Self-Service Technology Market Boom to be Led by Asia-Pacific
It is really hard to believe that the popular saying, “Time is money”, first appeared in an essay in 1748! It means that even in those times, people knew the importance of doing things as quickly as possible, so they can be free for other things. In today’s world, this ideology has taken the shape of self-service, especially in retail, where customers don’t have to depend on the shopkeeper or cashier for buying things and making payments. Customers can simply access a vending machine or kiosk to get what they want.
Thus, with people trying to maximize whatever time they have, the self-service technology market has really ballooned up in the recent past, and the trend is only expected to pick up in the near future. Apart from vending machines and kiosks, another common type of equipment which provides self-service is an ATM. Using it, people no longer have to visit banks and stand in long lines at the booths; they can simply find the nearest ATM to check balance and withdraw money. This way, even the bank staff has a chance to avoid mundane transactions and help customers with more important things, such as opening an account, getting a loan, or stock broking.
For a deeper understanding of the entire self-service concept, each of the three types of machines mentioned above can be seen on the basis of the purpose they serve. For instance, a vending machine can be categorized as those offering beverages, candies, snacks, gumball, and cigarettes, or a specialized vending machine. Among all these, beverage vending machines have been the highest in demand among retailers and larger stores. Apart from stores, these vending machines are also a common site at office complexes, shopping malls, hospitals, and other public places.
Similarly, kiosks are of various types too, such as those that help people with clicking and developing photos, watching DVDs, procuring tickets, accomplishing HR & employment-related tasks, checking themselves into a hospital or clinic, retrieving information, or performing banking & financial chores. Kiosks are widely installed at public relations offices, airports and railway stations, movie theaters, banks, and other such places. In the coming years, banking & financial kiosks are expected to witness the fastest surge in installation.
The ATMs, in turn, are of the conventional, brown-label, white-label, smart, and cash dispensers types. Around the world, the number of ATMs has surged rapidly in the last decade, as these machines allow people to withdraw money whenever they want. With banks, many are non-functional on public holidays, while on days they are operational, the human staff has fixed working hours. In such a situation, in case of emergencies, visiting a bank often isn’t feasible. With ATMs, this problem is sorted, as these machines work round the clock, except for in cases of a major power or mechanism failure or when they run out of money.
Across the world, Asia-Pacific (APAC) is presently the largest self-service technology market, majorly because it is the most populated region. This is why the footfall at shops or banks often becomes unmanageable by the human staff, in which case having a way for people to get what they want and pay for it themselves proves extremely helpful. Even in years to come, this region would account for the highest number of such machines in usage. This gives self-service machine manufacturers a great opportunity to offer their products to users here.
Therefore, as more customers realize the value of saving time and helping themselves, the demand for self-service equipment would continue to grow.