This is the second part of “The Benefits of Self-Service Kiosks,” a three-part blog series about the many ways self-service kiosk technology is improving businesses, communities, the customer experience, and more.
Sometimes when you think about technology, it’s easy to assume the latest advancements are reserved for a select, more fortunate portion of the community. After all, who can afford each new updated smartphone? And if we’re being honest, the learning curve of keeping up with new technology can be daunting.
However, technology is improving quality of life for all people, not just the wealthy and early adopters. Take, for example, kiosks. Thanks to self-service touchscreen technology, kiosks are able to provide a truly unifying experience, and don’t discriminate user experience based on any criteria.
The benefits of kiosks extend well beyond increased profits and helping businesses compete in the modern world. From making communication easier to enabling payments of all types, let’s explore how kiosks are benefiting all corners of the community.
Free Self-Service Kiosk Resources
The future of many industries lies with self-service solutions. That’s why Star Micronics is offering free online ordering resources for resellers and software developers who are helping customers future-proof their businesses with self-service solutions.
Kiosks Make Communication Easier
A huge group of people that benefits from kiosks is those who do not speak the native language of the area they are in.
Thanks to their dynamic experience, kiosks allow users to customize their experience depending on their language (i.e. language selection). In the United States, ESL (English as a Second Language) customers can order confidently without the burden of having to try to communicate with front-of-house workers, and kiosks make it easier for global travelers to order meals, tickets, and more, as well.
The benefits of offering kiosk technology to ESL customers is huge: not only is there an instant transactional benefit, but in the long run kiosks can create a new level of equality and provide emotional benefits to all involved parties.
Kiosks Serve the Underserved and Less Fortunate
On top of their many other benefits, kiosks also do a great job at serving the underserved and accommodating the less fortunate. Kiosks can easily be placed in marginalized communities, helping to serve the underserved in an inclusive, go-at-your-own-pace way.
It’s important to note that implementing kiosk technology doesn’t mean businesses have to go cashless. In fact, a proper kiosk implementation will allow cash transactions at both the counter and the kiosk. Cash acceptance is important because while some businesses choose to go cashless, according to Wakefield Research, 83% of small business owners in the U.S. say they will never stop accepting cash. Why’s that? Doing so can leave out people who are unbanked or underbanked – and that’s a lot of folks: 6.5% of Americans are unbanked, and nearly 19% are underbanked.
And in case you didn’t know, cash is, in fact, still king (across the board): it makes up some 30% of all transactions, and a whopping 55% of transactions valued $10 and under.
How to Start Better Serving Your Customers (and Community)
Are you ready to reap all of the benefits that kiosks have to offer? Star can help! By partnering with industry-leading kiosk solution providers, we help spread the technology’s many benefits across various industries, from retailers to restaurants, and everything in between.
And kiosks aren’t just for large establishments. Star works with kiosk solution providers, like Flash Order, that are uniquely positioned to help small businesses adopt the latest kiosk technology … because when all businesses can adopt kiosks, all businesses can give back to their community.
