An increasing number of companies are turning to interactive kiosks as an additional channel to improve their relationship with customers. The number of interactive kiosks in operation will rise from approximately 1.6 million deployed in 2011 to nearly three million by 2016, says market analyst firm ABI Research.

Interactive kiosks are not only helping companies reduce costs and increase revenue opportunities, they are even serving as self-used contact centers.

“The self-service technology trend has been occurring for several years, with consumers increasingly seeking greater convenience in the channels that they choose to utilize,” said Sam Lucero, practice director, M2M connectivity.

Kiosks are not a new channel by any means, but consumers worldwide have grown more accustomed to using them for everything from self-checkout in the supermarket to checking in for their flight at an airport.

The segments that have been benefited largely by kiosks are entertainment, finance, retail, travel, healthcare and municipal governance.

In entertainment segment, an increasing number of people are using kiosks to know available DVDs and purchase movie tickets. And in retail, consumers use them to know about products and their price tag (News - Alert). It has extended a great helping hand in municipal administration, where people use kiosks to purchase train/bus tickets, tax payments as well as to renew driving license.

While the interactive kiosk market is expected to grow strongly over the next five years, there remain challenges to address, warns the research firm.

“Interactive kiosks in various segments, such as healthcare, can face challenges regarding consumer acceptance, channel conflict with other means of interacting with the consumer, and with automated customer service not meeting a desired level of personalized support,” said Lucero.