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Why Virtual Queuing Has become an Essential Part of Modern Queue Management Systems?

Businesses are using different queuing techniques and methods in order to delight their customers and visitors. Earlier it was just manual queuing where people were standing in physical lines and waiting for their turn. The virtual queuing methods have become obsolete over the time, and the more modern and technology based digital queue management system took over. However, not all queue management systems are the same, some offer more innovative features and some don’t. Basically a modern digital queue management system is combination of software and hardware tools which help businesses streamline the customer flow and manage the queues with more efficiency. A good queue management system not only help regulating the queues, but it also helps improving the customer experience and the staff efficiency. The digital queuing is not a new concepts in fact businesses are using digital tools and technology to aid their queuing methods since around past two decades. As the other technology evolves such as computers, internet, smartphones, etc. the queue management systems have also evolved.

Why Virtual Queuing Has become an Essential Part of Modern Queue Management Systems

Now a days a modern queue management system includes a variety to technologically advanced features which evolved over a long period of time and got more efficient. With the rise of queuing technology high-end manufacturers also started investing in research and development (R&D) which speedup the modernization of the industry. The virtual queuing is also a very modern and advanced feature of a digital queue management system. It is being present since 6 to 8 years, but rapid adaptation occurs during the 2020 and onwards. When the social distancing become a new norm and the businesses were required to impose strict health and safety policies the virtual queuing have proven to be one of the most effective tool ever. That is what really paved the way for the virtual queuing. Now a days businesses are rapidly adopting and implementing virtual queuing technologies to enhance the customer experience and to improve their operational capabilities, productivity and performance of the employees. In this blog we will discuss what is virtual queuing and why it become essential for a modern business.

Why Virtual Queuing Has become an Essential Part of Modern Queue Management Systems

What is Virtual Queuing?

By definition a virtual queuing is a queuing process which allow customers and visitors to signup remotely using multiple remote channels such as mobile phones, SMS, emails, appointment booking portals, website/online, call, etc. The virtual queuing doesn’t require customers and visitors to wait inside the premises and provide customers with the freedom to wait remotely, outside of the business premises and arrive only when their turn comes. This can significantly reduce the wait time, in fact the wait time at the branch/premises can be literally reduced to none. That is one of the greatest advantage of the virtual queue management systems. The virtual queue management system allow customers to sign-up remotely thorough any preferred channel, it a lot them a virtual ticket or e-ticket, which is their identifier. Along with that the queue management system can also communicate with the customers via SMS, smartphone app, or online portal. The staff and service agents can also communicate with the customers. The virtual queue management system keep providing them the live queuing information and allow them to arrive only when their turn comes, hence they don’t have to wait within the premises or confined waiting areas.

What is Virtual Queuing?

Why Virtual Queuing has become an Essential?

Before we start discussing the benefits of the virtual queuing it is important to understand how market and customer preferences are changing. The Dubai and in fact the entire UAE is a highly advanced market, the economy is growing steadily, the overall market conditions are very business-friendly, this means the competition is also very high. High competition results in more competitive markets which resultantly raise the customer standards. Here in UAE an average consumer is very well-versed with the technology and several industries have witnessed a common change in customer behavior which is the preference of digital experience over regular experience. Here in UAE the internet penetration is 99% and almost the same percentage of population uses smartphones and spend hours on social media on daily bases. This lead to a universal change across all industries. All businesses started leveraging these modern technologies which led to more dominance of digital interaction and digital experience. In fact now a days a common consumer expect some kind of digital experience from their favorite brand. The virtual queuing is the same thing for the service based industry.

Why Virtual Queuing has become an Essential?

It is not only to satisfy the needs or expectations of the customer but it also have a lot of other perks. Here are some key advantages of the virtual queue management system which are helping both businesses and the consumers as well.

Simple Multi-channel Signup Facility

One of the biggest advantage of the virtual queue management system is that it offer more freedom, flexibility and facility to the customers. The customers can sign-up for the queue remotely. They don’t have to approach the ticket dispensing kiosk or unit to sign-up for the queue. In fact they can sign-up for the queue while sitting at the office or at home or on the go. The virtual queue management system integrates several digital and remote channels which allow customers to sign-up remotely. The customers can sign-up using the integrated queue management system smartphone app, they can utilize the appointment booking portal, they can use company website or dedicated customer portals, etc. The virtual queue management system also offer sign-up with SMS, email, phone call and even WhatsApp. These all are very convenient and easy-to-use channels. Everyone who signed-up will get an electronic ticket number, which will be their position in the queue. The queue management system can also collect basic information via these remote channels which is required to sign-up customers for the right queue. These methods make the sign-up process very simple and more convenient.

Simple Multi-channel Signup Facility

Enhance Waiting Experience and Reduce Wait Time

Another great advantage of the virtual queue management system is that it can significantly enhance customer’s waiting experience. The customers can sign-up remotely, the queue management system provides them with their e-ticket and their expected wait time. This enables the customers and visitors to plan their visit accordingly. They can plan their journey in a way that they arrive only when their turn comes. This also means that there would be no wait time at all. The customers and visitors are not bound to be present at the premises, which means they don’t have to wait either. Customers and visitors can wait at their home/office, nearby market, mall, at any other place and they can also plan their visit to arrive at the very time of their turn. The virtual queue management system smartphone app allow businesses to send queuing updates, alerts, and notification to user’s smartphone. Furthermore the virtual queue management system can also utilize the online portals, SMS and WhatsApp. These all facilities significantly enhance customer experience and reduce the customer wait time. Wait time is one of the major cause of customer unhappiness and if it can be reduced the customer happiness increases.

Enhance Waiting Experience and Reduce Wait Time

Automate Several Steps of Customer Journey

The digital innovation drives automation and automation means less human involvement in any process, which not only improve the process but also reduce the expenses of the business. A virtual queue management system can automate several customer journey processes, such as customer sign-up process, which is automated and also offer self-service channels to the customers. The customer flow management is fully automated. The virtual queue management system has AI (artificial intelligence) based algorithms and smart software engine which can capture analytical and system usage data in real-time, the data is recorded in the storage as well as fed to the AI algorithms which take real-time decision to streamline the customer flow. In any customer service center there are several services and several counters, some counters are dedicated for exclusive services some might serve premium customers or different customer groups, some services have more delivery time than others, some employees have more experience and better performance than the others and a lot more variables are there. All these variables can led to a more complex queuing situation and make management difficult for the staff.

Automate Several Steps of Customer Journey

However, a virtual queue management system can automatically process all these variable and take decisions based on the queuing policy. For example, if an employee left the counter, or the service delivery is taking more time than usual, the virtual queue management system’s smart algorithms can immediately sense it and they can divert the customers to other fast-paced counters without effecting their wait time and so on and so forth. The entire customer flow process is very dynamic, unlike manual queues when a customer is standing in a line, if that counter gets slower than the customers will have to wait longer. And if the counter stopped due to some reason, then it would become a huge problem to insert the customers in other queues. However, with the virtual queue management system none of such problems occurs, as all customers and visitors are signed-up for virtual queues and they are not physically standing in waiting lines which makes it easier for the queue management system to move them between different waiting lines to make sure the customer wit time won’t increase.

Automate Several Steps of Customer Journey

Furthermore the virtual queue management system continuously share information about the queues and keep the customers and visitors updated all the time via their preferred communication channel. Usually the queue management system mobile apps, SMS, WhatsApp and online portals are used to communicate with the customers. These days the WhatsApp is also gaining popularity as it provides instant two-way communication. These features keep customers and visitors informed all the time, if there is any change in wait time or anything else they customers can immediately get notified. Better and easy communication keep customers more engaged and also help improving their experience. The communication is usually done automatically by the virtual queue management system hence the business don’t have to appoint a staff for that, only occasionally the staff or service agents engaged in communication. All these automation help optimizing the customer journey, reduce the staff efforts and improve customer experience.

Automate Several Steps of Customer Journey

Intuitive Virtual Queue Management System Mobile Apps

Here in Dubai and all around the UAE the smartphones are very common, according to stats almost 99% of the population uses smartphones and also have access to internet. This have completely transformed the customer behavior and communication across all industries in the country. People felt more comfortable interacting through smartphone app rather than contacting the call center or visiting the website. The mobile apps have become a very important part of the business, especially for the service based industries. The virtual queue management system also offers mobile apps, which offer great features to enhance customer experience. For example, the virtual queue management system mobile apps are built for both Android and Apple iOS. They offer instant connection with the help center, they offer a variety of other services. The mobile apps also provide visit scheduling and booking features. The customers can easily view the details of the branches they are planning to visit in mobile apps. The mobile apps can provide information about the busy hours of the day, busy days of the week and so on.

Intuitive Virtual Queue Management System Mobile Apps

While planning their visit the customers and visitors can easily chose an appropriate time which shows them less expected wait time. They can also book an appointment to avoid any delay in service. The virtual queue management system mobile apps also offer a branch locator feature which help customers and visitors to locate branches near to their location and it can also provide them the live queuing situation at those branches along with all other details. The virtual queue management system mobile app’s branch locator features is integrated with GPS navigation apps such as Google Maps, it can provide customers the live route information and help them understand which would be the most convenient branch to visit with least wait time. All these information can significantly enhance customer experience ad increase their satisfaction. The customers can also view the history of their past visits and the business can also request customers to provide feedback and the feedback can be automated as well. All these features help engage customers, improve their experience and increase their satisfaction.

Intuitive Virtual Queue Management System Mobile Apps

Improve Employee Efficiency and Productivity

The manual or traditional queuing turns out to be very counter-productive in the modern fast-paced business environment. Here in Dubai and all around the UAE the customers and the businesses both are well aware of the customer experience. Studies have shown that the customers are willing to pay extra if they are assured they will get a better experience. The business knows that too. That is the reasons businesses are always eager to adopt to modern solutions and technologies to enhance customer experience and to boost their internal processes. The virtual queue management system just do that. It simplify the queuing process for both the employees and the customers. Since the sign-up to customer calling everything is managed by the AI (artificial intelligence) algorithms of the queue management system, there is no conflict, unwanted delay or mismanagement in these steps. Which not only reduce the customer wait time but it also eliminate common problems from the queuing process. As everyone know the queues are managed by a computerized system so the customers never complaint about line jumpers, favoritism or mismanagement by the staff.

Improve Employee Efficiency and Productivity

Furthermore since the customer journey is majorly managed by the virtual queue management system the employees have no role to play, they don’t have to deal with the customers and visitors much often, and they can focus on their primary tasks. This can significantly increase their work efficiency. The virtual queue management system also manage the workload of the employees and distribute the customers automatically among available counters, when the employee work under balanced workload they tend to perform well. The queue management system can also track various KPIs of the employees and help management understand their performance. The virtual queue management system can accurately track how many customers are served by the employee in a single shift, what was the service time for each customer and what was the average service delivery time, etc. The system also track how much time an employee remain active on the counter, and several other details. These KPIs and performance data help the management develop better training programs and improve their resource management capabilities. Which gradually improve the employee efficiency and also increase employee satisfaction.

Improve Employee Efficiency and Productivity

System Integration Improve Productivity

The virtual queue management system is built using very widely available technology platforms which enables them to offer better and flexible integration features. The virtual queue management systems can easily be integrated with other systems, software, databases and central information center. Which allow businesses to offer more innovative features for the customers to maximize their experience. The integration and data sharing is also very helpful in optimizing internal processes, improving workflows and reducing the repetitive tasks. Furthermore the integration also help improving the service agent productivity. For example the service agents will have to prepare for the service beforehand, which takes time, then there are some post-service activities too. A virtual queue management system can ask customers about the service they need, it can also ask them to put identification data such as by scanning EID card, etc. and then it can use that data to support service agents with their tasks and reduce their efforts. It can boost the outcome of the customer feedback collection campaign. Similarly the virtual queue management system can help improving several internal processes which help increasing the overall productivity of the business.

System Integration Improve Productivity

Cost Effective

The virtual queue management systems are very cost-effective solutions. The initial development and deployment cost is also relatively low. The virtual queue management system comes with a core serve software which can be hosted online, in local in-premises data centers and cloud, which requires very less maintenance. Furthermore the hardware that is used is also based on widely available technologies which requires very less maintenance and the maintenance itself is also very inexpensive. The virtual queue management system also help improving the internal processes by leveraging automation. The automation improve productivity and reduce human efforts, hence the businesses don’t have to deploy more employees to manage the customer flow and the overall branch operation. Hiring and retaining more employee is expensive and can significantly increase the operational cost of the branch. With the help of the virtual queue management system businesses can reduce the employees needed for a branch while increasing the productivity several times. Which help maximizing the profit of the business as well and help them achieve their strategic goals more effectively.

Cost Effective

Business Intelligence Data

Business intelligence data is a valuable asset for any modern business. The modern businesses are heavily relying on the data and information to build their strategies and plans. The virtual queue management system collects highly accurate in-depth business intelligence data which help management understand the effectiveness of their queuing process and policy. The business intelligence data include analytical and system usage data, employee performance data, and it also includes customer feedback data. With the central control features the head office can monitor and manage all connected branches. The virtual queue management system’s core software is hosted on a server, which enables it to instantly update all user dashboards hence the head office can get the live queuing information from all connected branches. Furthermore the feedback collection improve the data quality and accuracy. Businesses can easily identify the bottle necks, flaws in customer flow policy, and with the help of the historic data the virtual queue management system can also predict the expected footfall which help businesses to have better resource planning and management and improve the efficiency and productivity.

Business Intelligence Data

Conclusion

The customers are always the first priority for any business. Customer happiness assures success and long term steady growth. Businesses in Dubai and all around the UAE are more adoptive towards the technological solutions to enhance their operational capabilities, performance and customer experience. In present day customers appreciate integration of modern technologies, in fact most of the time the customers expect form their favorite brands to offer excellent services and solutions with the help of modern technology and digital platforms. Here in UAE the digital experience is becoming more important day by day. For the queuing needs, businesses have started implementing modern technology to boost their productivity and to enhance the customer experience. The virtual queue management system is one of the most modern and highly advanced queuing solution. It offer a great deal of features, freedom and control to the customers which help increasing their happiness and satisfaction. The virtual queue management system also enhance business’s operational capabilities, it improves employee performance and reduce the operational expense which translates to more profitability and growth.

The entire UAE is a very competitive marketplace, customers have too many options available, which makes them more demanding and raise their expectations. Businesses have to make sure their customers gets a satisfactory interaction with their customer service centers. That is what makes a virtual queue management system absolutely essential for the queuing needs of a modern business. RSI Concepts is a leading virtual queue management system solution provider in Dubai, UAE. If you want to learn more about the subject or if you need our help to deploy a customized and cost-effective virtual queue management system for your business, please feel free to contact us through our Contact Us page or leave a comment in the comment box below and we will get in touch with you soon.

Check out this: Benefits of Using Modern Queue Management Software


List of 5 Prerequisites of Queuing System

A queuing system is a basic necessity these days. All of the businesses that are operating in Dubai or any other part of UAE are utilizing some kind of queuing system to manage their customers and visitors. Basically, the queuing system is used to streamline customer flow and to manage customer experience throughout the entire customer journey. Which makes it a very important business tool. The customer journey and customer happiness are crucial for success. If a brand has a strong base of happy and satisfied customers, it will gain a good reputation and a positive brand image. The happy and satisfied customers are also the most loyal customers. And customer loyalty plays a vital role in any business’s success. Loyal customers tend to do repeated business with the brand, which ensures steady growth. Another great advantage of happy and loyal customers is that they tend to promote the brand among their friends, family, and colleagues. This further improves the brand identity and portrays a very positive brand image. If a brand has a good reputation and a positive brand identity in the market it can gain more from less effort. Less marketing efforts tend to convert more leads if a brand has a very good brand identity and vice versa. That is why queuing systems are very important for a business.

List of 5 Prerequisites of Queuing System

The purpose of this blog is to aid our audience in making a queuing system decision. As in Dubai and all around the UAE there are so many different queuing system providers and a variety of different queue management system types are available, it could get confusing for most of the businesses while deciding the best queue management system and the best vendor for their project.

Here is a list of 5 prerequisites of the queuing system:

1. Define Objectives

Define Objectives

Like any other IT project or any general initiative, the very first thing we do is that we define objectives and expected outcomes. Similarly, with a queuing system, we also have to define the objectives and expectations from the system. In the case of a queue management system, the desired results are improved customer experience throughout the customer journey and customer satisfaction. There must be some research done beforehand and some stats are important to understand. For example, the customer churn rate and customers who leave without getting serve are two major issues in Dubai and all around the UAE.  The customer churn rate or the customer who never do business the second time is a big problem for business to sustain growth and the customers who signed up for the queue and then leave without getting served or without making a purchase are the even bigger problem and results in a variety of problems for a business. Several studies and surveys have shown that an average customer can wait up to a maximum of 13 to 14 minutes, wait time any longer than that could stress them out which results in a very bad customer experience.

In the above-mentioned scenario, the objective should be to reduce the customer churn rate and ensure all the customers reach the counter who signed up for the queue. Similarly, there are so many problems or scenarios a business could have faced in Dubai and all around the UAE. The objectives are defined to address a particular problem. There could be several objectives and any efficient solutions should be able to achieve several objectives. In the case of a queuing system, the primary objective is to improve the customer experience and employee performance to improve profitability. The secondary objective could be to collect vital business intelligence data to help businesses in making future decisions and policies. This is how objectives should be defined before acquiring any queuing system.

2. Understand How a Queuing System Works

Understand How a Queuing System Works

Once the objectives are defined the next step is to fully understand how a queuing system works, and how it can be utilized to achieve those objectives. As modern-day’s queue management systems and queuing solutions have lots of advanced features which are very helpful. As we all know the general behavior of everyone not only in UAE but all around the world has been changed, people are more adoptive towards digital and electronics solutions. The customer behavior has been completely changed. The customer’s expectations from a brand are completely changed. The ways businesses were interacting with customers and visitors prior to the pandemic have been changed completely. The year 2020 was a huge change in service-based industries and the year 2021 is the year when businesses are trying to keep up with the changing trends and customers’ needs by implementing new strategies and solutions.

Here is a list of basic components of a queuing system:

  1. Ticket Dispensing Kiosk Machine
  2. Digital Signage to display queuing information and to play multimedia content
  3. Counter Displays or Counter Plates
  4. Audio Announcement System
  5. Signs and stanchions to route the customer flow (mostly for large setup or stepped service delivery)

5 steps of queuing system

Here is a basic workflow or customer journey of a traditional queue management system or queuing system:

  1. Step 1. Customers and visitors signed up for the queue usually using a ticket dispensing kiosk
  2. Step 2. Customers and visitors wait in the queues or in the waiting areas
  3. Step 3. The agents or servers do the customer calling and make announcements
  4. Step 4. Customers and visitors arrived at the counter and get the service done
  5. Step 5. Customers and visitors leave the premises (in some cases they are being asked to submit their feedback before leaving)

That was the traditional customer journey with a traditional queuing system.

However, these days, when customers are more concerned about their health and safety, and wellbeing, businesses had to offer them some alternative methods to ensure social distancing and other regulations in place to build the confidence of their customers and visitors. This suddenly boosts the popularity of Virtual Queuing methods and techniques.

Here is a basic workflow or customer journey of a virtual queue management system or virtual queuing system:

  1. Step 1.Customers and visitors signed up for the queue remotely, without being present at the premises
  2. Step 2. The customers and visitors can wait outside, or at home or in a nearby store or even in the parking lot, whatever and wherever is convenient for them
  3. Step 3. The customer calling and announcements are made through both traditional and untraditional methods, such as via smartphone application, or a web page, or SMS or any other medium, usually multiple digital mediums are used to alert customers and visitors about their turn
  4. Step 4.Customers and visitors arrived at the counter and get the service done, usually, there is literally no or very little wait time inside the branch is witnessed
  5. Step 5. After getting the service done, the customers and visitors leave the brand, the customer feedback can be collected in both traditional and untraditional or digital ways too, such as via smartphone application surveys, or survey links, or emails, or SMS, or any other digital medium

The problem here is that most of the industries and businesses can easily adapt to the new modern-day virtual queuing but still there are many businesses that can’t. So, it is important that you understand how both queuing systems work. Then you can decide which system would be better for you as per your needs and objectives.

Furthermore, there are several other sub-sets or types of queue management systems that are available in the market. Some of them are general-purpose and some of them are purpose-builds for a specific industry. For example, the dedicated queue management system for the healthcare sector, or for the educational institutes, and so on. One of the best aspects of a queue management system or queuing system is that it can be customized as well. So, you can also choose features from various different types and merge them in a customized solution.

3. Understand your Environment

Understand your Environment

Once you established a basic understanding of queuing systems and their types the next step is to understand your environment where you will going to install a queue management system. Here are certain things that should be considered while analyzing your environment:

  • How many entrances are there?
  • How many counters are there?
  • What is the size of the waiting area?
  • What type of setup do you have? (Square/Rectangle, Round, or Irregular)
  • Do all customers and visitors in the waiting area face the same direction while sitting?
  • Is there any dedicated counter or VIP/Premium/Special counter?
  • Do you have any service which requires multiple counters? (Stepped Services)
  • In the case of stepped services, do all the counters are located in the same hall or your customers have to go to another hall or floor or something?

And things like that. This will not only help you identify the best queuing solution for you but this information will also help you to keep the cost at a minimum by acquiring only the needed components. For example, the facility size and type will decide how many ticker dispensing units and digital signage are required and what should be the quantity of the sound system to make the announcements, etc.

4. Plot your Environment in a Queuing System Scenario

Plot your Environment in a Queuing System Scenario

Once you have a better understanding of your environment and the customer journey. The next step is to put yourself in the place of your customers and visitors. Imagine the queue management system installed in your premises or just simply mimic it. There are certain things that you should understand, for example:

  • How convenient it is to go through the customer journey?
  • How easier it is for the arriving customers and visitors to spot a ticket dispensing kiosk and how convenient it is to reach it even in case of rush hours when the facility is operating at its maximum capacity?
  • Check the waiting area and see which locations or spots are more visible to place digital signage at?
  • If you would be a customer or visitor and your ticket number is called, how convenient it is to find your assigned counter anywhere from the waiting area?
  • Do you need extra signs and directions to direct the customers and visitors to certain counters?
  • Check the entire customer journey for all services and for all types of customers and visitors, for example, how better the customer journey is for premium customers?
  • Check everything is in both the regular and busiest hours’ scenarios.

And certain such things will help you build up the most efficient customer journey. Plotting various different scenarios will be very helpful. This way you can improve the customer journey to utilize the maximum potential of your premises. This will also help you to purchase only the required equipment.

Read More: Queue Management Challenges 2021

5. Analyze Customer Journey Improvements

Analyze Customer Journey Improvements

Once you have finished plotting a queuing system in your environment, then think from different users’ perspectives. Try to quantify how your queuing system could improve the customer journey. What benefits your customers can get from the new customer journey. Try to analyze each and every touchpoint and the complete user experience throughout the entire customer journey. This will help you further optimizing and improving the queuing system you are planning to avail. Think about what else can be included to further improve the customer journey? How various processes can be shortened? How the entire setup will improve your employees’ efficiency and productivity. Analyze the customer journey in various situations, such as peak hours, peak days, fewer customers, crowded, most popular services, and such things will help you analyze the system and how it can improve the customer journey by improving and automating various processes and steps of the service delivery.

Another thing to consider here is that how the queuing system is impacting your staff and agents. Definitely, any automation or solution is basically designed to improve the efficiency of the employee who is operating it, so does the queuing system too. The queuing system significantly reduces the workload of the agents and staff and improves their efficiency. More agents can serve more customers in a single shift. As most of the processes are either fully automated or semi-automated so the agents/servers can easily focus entirely on the customers. This enables them to improve the service quality as well. Which further improves the customer journey and customer experience.

Read More: 7 Features of Queue Management Software

Conclusion

Here in Dubai and all across the UAE, almost every business is utilizing one way or another to streamline their daily customer flow. The market is very competitive, if you fail to maintain a certain standard of customer experience and customer journey you will soon going to lose valuable customers. The queuing systems are an excellent tool to control, manage and improve customer experience throughout the entire customer journey. The queue management systems not only improve customer journey but they also aid staff and employee in improving their efficiency and work quality. The queuing system streamlines the customer flow, manages various aspects of the customer journey automatically, reduces the wait time, and speeds up the service delivery processes. This means less work for employees and agents/servers. The agents/servers can focus more on serving customers which significantly improves the customer experience. Happy customers always remain loyal to their brands and provide a strong foundation where a business can stand to make the next move up.

However, when it comes to choosing a good queuing system for your business there are so many options available. Especially in Dubai, UAE there are tons of different types of queue management systems, and a lot many vendors are also available to choose from. That is why it is critically important to be prepared before acquiring any queuing system. The purpose of listing 5 prerequisites of the queuing system was to help our audience and customers to choose the best option for them. If you follow these 5 key points, you can easily find a suitable and cost-effective queuing solution that can help you to generate more business over time. It is always better to consult a professional for such projects. RSI Concepts is a leading queuing system provider in Dubai, UAE with hundreds of satisfied customers. Feel free to reach out if you need any help with your next queuing system project or any customer satisfaction solutions. You can contact us through our Contact Us page or simply leave a comment in the comment box below and we will get in touch with you soon.

Check out this: Revamp of E-Services Portal Development for Khorfakkan Municipality by RSI Concepts


What are basic features of Queuing System?

The queuing system or queue management system is a combination of software and hardware tools, which allow businesses to effectively manage their daily customer flow. The markets like Dubai and other emirates of UAE are very advanced, modernized, developed, and technologically far superior to any other nation in the region. This sets up very higher standards for almost everything. The economy of UAE is huge and is growing along with gigantic occasional boosts such as the Expo 2020 event which was postponed to 2021 and is just above our heads, the economy is very promising and this attracts a lot of companies and investors to hop in. Which leads to tougher competitions. The competition results in very demanding customers who expect very high of their trustworthy brands.

basic features of Queuing System

The queuing systems are at the very top of customer experience management and have a huge impact on the customer journey and customer satisfaction. This is why the Dubai market is full of queue management system providers. RSI Concepts is one of the leading queuing system and customer experience transformation solution providers. There are so many different types of queue management systems advertised these days, and almost all of them are different than one another. However, the basic features of a queuing system are the same. For example, the prime objective of a queuing solution is to improve the customer journey and customer experience along with that the employee performances also got improved, one agent/server can serve more customers in a single shift if an effective digital queuing system has been commissioned.

Read More: 10 Reasons to Choose RSI Queue Management System over Other Similar Products

Here are 10 basic features of the queuing system:

Queuing System Feature 1. Organized Queues

 Organized Queues

A digital queuing system ensures a well-organized queue. However, with manual management, the management will have to deal with lane jumpers, hustlers, and sometimes confrontations between the customers themselves and between the customers and the staff. This is very frustrating for the customers and for the staff too. If the queues are managed manually then more staff is required to manage everything. In addition to that physical barriers, stanchions, and other things are also required to manage the queues, even then disputes, delays, and troubles are common sites, which completely ruins the customer experience and makes the customer journey terrible. However, with the digital queue management system, everyone has to sign up for the queue.  A ticket number or token number is given to every customer and visitor. No one can trespass on other queues, or jump the lines, or any such thing. The chances of disruption are almost none. Businesses can easily organize a queue without requiring much staff intervention.

Queuing System Feature 2. Easy & Automatic Customer Routing

Easy & Automatic Customer Routing

Another problem with manual queuing is that the staff will have to make separate lines, which again they have to manage too. Priority customers or premium customers might also be stuck in regular queues, which is very discomforting and discourage customers from becoming premium or priority customers. But if you are using a digital queuing system, the system can easily distinguish between ordinary and priority customers and visitors. That is not all the digital queuing system also provides automatic management of the customer routes. Let me explain, for example, there are several services offered by a business which usually is the case. Most of the time for different services different counter are allocated and only designated staff to provide certain services. Which requires very accurate customer flow management and customer routing. This can be achieved easily using a digital queuing system.

Queuing System Feature 3. Reduced Wait Time

Reduced Wait Time

With manual queue management, a business will have to allocate more resources to manually manage the queues and customer flow. Which is not only expensive but it could cause a lot of trouble too. The manual customer flow management requires staff to manage everything which is very time-consuming, resultantly the customers will have to wait for more. However, with a digital queuing system the customer flow management, the customer journey, and customer flow is managed by the queue management system without any human intervention. The well-organized queues, automatic customer routing, and improved management prevent all the time-consuming problems of manual customer flow management. Which significantly reduces the wait time of the customers. As the staff is being relieved from the duties related to queue management they can focus on serving customers and can serve more customers in the same amount of time. Which reduces the wait time and also improves the customer experience.

Queuing System Features 4. Improved Customer Journey & Customer Experience

Improved Customer Journey & Customer Experience

The well-organized queues, automatic customer routing, and reduced wait time can significantly improve the customer journey and customer experience. The traditional customer journey starts from the very moment a customer enters the premises and it sends when a customer leaves the premises. The customer experience is the actual experience a customer has going through that journey. It could be either good or bad, if a customer’s experience is as per their expectation then the customer journey is good if not then you should really think about taking action fast. A queuing system not only reduces the customer journey but also makes the customer experience very pleasant and comforting.

The digital queue management system can easily identify the priority customers and the customers who require certain services. Then the queuing system automatically routes them to their designated counters/agents. This feature not only reduces the workload from other counters but also reutilizes the vacant counter for general services. Especially in Dubai and other parts of UAE most of the businesses are offering multiple services and certain counters are designated for certain services. Or in the case of stepped service delivery, when a customer has to go to multiple counters to avail a full service, automatic customer journey management comes in handy and it could significantly improve customer experience.

Queuing System Feature 5. Improved Productivity and Profitability

Improved Productivity and Profitability

A digital queue management system is far superior to any manual customer flow management practice. It significantly improves customer happiness and customer satisfaction. The queuing systems are a great tool for businesses to ensure steady growth by improving customer satisfaction. Customer satisfaction helps increasing customer loyalty which further helps businesses to establish a positive brand identity. The positive brand identity then attracts more customers and also help businesses to improve customer retention rate. Which ultimately also results in better conversion rates. As the queue management system improves the customer journey and customer experience, they also reduce the workload from the staff and agents, which enables them to perform well. It means businesses have to pay less for the expenses and human resources. This not only increases productivity but also increases profitability.

Queuing System Feature: 6. Customer Engagement and Wait Time Experience

Customer Engagement and Wait Time Experience

Any queuing system comes with a certain list of basic queue management system components. Which include a digital signage screen, counter markers, and an announcement system. In Dubai and other parts of UAE, in fact, all around the world a big display is used as digital signage which provides all the ticketing information along with the customer calling announcements. Digital signage can be utilized to play multimedia content or adverts or any other interesting content to keep the customer engaged in it. A known waiting time is far better than an unknown waiting time. All the information on the screen is being updated in real-time along with the multimedia content or adverts it keeps the user engaged and busy. Customer engagement can significantly reduce the stress of waiting. Hence it improves the customer wait time experience.

Queuing System Feature: 7. Centralized Management & Real-time Monitoring

Centralized Management & Real-time Monitoring

Where a digital queuing system is offering so many benefits for the customers and the staff it also helps the management to effectively monitor everything in real-time. That is not all the head-office management can effectively control and manage any branch from the head-office. All the branches are connected to a centralized management system. All the data captured from the branches are synchronized in real-time with the head office. Remote management is enabled. The head office can push any policy or configuration change from the head office to any branch or to all branches. However, the branch manager will also be capable of managing and controlling the queuing system for their branch and would not be able to access or control the other queue management systems until the access and permission are granted by the head office. The head office can create administrative users with whatever access and control they want to. That is a great feature for head-office management.

Queuing System Feature 8. Reporting, KPIs, and Stats

Reporting, KPIs, and Stats

A good queue management system always captures valuable data and measures KPIs (key performance indicators). Mostly a queuing system capture system usage data, such as which services are most availed, which services take the maximum average time or minimum average time, etc. Such data is very helpful in understanding customer behavior and their demand. Furthermore, the queuing system can also measure KPIs for the employees such as how much customers are being served by any employee on average. How employees are performing during rush hours? How much gap or break an employee is taking during finishing one customer and the next customer calling, etc. This data helps the management to understand the employee performance and their behavior which could be very helpful in arranging training or for other HR activities.

Read More: How an Arabic Version of Queue System can Help Improving Customer Experience?

Queuing System Feature 9. Integration with other Systems

Integration with other Systems

The queuing systems are built with very flexible technology and can easily be integrated with third-party systems, corporate tools, enterprise solutions, and other systems via secure web apps or APIs. This integration is very helpful in automating many processes which can reduce the wait time and service delivery time to improve the customer journey and customer experience. Furthermore, the queue management system can also fetch data from various other systems to their interfaces and vice versa. The integration makes way for a lot many advanced features as well, for example, integration with online customer portals, smartphone applications, online booking and appointment systems, ERP, SAP, and many more.

Read More:  What are the Basic Components of Queue Management System?

Queuing System Feature 10. Easy Upgrade and Future Scalability

Easy Upgrade and Future Scalability

Another very basic feature of any queuing system that you should be looking for is its capability to easily upgrade and expand or future scalability. This is very important. As we have noticed that most of the time businesses expand, once they install a queuing system in one branch, they might want to install it to another branch or maybe all of them. Usually in Dubai and all across of UAE businesses first start with installing such solutions in a few branches then they keep expanding them to other branches. This is cost-effective and it also gives businesses enough room to improve the solution. The queue management systems should be able to keep up with the ever-changing trends, the capability to upgrade, and future scalability should not be very difficult and very expensive. This is what each business should clearly discuss with the supplier before starting the project.

Read More: What is Queue Management System?

Conclusion

The Dubai and other emirates of UAE are all highly advanced and technologically developed societies. The economy of UAE is huge and is very promising for new investors, which means a lot of competition, the competition is always good for the customers and consumers and it indicates a healthy market. Like any other developed nation, the customers in UAE have very high expectations and are very demanding. This further increases the importance of customer satisfaction and customer happiness. A queue management system is a great tool for customer experience and customer journey management. The purpose of writing about the 10 basic features of a queuing system was to provide our audience and customers with a detailed guide on the basic queue management setup and how a business can benefit from the queue management systems.

Although there are so many different types of queuing systems, however, the basic remains the same and the understanding of basic features and their benefits is very important for businesses in order to choose an appropriate solution for them. It is always better to seek advice from a professional queue management system provider such as RSI Concepts. We are specialized in customized queue management systems and customer satisfaction solutions. We are helping businesses and organizations in transforming their customer journey and ensuring steady growth by improving customer loyalty, customer satisfaction, and increased conversion rate. If you are looking for a queue management system or want to learn more, please feel free to reach us out through our Contact Us page or leave a comment in the comment box below and we will get back to you soon.

Check out this: What are advance components of Queue Management System?


What are advance components of Queue Management System?

advance components of Queue Management System

Before we discuss what are the advanced components of a queue management system? Let me first explain why a queue management system is so vital for your business! The main objective of a queue management system is to let businesses streamline the customer flow to improve customer experience and to be able to serve more customers per day by each server/agent. It helps effectively managing the customer flow and queues which results in a reduction in wait time and ensures quicker service delivery. Any digital queuing solution would be very helpful for the staff and the servers/agents in improving their work efficiency as well. As the queues and the customer, flow is automatically managed by the queue management system so the servers/agents can easily focus on their prime tasks which will not only reduce the service delivery time but will also significantly improve the service quality and customer journey.

The customer journey can be automated entirely and the queue management system is also helpful in expediting the service delivery process. This helps businesses in building better relationships with their customers and visitors and it portrays a positive image of the brand as well. The positive brand reputation attracts more customers and visitors and it also helps improving conversion rates of all sorts of marketing efforts. However, there are so many different types of queue management systems advertised in the market especially in Dubai, UAE. This raises the question of which queue management system you should choose. The simple answer is to first understand the queue management system and its components then decide for yourself which solution would work for you.

There are so many advanced components of queue management systems available in the market. You should be able to choose according to your needs. That is why we are writing this blog to let our audience and customers easily understand the latest advancements in queue management systems.

How does a Queue Management System work?

How does a Queue Management System work?

A queue management system is a combination of software and hardware tools designed to help businesses effectively managing the customer flow. Its primary objectives include customer experience and customer journey, automated customer flow management, improved employee work efficiency, improved service delivery, and service quality, higher productivity, and profitability for the business. The working of a queue management system is very simple. The customers and visitors start with a signing up process, which is usually selecting the required service from an interactive touch screen kiosk and then printing their tickets for the queue. Then they are directed to the waiting room, where they can monitor the queuing status on digital screens and they are also notified by the audio announcements. Once their turn comes they can visit the designated counter/server to avail the service and that is it. Sometimes businesses also provide an option to submit feedback before leaving the premises.

Any queue management system consists of two major parts, software, and hardware. The software has its own list of modules and components, the hardware also has the same list. As the technology used to make the queue management systems is very widely available so the peripherals and accessories are also widely available. There is literally no limit to innovation in this market. Since around a decade ago so many big multinational manufacturers invested in the industry, then there has been millions upon millions of dollars had been invested only in R&D. This makes the industry very modern and innovative. However in Dubai and other parts of UAE, a certain market behavior or culture is established, so we will going to talk about only the popular components of the queue management system in our country and also in the gulf region.

Read More: How an Arabic Version of Queue System can Help Improving Customer Experience?

Here are the advanced components of the queue management system:

What is a Queue Management System Software?

What is a Queue Management System Software?

A Queue Management System Software is basically a server-side application that runs on the server and provides a different interface to interact with the system. In Dubai and other emirates of UAE, the most common type is the web-based interfaces for the agents/server and for the administration. For the visitors and customers usually, a touch screen interactive kiosk is used. However, these days other interfaces or methods are also used to interact with the customers and visitors.

Read More: How a KPI Software can help provide better Customer Journey?

Here are the details of some most popular advanced software component:

Customer/Visitor Interface via Self Service Interactive Kiosk

Customer/Visitor Interface via Self Service Interactive KioskThe customers and visitors can interact with the queue management system using an interactive touch screen self-service kiosk. The interface allows the customers to select the required service from the list of all available services and then automatically sign them up for the queue. The kiosk also prints a ticket bearing the queue number and some other basic information.

Queuing Information and Announcements

Queuing Information and AnnouncementsThe digital screens and signage are used to display the current queuing information. These signage and displays are placed in strategic locations where everyone in the waiting area can view them. In Dubai and UAE mostly the information of the current tickets under process on each counter is displayed along with the next ticket number and estimated time along with some other information such as an advert or multimedia content is played to keep the customers and visitors engaged.

Agents/Servers Interface

Agents/Servers InterfaceThe agent/server’s interface is mostly a web-based application that can be easily accessed from the computer browser. The agents can perform basic tasks such as customer calls, canceling or updating a ticket number or rerouting any ticket to a different counter, etc.

In some advanced configurations, much more can be done by integrating the queue management system with various other enterprise software and tools. This not only saves a lot of work for the agent/server but also expedites the service delivery process. The lower time for each service delivery results in happy customers and improved efficiency of the staff.

Administrative Dashboard or Control Panel

Administrative Dashboard or Control PanelThe administrative dashboard or control panel is the interface for the management, such as branch managers, supervisors, and/or head office management. The management can not only manage various processes but it can also extract valuable business intelligence in the form of statistical data, KPIs, system usage data, customer/visitor feedback, and customized reports in different formats. Regular automated reports can also be configured such as daily reports, weekly and/or monthly along with performance reports for the branch, particular service, agents, and so on. It entirely depends upon the business itself.

The administrative dashboard also allows the management to customize the customer journey, set and create policies, manage other system users and allow access by creating workflows and administrative hierarchies. All the branches can be monitored and controlled through the head office remotely. The head office can extract the data and prepare the reports from any branch. All the data is being updated in real-time, the live stats and monitoring are also available in some modern systems.

Read More: Mobile Queue Management System’s Impacts on Customer Experience

Virtual Queuing Module

Virtual Queuing ModuleVirtual Queuing is one of the modern forms of queue management systems. It enables the businesses to let their customer and visitors sign up for the queue before even physically arriving at the branch. The concept is that the customer and visitors can sign up for the queue remotely and then at the very exact time when their turn came they can arrive and get served immediately without even waiting in an actual queue. The system signs them up for a virtual queue and they can either plan their visit accordingly to reach at their estimated turn time or either they can wait outside. Very effective when your branch or office is located in a commercial area or near to recreational activities. It also helps to maintain social distancing. The customers and visitors can easily sign up using their smartphone applications, SMS, email, phone call, online customer portals, websites, etc.

Read More: How Virtual Queuing can Change the Business Process?

Social Distancing Enabled Queue Management System

Social Distancing Enabled Queue Management SystemAs we all know these days the social distancing, health and hygiene is the top concern of everyone, and social distancing is mandatory. Businesses are allocating more recourses to ensure social distancing and implementation of the government-suggested precautions. A queue management system with social distancing mode enabled could be a great help to strictly implementing the social distancing rules and it also helps to avoid the extra expense of allocation of additional resources just to maintain social distancing. The social distancing mode supports various different types of virtual queuing sign-up methods. The most popular method in Dubai and all across the UAE is signing up with a QR Code, which is usually posted outside of the entrance.

Read More: Will the focus be shifted from Queue Management System in future?

Queue Management System Integration

Queue Management System IntegrationModern-day Queue Management Systems also allow integration with other enterprise solutions and systems as well. The main objective is to make the queue management system more useful but integrating it with other databases and information centers. This also allows more superior customized features and a lot of other benefits including centralized management as well. The KPIs, stats, and reporting data can be linked to other systems, such as ERP or Intranet, or any other enterprise tool. The integration is very simple via secure web services or APIs. The queue system can also fetch data from any other system via APIs. For example, in order to identify the premium or VIP customers the business can set up an Emirates ID card scanner to identify the priority customers to route them to their designated counters and more such things.

Read More: What is Queue Management System?

Queue Management System Hardware

Queue Management System Hardware

The queue management system hardware includes all the related hardware to support software functionalities. In Dubai and other parts of UAE, in fact, in the entire MENA region, the practice is to use some standard components. For example, the self-service interactive kiosk is used for sign-up. The digital signage and the screens are used to display queuing information along with media and content. The counter plates are used to mark the counters and the audio announcement system is for the customer call.

Read More: 10 Reasons to Choose RSI Queue Management System over Other Similar Products

Here are the details of some most popular hardware component:

Interactive Kiosk or Ticket Dispensing Machine

Interactive Kiosk or Ticket Dispensing MachineAn interactive kiosk or ticket dispensing machine is a very basic component, however, these days the touch screen interfaces are used to improve service delivery as well. For example, if you are a priority customer, or a premium customer, or just an ordinary customer or visitor, you can either scan your Emirates ID or any other mode to identify yourself to the system then the system automatically puts you on your respective queue. Furthermore, the Interactive Kiosk or Ticket Dispensing machines are also used to display the list of all the services along with a few other options which are designed to help to improve the customer flow and customer journey.

Read More: Impacts of Queue Management System on Employee’s KPIs

Digital Signage and Display Screens

Digital Signage and Display ScreensDigital signage is traditionally used to display the queuing information and feeds. The information contains mainly the list of all the active queues and the counters along with the ticket number that is currently being served. However, the advanced queue management systems also include a digital signage module that allows the management to play multimedia content on those large displays. The content could be the adverts or any video or animation which keeps the customers and visitors engaged while they are waiting. As these screens also contain the queuing information so almost everyone looks at them and the content or information playing along with that could also be very helpful in reducing the stress of waiting. This improves the customer experience as well as provides a free marketing opportunity.

Read More: How Queue Management System Helps to Provide Better Customer Service

Customer Feedback System

Customer Feedback SystemThe customer feedback system is not a new thing, however, integrating it with the queue management system is fairly a new phenomenon. Businesses can benefit a lot from this. Generally, the customer feedback system includes a small tablet stand, touch screen, or a kiosk, which provides an opportunity to easily submit feedback. The software of the feedback system is linked with the queue management system and if the business is already identifying their customers, the queue management system can automatically link the feedback submitted from that particular counter by matching the ticket number and the time of service. Such feedbacks could be very helpful in making future decisions and building strategies to further enhance the customer journey and customer experience.

Advance Hardware Accessories for Queue Management System

Advance Hardware Accessories for Queue Management System

The queue management systems are built with very widely used technologies. The server-side application can easily be customized and integrated with tons of software and hardware accessories or extensions. The client-side or the customer interaction which starts with the interactive touch screen kiosk or ticket dispensing machine is also built using native applications or web-based interface. In both cases, the actual machine is either running on Windows or Linux operating system. In Dubai and UAE, almost 99% of the time windows-based systems are used. This makes the integration fairly simpler and easier.

Here are some most commonly used hardware accessories for queue management systems:

 Emirates ID Card Scanner or Reader

Emirates ID Card Scanner or ReaderThe Emirates ID Card is our national identity card here in UAE. As the UAE government is very supportive and adoptive towards digitalization and technologies, the Emirates ID or EID is used for identifications. The method is very simple and takes no time to identify the person. The identification information can be relayed to the queue management system server software where it can be cross-matched to the internal databases and then the same can also be pushed to the agent/server database to make the service delivery shorter and quicker. The queue management system can also detect the person’s status such as VIP or premium customer or ordinary customer and can automatically set priority for them. This method is used to improve the customer journey by directing customers to their respective dedicated counters. This is also used by HR departments to improve various service delivery steps.

Facial Detection & IRIS Scanners

Facial Detection & IRIS ScannersFacial detection is a very great way to identify revisiting visitors and customers. Especially in customer service departments, government departments, and mass transit facilities, immigration, and airports, facial detection is widely used. It is used to identify the customers and visitors and later the same information can be utilized to facilitate a lot of many business processes to expedite the service delivery process and to set the priority according to the status of the customers and visitors. The IRIS technology is fairly new having more government applications especially in contactless immigration or digital immigration, etc. However these days the private sector is also adopting technology to improve their customers’ experience and journey.

Voice Assistant

Voice AssistantThere are two types of voice assistants widely used. The one is to improve multi-lingual support where the voice recites the predefined messages and phrases to assist the users from the process such as helping them out to identify the required service from the list. This is very popular with queue management systems and self-service kiosks. The second is the human-aided voice assistant in which an actual customer support agent assists the user in using any self-service device upon their request. This has recently been introduced to queue management systems and is only effective when the service delivery is stepped and the relevant counters are located on longer distances such as a vehicle testing facility, or a container port or depot, or such facilities.

Read More: Important Hardware Components of a Queue Management System

Conclusion

The queue management system is a very great tool to improve the customer journey and customer experience. It also helps to reduce the extra cost of managing manual queues and it can significantly improve the efficiency of the server/agents as well. The customer experience is vital for building a positive brand image. A positive brand image ensures more customer retention and higher conversion rates. This is a key to steady growth and greater profitability. These days the queue management systems are going through great innovation and advancements due to technological advancements and new programming techniques. It allows the business and system providers to attain more customizations and greater productivity in all sorts of scenarios and conditions.

The basic queue management system contains only a few basic components that allow effective customer flow management. However, with some advanced software and hardware components a queue management system can literally transform the customer journey and customer experience. It could also be a great source of very accurate business intelligence and statistical data. The remote monitoring and controls also allow the head offices to easily manage and control the entire network.

RSI Concepts is one of the most experienced queue management system providers. Our products are the outcome of more than a decade-long experience and intensive research in the local market. Our diverse clientele, experienced staff, and superior technologies enable us to deliver a highly efficient and productive system with excellent ROI rates. Our customization capabilities and integration with other systems can provide you a greater competitive edge. If you are looking for a reliable, cost-effective, and customized queue management system to meet your specific needs, do reach us out through our Contact Us page or leave a comment in the comment box and we will soon get in touch with you.

Check out this:  What are the Basic Components of Queue Management System?


What is Queue Management? Beginner’s Guide to Queuing Systems

What is Queue Management System?

A queue management system is a combination of tools both hardware and software and is being used to effectively manage and monitor the customer flow and to improve the customers’ experience and journey. As technology has advanced rapidly in the past few years so do the queue management systems too. These days there are so many different types of queue management systems some of them are generic and can be installed in all sorts of scenarios and some of them are purpose-made and have very specific utility. The primary objective of a queue management system is enabling the businesses to improve customer satisfaction by offering them a quicker and better customer journey and the secondary objective is to enable the servers/agents to serve more customers in a single shift to preserve resources and to improve productivity and profitability. This blog will be a complete guide to queue management systems for businesses and organizations operating in Dubai, UAE.

What is Queue Management System

The earlier forms of the queue management systems were very simple and only help businesses and organizations to sort out the customers and manage the queues digitally to avoid manual work and problems related to manual management. But these days businesses and organizations want to manage and improve the customer experience from pre-sale or pre-arrival to post-sale or after-sale activities as well. The entire customer journey is managed and transformed to achieve higher customer satisfaction to ensure profitability and growth. Happy customers are the best for business, a happy customer will come back to you, they will tell others about your business and services and their experience. Whereas unhappy customers are very bad for business, they might not return, and they will definitely tell others about their bad experience. This could make a huge difference. Especially in service-based industries, the business’s success is majorly relying on customers’ happiness and satisfaction.

See More: Queue Management System Problems and Solutions in Dubai, UAE

How does a Queue Management System Work?

How does a Queue Management System Work?

The basic operation of a queue management system is very simple. It can be defined in a few short steps:

Step 1: Customer or Visitor Arrive at the Business

Step 2: Sign-up for the Queue (usually by getting a ticket)

Step 3: Wait in the waiting area or actual queue till their turn

Step 4: Arrive at the counter when their number came

Step 5: Get the service and leave (happily)

QMS Process

However the queuing process has evolved into multiple different forms, there are so many different queuing approaches that businesses and organizations take to improve their customer experience as per their scenario and strategy or as per the services they are offering.

However, these days there are a lot many different types of queue management systems that basically follow the same principle but the methods could be different. For example, the virtual queue management system enables the customers and visitors to sign-up for the queue even before arriving at the branch via various different means such as call, email, SMS, smartphone application, online via the website, or customer web portals, etc. Moreover, these days QR Code based queue management systems are gaining popularity in the retail sector, customers and visitors can arrive at the retail store or outlet and sign-up by scanning a QR Code and the system provides them with a mobile ticket. All the information, updates and customer call is done using smartphones.

See More: What are the Benefits of Queue Management System using Mobile Apps?

There are so many different methods to achieve the above-mentioned customer flow sequence. There is a wide range of purpose-made queue management systems available too. Mid-size and large businesses, enterprises, and public offices are leaning towards a customized queue management system to have more control over the customer journey. As in Dubai, UAE, and other parts of the GCC as well, the enterprises and businesses are heavily emphasizing adopting good practices to improve the customer journey and customer experience to improve customer satisfaction and customer retention.

What are the Types or Classifications of Different Queuing Modes?

What are the Types or Classifications of Different Queuing Modes?

There are basically 4 major classifications or modes of queuing and on the basis of these queuing methods, a business can easily select an appropriate type of queue management system required for their needs. These classifications or types are defined on the basis of the actual infrastructure or setup of the facility, for example, how many counters a business have, how many services are being offered and how single service delivery is done, and so on. I have discussed those types in my previous blog related to queue management system hardware components as well. Here are the classifications or modes of modern queuing:

1. Single Phase Single Channel

This setup means that there is only a single counter or server that can deliver the full service to a single customer at a time. This is the most widely used setup in customer support and customer happiness centers. A customer is only required to arrive at a single counter to get the service or all of the required service. All of the agents and servers are trained to provide all offered services.

2. Multi-Phase Single Channel

This setup indicates a single service delivery requires multiple phases or steps to get completed. A customer will have to go to multiple counters/servers to get a full service done. The topic suggests there would be only one counter for each phase of the service delivery and the customer will move linearly from 1st step to the last. However, mostly these days there are multiple counters for each step or phase of the service, and the overall customer load is divided among all subsequent counters to reduce wait time.

3. Single Phase Multi-Channel

This business model suggests that there are multiple counters and servers who can cater a single service and the customers are divided among all available counters and can be routed to any available counter and the service will be delivered. This is the most popular scenario among telecom, customer support and service centers and usually, there are multiple services but all counter/server are trained to delivery any service a customer need. Hence a customer will have to reach only one counter to get the full service.

4. Multi-Phase Multi-Channel

This setup is for the services which require multiple counters or a service that can only be delivered through multiple steps and for each step of the service multiple counters and servers are available and the queue management system will automatically divert the traffic to the vacant counter as per the queue to reduce the service delivery time. Such setups are usually common at immigration services, government offices, service providers, and healthcare facilities. Usually, such setup is being used by large corporations, enterprises, government offices, and healthcare facilities.

See More: How an Arabic Version of Queue System can Help Improving Customer Experience?

Some of our customers and audience ask us “How to choose the best queue management system?” Well! That is the reason I have repeated the above classifications in this blog to let them decide which queuing model will work for them.

What are the Basic Components of a Queue Management System?

What are the Basic Components of a Queue Management System?

With the evolution of technology and the market’s trends businesses are focusing on implementing queue management systems that not only help them efficiently manage the customer flow but allow them to completely control the customer journey, improve their monitoring capabilities, introduce new innovations, and gather critical business intelligence. You must be thinking that is a lot for a simple business tool that is meant to streamline customer flow! No, you are wrong, the queue management systems have also evolved and become much more sophisticated and efficient in achieving those goals than ever before. However, the major two parts of a queue management system are the software and the hardware:

Queue Management System Hardware

Queue Management System Hardware

The Queue Management System hardware is very simple and based on the most widely available technology which is another reason for the cost-effectiveness of the system. Another great advantage of utilizing a widely available technology is the ease of implementation, longevity, and low-cost maintenance. Here is a list of all basic hardware components that form a queue management system:

  1. Ticket Dispensing Kiosk
  2. Counter Displays/Counter Plates
  3. Digital Signage
  4. Audio Visual Announcements
  5. Signboards/Signs or Digital Signs
  6. Stanchions and Belt Barriers

See More: How Virtual Queuing can Change the Business Process?

Although these are just the basic QMS system components required to form a queue management system, however, there is a huge variety of hardware accessories and add-ons that are being utilized to further improve the efficiency of the system and the service delivery mechanisms. In some cases, there are devices such as touch screens and tablets that are being used to collect customer feedback. The interactive kiosk used for ticket dispensing is built with a basic computer in it, and it means that we can install so many other hardware accessories to further improve the customer experience and customer journey.

Queue Management System Hardware

For example, Emirates ID Card Scanners or Passport Scanners can be used to fetch the basic data for each customer when they will arrive at the counter which will further make the service delivery fast as all the information required would be available for the agents who are serving the customers. This is just an example there are so many other possibilities that can help businesses to improve customer satisfaction and happiness and also allow them for better business intelligence gathering and performance monitoring.

Queue Management System Software

Queue Management System Software

The queue management system software consists of two parts, one is the server-side application which provides an administrative interface and the second part is the agent interface. The agent interface is fairly simpler and provides basic controls and information about the queues and customer flow controls. However, these days, the agent portal can be customized as well as the administrative dashboard. The customization is being offered by almost all major queue management system suppliers in Dubai and all across the UAE. The main reason why businesses and organizations are seeking customization is to further achieve more control over the customer journey, customer flow, and monitoring.

Here are the basic components of the queue management system software:

  1. Queue Management System Server Software
  2. Agent Dashboard
  3. Admin Dashboard
  4. System Integration
  5. Customer Interface (Multi-lingual)
  6. Data Analytical and Reporting

See More: How a KPI Software can help provide better Customer Journey?

QMS Software, Agent and Admin Dashboard

Monitoring and Business Intelligence are essential for any business to ensure steady growth and happy customers. Our Queue Management System comes with in-built KPIs (key performance indicators) and very reliable monitoring tools. Furthermore, the system can be customized to provide more in-depth monitoring and data collection. Here I would like to mention that data collection is important but without data analysis and reports in a simple, plain and understandable manners are extremely important for decision making and strategy formation. A queue management system must be capable of analyzing, processing, and presenting the data in actionable reports and desired formats which can help the management to take decisions and to easily identify the areas of improvement. This will help businesses and organizations to take steps and actions to improve the customer experience.

Another great feature of our Queue Management System is that it is very flexible towards integration with other business tools and enterprise solutions. The RSI QMS also supports extended levels of customization which no other queue management system in the market supports. The upgrade and modifications are also cost-effective and relatively easier. These features help the organizations to tap in the data from other systems or centralized information centers and vice versa. A tailor-made queue management system leads to automation and digitalization which results in greater efficiency and productivity of the queue management system.

See More: 10 Reasons to Choose RSI Queue Management System over Other Similar Products

What are the Benefits of a Queue Management System?

What are the Benefits of a Queue Management System?

A queue management system is very effective and has become an essential part of customer satisfaction strategies these days. The core objective of a queue management system is to resolve the customer flow management-related problem, which helps businesses to enhance the customer experience and to offer a unique and attractive customer journey that results in satisfied customers. Another additional benefit includes monitoring and business intelligence gathering. Collectively all these benefits let the businesses and organizations sustain more customers and increase customer loyalty. Once that is achieved the road to steady growth is quite easy. This is why the businesses are adopting queuing solutions and the queue management system industry is emerging as a rapidly growing industry with huge future potential.

Here are some benefits of having a queue management system:

  1. Reduce Customer Wait Time
  2. Improve Customer’s Waiting Experience
  3. Improve Customer Journey
  4. Achieve total or semi-automation to reduce employee’s workload
  5. Monitor and measure system’s and employee’s performance
  6. Collect Customer Feedback and/or Measure Customer Satisfaction
  7. Improve Business Practices on the basis of analytical data and KPIs
  8. Integrate and Synchronize Data with other Corporate Tools and Systems
  9. Real-time Monitoring, Reporting, Alerts, Notification, and Stats
  10. Integrate Various Hardware to Improve Service Delivery

These are just some of the most common benefits a business can get with a queue management system. With the added benefits of customization and purpose-made queue management systems, businesses can easily achieve the highest productivity.

See More: How Queue Management System Helps to Provide Better Customer Service

Apart from the direct impacts of a queue management system on customer satisfaction and customer happiness, it also helps businesses in improving the factors that contribute to improving customer experience and customer journey. For example, a queue management system is a great aid to the staff and agents/servers who are directly interacting with the customer and visitors. With that additional aid, the employees can easily focus on customer experience and improving service delivery and service quality rather than wasting their energies on manual processes and manually handling the visitors and customers. Less work strain leads to improved morale and working environment which ultimately contributes to improving customer experience and customer satisfaction.

See More: Impacts of Queue Management System on Employee’s KPIs

Conclusion

In a modern-day world for businesses and organizations who are receiving customers and guests to their premises and offices, a queue management system is a great tool to improve the overall environment for both the customers and the employees as well. It provides great support by automation and aiding the employees in handling customer flow. A queue management system can provide basic KPIs (key performance indicators) along with the ability to couple with any Enterprise Performance Management System or Employee Performance Management System to further assist the management with accurate measurement and monitoring of the entire interaction of the brand with its customer. Businesses and organizations can have more control and flexibility to model their unique and attractive customer journey.

Furthermore, a queue management system provides a deep insight into relevant business processes, employee performance, and overall customer experience. The system is capable of gathering comprehensive business insight along with direct customer feedback. In our Queue Management System, the in-built statistical and analytical engine generates a multitude of reports for various levels of the management which let them understand the overall performance immediately. These reports and analytical data also help businesses and organizations to identify the areas of improvement. The business and organizations can have a great opportunity to understand their customers and to take steps to improve their business processes and products and services.

See More: Will the focus be shifted from Queue Management System in future?

With the advantage of technology and added benefits of a queue management system businesses and organizations can easily aim and achieve their targets and objectives. The queuing solutions are very cost-effective. The initial cost is low, the technology is long-lasting, easy to upgrade, easy to repurpose, and ideal for improving customer satisfaction. A satisfied customer will remain loyal to the business. With the marketing efforts and a strong asset of loyal customers, a business or organization can ensure steady growth and greater profitability. RSI Concepts is a leading queue management system provider in Dubai, UAE, and all across the GCC. If you have an inquiry or need any assistance please feel free to reach us out through our Contact Us page or leave a comment below.

Check out this: Mobile Queue Management System’s Impacts on Customer Experience