May 2009 Issue #1
Help yourself with self-service
The world is going self-service. The movement arguably started 40 years ago, when the first cash withdrawal machine was installed in London. Since then, self-service has evolved to penetrate almost every aspect of our lives today – from the airport to the library - with long-lasting consequences for how we shop, travel and work tomorrow.
Changing consumer behaviour and advances in technology is driving our DIY culture. Consumers want it all: freedom, speed, convenience and empowerment. Digitalisation, more than any other technological development, has realised consumer’s dreams of fast self-service, round the clock.
But consumers want more. An efficient and effective self-service solution is no longer enough. Users, increasingly accustomed to the practical benefits of self-service solutions, now expect a value-adding experience that satisfies practical and emotional needs.
Plenty for everyone
The benefits of self-service are plentiful – if designed well. With the economic downturn increasing the need for streamlining and customer loyalty, the benefits of self-service couldn’t be more relevant.
Providers can cut costs and increase profits, while users can enjoy a more streamlined, efficient and satisfying experience. It’s a powerful and underestimated branding opportunity.
Designing it right
The world of self-service lies at the crossroads between customer experience and innovation. By combining human needs with business strategy, companies and organisations can create game-changing business models.
A holistic, people-centred approach is key. Examine users in a participative, co-creation process – preferably in situ. While workshops and focus groups are valuable, nothing can compare with insight gained on location. Experience services from the user viewpoint and you will understand their behaviour and needs. Only then can you start thinking solutions.
Competing tomorrow
Choice is the key competitive parameter for self-service providers in the future. As the self-service industry matures, consumers will expect a multitude of touch points, from online and mobile to point-of-service options. Multi-channel services offer a customer-centric experience.
You can check out more future trends at the Self-Service Expo in London this autumn.
More to think about
How to get started
DIY checkouts satisfies shoppers
Vending machines sell medication
Card-free future becomes reality
The card-free future is finally on our doorstep. Companies – eager to add more choice and ease to customer service - are currently employing new, pioneering technology that transforms the mobile phone into a service and payment device.
Service efficiency
Last month alone, Visa, Air France and Nokia launched systems using Near Field Communication (NFC) – proof that mobile transaction is now a reality.
NFC facilitates transactions between devices. Mobile phones equipped with NFC transmit data to special terminals, allowing consumers to receive tickets, access information and make purchases. Projections show that 11% of mobile handsets will be NFC-equipped by 2013.
The intuitive technology is the gateway to a world of self-service opportunities. NFC speeds up transactions, meaning more revenue in shorter time, and provides consumers with a more streamlined and efficient purchasing or service experience.
Contactless interaction offers the additional benefit of reducing person-to-person contact – an increasing preference amongst consumers who want personal control over transactions.
Cardless payment
Last month Visa launched the world’s first commercial Visa mobile payments service for point-of-sale transactions using NFC.
For the first time, consumers can use an NFC-enabled mobile phone to make Visa transactions at the point of sale instead of using their credit card. The system was launched in Malaysia, however the company plans to expand it to Singapore soon and is currently piloting the system in Canada.
Paperless boarding
In April Air France became the first airline to trial mobile boarding passes using NFC technology.
The system brings efficiency and simplicity to the airport traveller experience by replacing traditional desk visits with time-saving self-service options. Passengers simply swipe their mobile phone over a reader at an NVD-enabled kiosk, which loads a boarding card onto their phone.
DIY checkouts satisfies shoppers
It’s a year since the Danish supermarket Føtex began testing self-service checkouts. Today the system is being rolled out across the country after an overwhelmingly positive reaction from customers.
Old news with proven benefits
In most of Europe, self-service checkouts have been a reality for supermarket shoppers for years now. Denmark has been slow on the uptake, but this latest move by Føtex shows that the country has woken up to the advantages of an automated alternative to the traditional staffed checkout.
Customers avoid person-to-person contact and benefit from a reduced checkout time. Stores are able to run two to six self-checkout units where it normally would have had one cashier.
Successful implementation
Danes have embraced new checkouts wholeheartedly. Between 35% and 50% of Føtex customers choose the self-service option. As a result, Føtex plans to expand the system to 12 outlets before the year ends.
“We serve ourselves everywhere, so why not in the supermarket? It’s a natural development. Our checkouts give customers choice – a crucial part of our service,” says Steffen Skov Larsen, who manages the self-service project.
Future development
The future, however, lies in the customer’s pocket.
One alternative currently being trialled consists of a portable barcode scanner that customers use to scan and bag items while shopping. The customer pays and receives a receipt at the checkout kiosk.
Another involves mobile phones. Using sophisticated barcoding technology called RFID, customers swipe items with their phone. Aside from transferring price information, RFID can show data such as nutritional info or product specs. The customer’s mobile phone becomes an assisted selling kiosk.
Vending machines sell medication
We’ve all used vending machines to buy a coffee or chocolate bar – but why not medication?
Hospitals in Canada and the U.S. are currently trialling prescription vending machines, designed to offer patients easier access to medication. Instead of going to a chemist, patients can obtain medication quickly and conveniently, while benefiting from a live counselling experience.
Safe and fast-acting
Users insert their barcoded prescription into the machine, which scans and sends a photo of it to a chemist in a call-centre. He or she instructs robotic technology to find the medication from 340 different drugs stored inside. After checking the selection, the chemist instructs the kiosk to release the order.
Users speak to the chemist throughout via a video screen and telephone built into the kiosk. The entire transaction takes a few minutes.
Toronto’s Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre has tested the PharmaTrust kiosks since June, with positive results. A survey showed that more than 95% of users received their medication in less than five minutes and would use the device again. No patients received incorrect medication.
Self-care as the next frontier
Many experts believe that the healthcare sector is the next frontier of self-service.
The consumerisation of healthcare – particularly in the U.S. - means it’s only a matter of time before patients expect the same self-service convenience at hospital as in the supermarket. This trend is likely to be accelerated by the growing dissatisfaction with the long waiting times and extensive paperwork prevalent in the sector.
The greatest challenge, however, must be trust. Patients must feel safe and secure – far more so than in the commercial world. Here, mistakes can have serious consequences.
Three steps to self-service success
1.
Know your users
Your users are all different – so treat them that way. Identify their met and unmet needs via ethnographic user studies. Then deliver, even if it means operating a multitude of self-service options.
2.
Satisfy the customer
No matter how much you succeed in cutting costs or increasing efficiency, unless you improve the customer experience, you’ve lost the game. Make sure you offer your target group a branded experience with added value.
3.
Communicate, educate
Remember: self-service solutions shifts control from provider to the user – so teach your customers the necessary tricks. It’s your responsibility to equip them with the know-how via clear and concise user communication. Otherwise, you’ll see them walk away frustrated.