keep kiosks safe, online with remote monitoring a watchful eye on a self-service application can maximize uptime and ROI

Transcription

1 keep kiosks safe, online with remote monitoring a watchful eye on a self-service application can maximize uptime and ROI 1

2 executive summary Self-service kiosks have revolutionized industries ranging from airline travel to photo processing. Companies can move simple transactions to the kiosk while redeploying costly labor to more complicated customer service tasks. A remote monitoring solution offers the ability to remotely diagnose and troubleshoot issues, avoiding the customer dissatisfaction and loss of revenue caused by an out-of-service machine. The fact that a kiosk operates largely unsupervised, however, can sometimes be its downfall. Depending on its location, if there is a problem with a kiosk it might be offline for hours or even days before someone in authority notices and takes action. In addition, unattended kiosks could be prone to tampering, especially if they accept payments. If a customer passes by a kiosk and it is offline, they might return to use it again. If they come back a second time and the kiosk is still offline, they ll probably never come back. It s critical, then, for a deployer to monitor what is occurring with a kiosk even if they aren t at the physical location. This white paper, sponsored by Meridian, an Aberdeen, N.C.- based manufacturer of kiosks and self-service devices will discuss how a remote monitoring solution can provide ease of mind by offering the ability to remotely diagnose and troubleshoot issues, avoiding the customer dissatisfaction and loss of revenue caused by an out-of-service machine. 2

3 benefits of a remote monitoring solution Business operators deploy self-service solutions to maximize customer reach, generate additional revenue opportunities and deliver expanded service. Most self-service solutions are built for around-the-clock access to meet customer demand. downtime, it could also suffer irreparable damage to its brand if customers financial information is breached. As a standalone device, however, kiosks can be susceptible to tampering and abuse that could end up knocking the machine out of service, or worse. A remote monitoring solution offers the ability to remotely diagnose and troubleshoot issues, avoiding the customer dissatisfaction and loss of revenue caused by an out-of-service machine. When systems go down, customer reach is negated, as well as service and revenue opportunities. When systems go down, customer reach is negated, as well as service and revenue opportunities, said Chris Gilder, CEO and founder of Meridian. Additionally, once a solution is down for more than a few days, trust may be sacrificed and customer engagement and usage will be lost and the brand tarnished. Chris Gilder, CEO and founder, Meridian Meridian offers standard kiosk designs ranging from small form factor units to larger kiosks that support multiple applications and many devices in a single unit. The company has a rapid prototyping process and can produce completely customized kiosks for specific locations or events. When a company is faced with a tampering situation they could not only face the loss of revenue from the resultant kiosk Kiosks don t necessarily have to accept payments to be vulnerable to tampering. In 2007, for example, hackers introduce malicious software onto the servers of Framingham, Mass-based TJX, the parent company of TJ Maxx, Marshall s and other retail chains. The hackers plugged flash drives into job application kiosks in the company s stores. The kiosks were connected directly to the company s corporate network. The attacks were part of a data breach that cost the retailer more than $250 million and involved more than 45 million customer credit and debit card numbers. Remote monitoring solutions can give deployers the ability to monitor the health of the kiosk operating system and software, along with accompanying hardware, in real time. Deployers can be notified if either the physical unit or the software has been accessed inappropriately, either by or text message. In addition, software can be updated and content managed remotely. For machines that depend on replenishables such as receipt paper, tickets or cash; levels can be monitored and the deployer notified when those levels are low. 3

4 Meridian s remote monitoring solution, for example, provides reporting capabilities on the state of health of the kiosk. It also provides deep integration with peripherals unique to selfservice, such as touchscreens, card readers and ticket printers. Event logs are uploaded with system information for further diagnostics. Deployers are able to access the unit via a secure portal. The portal provides screen sharing and troubleshooting, giving the deployer the ability to determine if a problem can be solved via a reboot or if a technician needs to be dispatched. beyond downtime Remote monitoring of whether or not a kiosk is functioning is a no-brainer. Nearly everyone can see the value of knowing if their kiosk is online, if the software has been hacked or if someone has tampered with the physical unit. There are also some not-so-obvious processes that can be monitored remotely. A remote monitoring solution should provide ROI metrics to measure the self-service solution s success. The most obvious return on investment for a transactional kiosk consists of the profit made from those transactions. The higher the number of transactions, the better the return on the investment. A comprehensive remote monitoring solution should provide the deployer with up-tothe-minute statistics on transaction volume and the time it takes for a user to complete a transaction. If transaction levels aren t at projections, that information might indicate the kiosk should be moved to a different location or that different services might be needed. If the transaction process is too slow, reports on transaction times might highlight the need to revamp the kiosk interface. Business intelligence reports offered via Meridian s remote monitoring solution, for example, include: Usage. Number of users who interact with the system and the duration. Touchpoints. Within each user interaction, where and what the user interacted with, viewed, touched and so forth. Financial reports. Application-specific information such as transaction audit logs, financial and tax reports. Marketing analytics. Lead generation information. Transactional accounting reports. When and how much cash was collected during scheduled collections and who performed those collections. A comprehensive remote monitoring solution should provide the deployer with up-to-the-minute statistics and reports. Meridian offers a cloud-based hosted solution for deployers who don t want to host the remote monitoring on their own servers. Meridian maintains infrastructure, hardware, servers and access to the latest versions of Meridian Management Server, including support for accounts and diagnostic-related issues. Meridian s MMS cloud-hosted solution allows additional service levels because the company s Technical Assistance Center has the ability to provide the client more enhanced phone support, proactive issue monitoring and resolution, service dispatching and 24/7 third-party support. When remote monitoring is utilized with a self-service solution, the deployer has more control over current and future issues, maximizing uptime and ensuring the unit delivers the highest ROI possible. 4

5 Corporate Headquarters 312 S. Pine Street, Aberdeen, NC