How to trim the queuing wait and add the pounds

For many, the January health-kick is now in full swing. As we hit the gym and munch on nuts and seeds in an effort to lose the pounds, retailers will be setting up to boost sales following the hectic Christmas period.

To help retailers increase profitability and revenue through a more enhanced customer journey, we have produced a four-step queuing health plan that will reduce the wait from the queue and add pounds to the till.

Forward march

A health kick should help bring order to our lives and retailers can do the same to the queue with the use of an Electronic Call Forward system.

Not everyone is a fan of self-service and retailers are starting to shift their focus back to ensuring traditional queues are moving quickly too.

Single line Electronic Call Forward solutions, do exactly what they say on the tin – they consist of one single queue, often formed using Tensabarriers®, and call customers to the next available service point at the touch of a button.

The solutions reduce service time by up to 30 per cent and speed up customer flow by 25 per cent. This allows retailers to serve more customers during trading hours to boost their revenue.

A level playing field

Dramatically reducing actual and perceived waiting times is always going to be beneficial for the customer. However, a single line queue also has the added benefit of reducing queue rage and the possibility that customers will abandon the queue.

As shoppers in a multi queue environment, we have all experienced the annoyance of joining what we believe to be the shortest queue, only to find the line next to us moves much faster. A single line queue will manage customers in the fairest and fastest way, by serving them in the order they arrive.

A reduction in frustration and stress is key to ensuring that shoppers maintain a healthy perception of the brand, which will increase the likelihood of them returning in the future.

Stretch the browsing time

At busy periods, queues may be inevitable, but retailers can still make that waiting time work for them.

If shoppers are engaged, then queuing time will automatically seem shorter to them, lessening any negative impact on the shopping experience. In-Queue Merchandising is a great way to support customer engagement, whilst also transforming dead queuing space into a high value retail area.

Retailers will be looking to increase profitability and revenue and there are some impressive gains to be made with In-Queue Merchandising. When done correctly, it can boost impulse sales by up to 400 per cent and increase margins by 30 per cent.

Converting waiting time into shopping time is a straightforward exercise that benefits both customer and retailer.

A virtual health kick

All good health plans should include a cheat day. Our final step is a little removed from the actually queuing area, but bear with us.

The Tensator Virtual Assistant is a next generation digital signage solution that creates the illusion of a real person. Shopping centres and stores across the world are using it as an innovative way to convey marketing messages, promote products and answer questions.

By deploying a Tensator Virtual Assistant in store to answer commonly asked questions, retailers will be able to free up staff resources from the shop floor to serve at the tills, thus reducing waiting times.