Blog

Kiosks go social

January 4, 2012 by Dean Sanders — Director, industry Sales, Zebra Technologies

With the proliferation of tablets and smart phones, people are now able to update their Facebook status, snap a photo and tweet it to followers, or see where friends are through FourSquare check-ins – all at anytime, from anywhere. It was only a matter of time before this trend pushed social media integration to the self-service industry.

Social applications for kiosks have become much more prevalent in the past year, especially in the marketing and event industries. Some social kiosks allow users to take photos and upload them to their profiles on social media sites directly from the kiosks, allowing for and encouraging more engagement at events. Additionally, there are kiosks that allow users to check-in and "like" objects or activities at events.

For example, Mercedes deployed RFID-enabled kiosk check-ins at the 2011 PGA Championship in Atlanta. Attendees, equipped with RFID-embedded passes, could check-in at the kiosks and "like" any of the Mercedes cars at the event. Zebra Technologies participated in a similar demo at last year's RFID Journal Live! Tradeshow, where attendees could check-in by using Zebra's RFID-enabled passes and then "like" different sessions at the show.

Kiosks with social integration are not just for events. Retailers are also taking advantage of the social media universe for kiosk applications. Stores that offer photo printing services are now deploying kiosks with the ability to print photos directly from a user's Facebook page, eliminating the need to send in photos online or save and bring in a memory card or jump drive to retail locations.

As the social media universe continues to grow and people leverage it for both personal and business use, kiosks will continue to evolve and offer companies additional ways for consumers to interact with their brands.

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