Like many sectors, the parking industry is rapidly changing and thanks to technological innovation customers and businesses are starting to reap the benefits. In this article we will explore how the use of kiosks and big data are paving the way for transformation.
Payment Kiosks
The parking industry needs to offer drivers many alternative ways to pay for their parking, which is dictated by the marketplace and also by the physical and infrastructure requirements within different car parks. That’s why over the last couple of years the industry has made great strides in embracing self-service kiosks.
These self-service payments kiosks allow customers to make transactions with speed and ease, eliminating the need for physical staff and significantly improving customer satisfaction. Self-service kiosks can now be configured to offer a range of chip and pin, coins, notes, and receipt printing options, providing an all-in-one-solution that is easy to manage and helps to reduce overheads.
Big Data
Recent developments in big data have also excited those in charge of parking facilities. The role of Big Data is to gather data from numerous sources to reveal patterns and trends associated with human behaviour. This data is then taken and can be used to help create personalised and engaging digital signage.
With sensor data, length-of-stay times, occupancy statistics and payment transactions, the car-parking industry is very data-rich so utilising Big Data allows businesses to optimise prices and parking availability on various factors relevant to that given situation, (e.g. the weather, special events or even flight schedules for airport parking).
Processing information from the received data then enables bosses to create dynamic pricing strategies, seen with companies such as Uber, who react according to demand; as a result bosses can then tailor promotions to attract customers to use their services.
Cammax now offer a range of payment kiosks manufactured specifically for the parking industry.
Customer Experience
Parking facilities often form an integral part of any car journey but despite this fact they are frequently overlooked when it comes to evaluating customer experiences.
However, touch screens are now being deployed to display safety and journey information but also provide timely and targeted promotional messages from retailers and businesses in the area.
Further, it’s not just at the car park that parking companies can utilise digital technology to improve the customer experience. Hosting an online reservation system can allow for a more efficient experience because it will enable customers to pre-book a space meaning they don’t have to worry about navigating the carpark in search of a spot. Some systems even incorporate license-place recognition technology that allows quick entry for those who have booked online and reserved a space- parking costs can then be calculated and charged to the customer’s account upon exit; a system that’s a whole lot more convenient than the traditional method of having to return a ticket or token to the metre and then having to find change.