Self-Service Kiosks Survey: Consumers Appreciate Multiple Options

When completing a transaction at a store, restaurant or similar business, you probably think of traditional checkout lane with a live cashier. But the process is changing for some businesses. And self-service kiosks are replacing some of those traditional checkout lanes. According to Kiosk Marketplace, the majority of consumers prefer using retail kiosks instead of going through traditional checkout lines if it means shorter wait times. So what do consumers think about this new wave of self-service technology? We asked 1,000 respondents about their thoughts on self-service kiosks and how they can impact the retail experience.

Self-Service Kiosks

In Ask Your Target Market’s latest online survey, 21% of respondents said that they regularly use self-service kiosks when completing transactions at stores or restaurants. 26% have used them multiple times in the past. 17% have used them at least once. And 36% said they’ve never used self-service kiosks. Walmart was the most popular retailer where respondents said they’ve used self-service kiosks. But others also mentioned Target, Kroger, Home Depot, Chili’s and Olive Garden. And in general, 69% of those who have used the technology said they’ve been at least somewhat satisfied with their experience using self-service kiosks.

Checkout Process

In general, 54% of overall respondents said they think self-service technology makes checking out easier. 56% think that self-service kiosks make checking out faster. 42% think they improve the overall purchasing experience. 51% think that more businesses should offer self-service kiosks. And 66% think that businesses should offer a choice between self-service kiosks and traditional cashiers.

Completing Transactions

When considering the checkout experience as a whole, 39% said that they consider ease to be most important. 37% think that speed is the most important part of the process. 15% care most about the friendliness of the people involved in the process. And 9% appreciate the ability to get their questions answered. Overall, 42% of respondents said that they are at least somewhat likely to choose self-service kiosks over traditional checkout lanes when given the choice.

Key Takeaways

A fair amount of consumers have at least tried using self-service kiosks at stores or restaurants at some point. But fewer consumers would choose to utilize the technology again when given the opportunity. What that suggests, based on consumer preferences, is that they don’t always find the experience of using self-service kiosks to be as easy as it should be. For stores like Walmart that give consumers that self-service option, that could mean that it’s very important to ensure there are clear instructions and updated technology in place. But offering a choice between the two different types of checkout processes seems to be a plus for a lot of consumers. So that could be a good option for businesses looking to appeal to a wide variety of different preferences. Additionally, restaurants were not as well represented on the list of businesses that consumers associate with self-service technology. So there could be an opportunity for more restaurants to really make a name for themselves in terms of speed and convenience by taking advantage of the technology. You can view the complete survey results in the widget below and be sure to click “Open Full Report” to take advantage of all the chart and filter options.Photo Credit: Jack-in-the-Box Self Service Kiosk by dailylifeofmojo under CC BY 2.0What do you want to know? If you need some consumer insights on a particular topic, let us know in the comments below and we’ll consider it for an upcoming survey post.

Results were collected on January 18-24 via AYTM’s online survey panel.