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Are US postal kiosks facing a usage crisis?

An audit report from the Office of Inspector General finds that USPS kiosks have failed to deliver.

February 5, 2014 by Natalie Gagliordi — Editor of KioskMarketplace.com, Networld Media Group

The U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General released an audit report last month that detailed problems facing the nation's fleet of more than 2,500 self-service postal kiosks. At the center of the report, the OIG found that the kiosks were not being used as anticipated, and an outreach plan was recommended to boost the kiosk's role within postal locations.

The USPS kiosks are designed to process 80 percent of those transactions normally handled by a window employee at a retail postal service facility, according to the audit. As of June 2013, the performance rate of the kiosks was 26.11, below the nationwide customer adoption percentage target of 35 percent.

The OIG attributes the poor performance to several factors, including inconsistent signage, the positioning of some kiosks in partially obscured locations, and lobby assistants who were not properly trained to promote kiosk usage.

While USPS executive management disagreed with the assertion of faulty locations hindering the performance of the kiosks (in fact, a letter attached to the report shows management disagreed with the entirety of the OIG audit), those familiar with kiosk usage acknowledge that location is key.

"We've seen in health care, and retail for that matter, that usage patterns can vary widely for self-service depending on placement and driving customers to the transaction machine," said Craig Keefner, media manager for the kiosk manufacturing firm Connected Technology Solutions. "Tactics such as placing two machines together can increase overall usage due to psychological re-enforcement."

In addition to tweaking kiosk locations, the OIG called for a national initiative to train additional lobby assistants, as well as the deployment of lobby assistants to promote and educate customers on kiosk usage. USPS management responded by asserting that lobby assistant training was completed at 3,092 locations on or before Nov. 30, 2013.

So if the USPS refutes the specific rollout snafus pointed out in the OIG audit, what else could be causing the kiosks to fail to deliver? Ron Bowers, the VP of business development at the kiosk manufacturing firm Frank Mayer and Associates, said he felt the USPS kiosk could be a great success if it took form from a retail self-service experience, and not a tech experience at retail.

And apparently, the OIG felt the same. Another section in the audit cites a list of key strategies garnered by the OIG from retailers, airlines, and grocery store chains:

• Implementation of kiosks cannot be the responsibility of one department and must include all departments that are going to be involved with the technology.
• A cross-functional implementation team is needed for the company's SSK program to succeed.
• Customer service representatives are needed in the checkout area where kiosks are located.
• Companies should institute processes to acquire customer feedback about their kiosks.

Bowers added that poor execution, introduction and support in the environment prohibited the kiosks from reaching their full potential. Even though the kiosk design was well conceived, ahead of the curve, and executed fairly well, the USPS dropped the ball.

"The awareness, identity and support for the project seemed to go away," he said. "Consumers were interested at first, but the support necessary to make the consumer understand how this service could be as easy and advantageous as airline self-check-in, faded and was left to the devices of the USPS retail system. The best and brightest ideas are only as good as the execution and engagement at retail. It's the 'last three feet' — where the retailer, the product and the consumer all come together successfully — that makes the difference in a paradigm shift."

As part of its official response to the OIG audit, the USPS stated it is working with area marketing departments to identify potential in-office kiosk relocations, with planned completions by April.

Read more about kiosk use in government.

Photo via flickr.

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Frank Mayer Kiosks and Displays specializes in large-scale rollouts of custom digital kiosks for enterprise and growth-oriented brands. With a relentless focus on premium design, customization, and end-to-end service, we manufacture self-service customer engagement solutions that expand market reach, boost sales, and enhance brand equity.

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