk actually provides your products, you’ll need to be even more watchful to notice when the levels are low and replenish supplies as needed. A site service technician can perform those tasks for you, ensuring that your kiosk never runs out of what it needs.
Simply laying eyes on your kiosk from time to time.
If your kiosk is in a remote location, you can’t just trust that it will sit there, happily undisturbed forever. It’s not a bad idea to conduct a periodic site visit merely to ensure that your kiosk is still in place and functioning as desired.
The good news is that Site Services Now! offers field service management for all your kiosks so that you get the right visits on the right schedule to the right machines. And with the nationwide coverage that we offer, you won’t have to spend time hunting for a local technician in every community where you have a kiosk. Instead, you can focus on what you do best, and leave the maintenance and repair tasks to us. It’s simple. Contact us for kiosk repair and service, and count on our technology and talent to get your job done right every time.
