Article

Riding the perfect wave

Patience, having faith in the product, and understanding the customer base are all advocated during Kiosks 2002 seminar in London.

February 11, 2002

LONDON - Patience is a virtue, so says the cliché, and there are a lot of examples in the kiosk business of projects that either succeeded or failed because of the level of patience shown by developers.

During the two-day SMi Kiosks 2002 seminar at the Hatton in London Feb. 6-7, kiosk deployers took turns demonstrating the wisdom of patience in a technology sector that is still maturing. About 60 kiosk industry officials, deployers, and technology sector executives took part in the seminar.

But as some panelists admitted during the seminar, patience is just one tentacle of the interactive octopus. Customer reach, especially with retail or revenue-driven kiosks, is crucial.

"The kiosk operators and presenters have been talking about find your audience and your local content," said Andy Green, British Telecom general manager, multimedia kiosks. "That's what we've been trying to do. But you're also talking about maximizing your presence."

The quest for customers is an ongoing process in the ever-evolving kiosk sector. But as the presentations proved during Kiosks 2002, the audience is out there. The trick is finding them.

Size matters

Finding an audience is probably easier for British Telecom (NYSE:BTY) than most companies because of its core product (telecommunications services) and its audience (much of Great Britain).

Blazepoint exhibited outside the seminar hall during Kiosks 2002 in London.

But BT is also one of those companies that have practiced patience when it comes to kiosks. After testing several different versions of a multi-purpose telephone kiosk in recent years, the company recently partnered with Marconi Interactive Systems to roll out a project that will be among the largest in the sector.

BT's new multiphone includes phone services, e-mail, Internet, text messaging, and local information and services. The company currently has five terminals on trial in the Newcastle area. The trial will run for several more months, Green said, before the formal rollout commences.

"We're looking at rolling out 250 to 300 a month in targeted sectors," Green said.

BT eventually plans to have 28,000 units deployed throughout the UK by 2007.

The process of matching kiosk with proper environment is often a hit-or-miss process. Even Green admitted that BT's strength in numbers was necessary to weed through the market in search of suitable locations.

"We can offer a free trial (to site owners) for three months," he said. "If we're not successful we can try and find ways to make it successful. And if site owners don't want it, we'll pull it."

Green identified railway stations, airports, shopping center, tourist areas, and subway-bus stations among BT's target sectors.

The product fit

Often the search for customers is not so much about finding the right customer, but creating the right product to meet the customer's needs. The Ordnance Survey, the British government's mapping service, is facing that challenge at the moment.

The Ordnance Survey has become caught up in the British government's initiative to have all British citizens online by 2005. The organization sees kiosks as a logical extension of that project, with kiosks providing services to British citizens and visitors while generating revenue through the use of those services and advertising.

But for the Ordnance Survey, which specializes in a variety of street and large geographic maps, the question is how to translate that interest into a viable kiosk project.

"We think there's a market for a smaller version of our survey maps, a print-on-demand mapping service," said Richard Prior, Ordnance Survey E-business consultant. "We're gauging the market and see if we can make some money. We're starting some trials right now."

The organization's current trial is ongoing at the New Forest Tourist Information Centre. For a price of one or two English pounds (roughly $1.40 to $2.80), users can purchase maps that are created by selecting from a variety of maps available on a Web-based server. The 8 ½-inch by 11-inch maps take two to three minutes to print out.

"You can print it out, use it, and throw it away when you're done," Prior said. "It serves your purpose there and then."

Making the puzzle fit

While there was plenty of discussion at Kiosks 2002 about ongoing projects, there was still time to discuss bringing a project to life. And bridging the gap between concept and reality is still a tenuous one for some kiosk deployers.

Finding the right market at the right time is essential. Summit Research Associates president Francie Mendelsohn said kiosk deployers need to consider their markets when considering the kiosk's short- and long-term potential.

"We've found a lot more kiosk activity outside the United States than inside," Mendelsohn said. "There's lots of great and wonderful things happening in the U.S., but kiosk development generally is not one of them."

Kiosks.org Association executive director Craig Keefner, discussing the blending of technology into the marketplace, said companies are integrating, not adding, kiosks into their plans at the present moment.

"There are no budgets; budget is not a word in use right now," Keefner said. "The question is does it utilize current assets, reduce costs, and help my customer relations. That's what I'm hearing."

Keefner identified convenience stores and photo kiosks among the applications with potential long-term benefits for the industry. Keefner noted that c-stores generated $180 billion in worldwide sales during 2001.

Creating a solid business plan with tangible benefits for all parties is involved is also important, said Elo TouchSystems market manager Mike Sigona, who identified English pharmacy-grocery chain Sainsbury's loyalty program kiosks as one example.

"When you're analyzing the application, it should be win-win-win," Sigona said. "Sainsbury's is like that. The store wins, the people making the product (highlighted at the kiosk) win, and the customers win. It's the perfect project."