Reducing checkouts in your store | Checkout Process | Retail Technology

As mobile technology encompasses more and more aspects of our daily lives, it’s no surprise that using a variety of apps to shop is becoming more commonplace. This shopping revolution is allowing retailers from all over the world to move away from traditional registers manned by staff and instead explore new checkout processes.

What is happening in stores where there are fewer checkouts and how is this having a positive effect on shoppers, staff, and retailers? Here, we analyze the benefits of having fewer checkout process in your store.

Fewer queues

There’s no denying that long queues can harm a shopper’s experience. In many instances, your checkout process could be losing you customers and sales. Adyen found in their 2019 Retail Report that approximately £284 billion is lost annually due to abandoned baskets as a result of long lines. A simple solution to this would be to remove the source of queues altogether: the checkouts themselves.

Providing customers with alternative payment options like scan and go technology instantly wipes out a huge portion of queue-causing behavior. When your customers have an option to come into the store, pick up a product, scan it on their phone and leave without ever having to queue, you’re enhancing the customer experience. You also have the potential to draw in new customers who are looking for or are even expecting a better shopping experience.

Fewer checkouts mean more product space and fewer overheads

In an age when retail space is at a premium and many brands are being forced to pay high prices for store space, excess space is a luxury. When removing traditional registers and even clunky self-checkout stations, the amount of space created is striking. This space can be used for eye-catching product displays, experiential zones, or simply for additional stock storage. Even the world’s largest retailers, like Apple, make the most of the space available in their stores to create a clean and uncluttered environment for shoppers to navigate.

It’s estimated that installing self-checkout kiosks costs retailers between USD$30,000 to USD$150,000 and they only have a life span of 5 years on average. What’s more, they often create a very poor user experience. The reality for retailers is that, after paying the hefty bill to install the kiosks, there are the added costs of having to upgrade and maintain these machines, only to have to repeat the cycle every 5 years. By getting rid of kiosks and self-checkout machines altogether, the overheads that go into installing and maintaining them are done away with, improving store profitability.

With MishPay’s mobile self-checkout technology, there is a simple one-off integration fee and zero ongoing maintenance fees. Integration is fast and easy due to partnering with some of the world’s best technology companies.

Liberate your staff from behind the checkout

On top of improved customer experiences when negotiating the store, having fewer checkout process in your store can facilitate your staff being able to provide improved customer service. When sales associates aren’t tethered to the checkout, they have much more time to spend working the floor, answering customer questions, and upselling additional products.

1 in 5 shoppers say they will always prefer talking to a human when interacting with a brand, so it makes sense for sales associates to take time and engage in conversations with customers. That means staff can connect on a more personal level to truly understand your customers so that they feel their needs are being tended to. After having this positive and personal experience, shoppers are more likely to return to your store and increase their spending.

If you can ensure that the vast majority of your customers have an experience that is free of queues, their product is easily accessible, and they get top-level service from your staff – you’re in an excellent position. Keen to eliminate checkouts from your store? You can find out more about how to scan and go technology that can benefit your business.