If you’re looking to buy some car park payments machines for your car park, you need to have a think about what you want them to be able to do. What do you want to achieve? And what kind of functionality do you want them to provide for your business and its customers?
Before you decide what your answers to those questions are, you should read the information below. It covers some of the features and capabilities that most people see as being important in car park payment technology.
Not Hold People Up for Too Long
These days, it can seem like everyone is always in a hurry. That’s just the way it is, and it’ll certainly be the case when they are using your car park. So, not holding people up and making sure they can use your machines quickly should be a consideration.
There are many features that can speed up the process of using these machines. A clear set of instructions and a clear and usable screen are vitally important. These will allow the user to select the option they want to immediately.
Another thing that can be important when making sure people are not kept waiting is the ability to pay with a contactless card. Many car park payment machines allow for this now. And it can make using them a lot faster.
Offer Strong Usability to All Customers
All customers need to be able to use the machines that your company installs. If they can’t even do the basic things right without getting confused by the layout of the instructions, you’ll have a problem. Usability should be right at the top of your list of priorities.
Having multiple language options on offer is something that’s important if you want everyone to be able to use your machines. You should ensure that the keypad is laid out in the conventional qwerty way. It’s probably best if the machine has a touchscreen feature too.
To improve usability further and add another layer of protection, you could ensure that there is an IP intercom feature. This would allow customers to talk to a human being if they do have a problem with using the machine.
Not Require Constant Attention from Employees
When you run a company, you have to think about costs and human resources. If your machine is so poor and dysfunctional that you have to hire someone to be on-site looking after it, it’s going to cost a lot of money. Modern machines shouldn’t require that level of attention.
As mentioned above, an intercom can be used for customers to talk to someone remotely. But the machines should work unattended. The stronger designs and protective measures that suppliers put in place means that they won’t require as much maintenance either.
If you choose a substandard payment machine, you might not be able to escape the cost of hiring people to stay on-site near the machine. So, choose very carefully.
Provide Customer Choice
Customers should be in control when they use your car parks. Of course, you set the rules and the costs. But the machines that you offer should provide as much flexibility as possible. Making sure that customers have lots of stay lengths to choose between is key.
They should also have more choice and control over how they pay to use your car park. For example, many machines allow for contactless payment. This should be on offer, as should non-contactless card payment options, coins and notes.
When your customers feel in control and see that they have plenty to choose from, they will be more willing to use your car park. It’s much better than making them feel like they’re being exploited and taken advantage of for some extra money.
Owner Control and Adaptability
As the new owner of car park payment machines, you will want to stay in control of them. When they’re adaptable and can be used in a way that suits your company, it gives you more control and more options. This is more important than you might imagine.
If you have more than one machine, using software such as CROSS InVipo can help. It allows you to monitor and manage your machines and get the most out of them at all times. This new technology is giving more and more control to owners.
These are the things that matter most when it comes to buying car park payment machines. So, take them all into account when the time comes to make your purchase.
