Two recent incidents, where customers have lashed back at well-known brands for bad customer service, have put the need for improved processes in the spotlight. Customers are no longer willing to accept sub-standard service and the proliferation of social media is making it much easier for them to make their grievance known.
In a retail environment, brands have to engage with their customers in a seamless manner to ensure that they not only remain relevant, but provide a service that makes the user experience more valuable. This is the view of Darren Reid, MD of Laxton Technologies South Africa. Laxton Group is one of the world’s largest self-service terminal, digital signage, digital music equipment and e-government jump kit manufacturers. Founded in 2000 in South Africa, the company has a presence in China, US, Poland, Russia and locally.
“Customers do not like waiting in long queues and companies have to ensure that they put measures in place to streamline the way in which they serve them,” says Reid. “This is particularly relevant in a retail banking environment, but is also now shifting to other areas such as payment kiosks.” In a recent statement, the City of Ekurhuleni announced that it would be rolling out kiosks allowing residents to pay for their municipal accounts via cash, debit or credit cards.
“In today’s world it’s all about convenience. The pace of life continues to increase and customers want to be able to transact with organisations in a quick, seamless manner to save time,” he says. “This will not only result in a happy customer, but will also reduce the cost to serve the customer.”
Reid says that partnering with the right service provider is critical in ensuring that kiosk deployment runs smoothly. “Many of our clients know the end result they are looking for, but do not have the resident knowledge, experience and skills to bring the complete solution together. This is where a strategic partner will guide you through the process, ensuring success of the rollout.” He adds that kiosk deployment need not be complicated, but that there are some considerations to keep in mind.
“Your point of departure must always be the customer. Unless you are presenting a truly compelling offer to them, they will have absolutely no reason to alter their shopping habits and this will result in failure,” he says.
Planning is absolutely critical and as much time should be spent on this as the actual kiosk introduction.
“Many companies fail to differentiate between the pilot stage and scaling stage, creating expectations that cannot be met. In addition to that companies need to realise that no first-time kiosk rollout is perfect and research is absolutely critical. You also have to allow enough time to observe the impact of the kiosk before refining the process and then continuing with the rollout.”
Finally, location is of utmost importance. “The location of the kiosk will to a large extent determine user adoption and here, again, a strategic partner will be able to advise you on the best positioning,” Reid concludes.
