Queues are one thing that isn’t shrinking in today’s economy. The COVID-19 had a wide range of effects around the world, including on companies of all kinds. People are waiting in lines more than earlier for several services. The company’s hold times and customer service have also been severely impacted. People are queuing outside restaurants, doctors’ offices, and other places since waiting rooms are closed to reduce one-on-one touch. Furthermore, customers are getting mad as they are forced to wait in long queues, negatively affecting the user experiences.
Social distancing is essential and will remain a part of the new normal, even when the economy will begin to recover. Since there have been few relaxations of lockdown restrictions around the world, every individual needs to learn and see what social distancing looks like.
The main goal is to reduce COVID-19 spread and enable companies, especially healthcare providers, to provide better customer service. The following are some ways your business can adapt to maintain social distancing and provide safety to both clients and staff.
Ways to Incorporate Social Distancing
Streamline Communication About Wait Time Expectations
Strange but true! Knowing the expected wait times seems less unpleasant and more satisfying than the untold waits. By providing customers with wait time expectations, you can reduce customer anxiety and their perceptions of your brand.
For instance, you can add live chat or call options on the website so people can have detailed insight about queues or crowds before visiting for in-person assistance. You can also set up physical signage so wait expectations can be determined and assigned accordingly.
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Floor Decals Are Essential
It is significant to modify the entire store following protection and social distancing protocols. Furthermore, the same level of safety measures should be implemented in the store as they are at the entrance gate. Here, floor signs and decals are great ways to keep everything in order.
In stores without checkout lines, floor decals can be used as places for customers to stand and wait for their turns. Focus on creating more checkout lines and floor lanes and then spread the space to prevent close customer contact.
Furthermore, floor decals are a great way to accomplish store branding. Business owners can strategize and implement creative ways to engage customers. Embracing floor decals and incorporating new methods like this will help to improve the brand voice.
All in all, put some smiles on your customers’ faces as they’ve lined up in a queue.
Set Up Virtual Queue System
If there’s one thing that can improve the customer wait experience, it’s the ability to wait remotely and execute other important tasks while doing so. Investing in a virtual queue management system is the key to maintaining social distance in your store or business place.
People will digitally check in and reserve their spot in line without having to go in person. Customers will receive SMS updates on anticipated wait times and their position in line while waiting in a coffee shop, in their car, or at home.
All in all, ensure your customer queueing solution provides alerts to customers on where they’re holding the place in the queue since it is the one benefit offered by physical lines.
Embrace Contactless Payments
Allowing cash payments is another aspect that contributes to health risks and near-consumer contact. As a result, with the option of contactless payments, payment and checkouts can be made risk-free.
You can equip your enterprise with online payment modes like Paytm, GooglePay, PayPal, and so on. Even FaceBook Pay and Instagram Shop are some creative options for shoppers to choose from.
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For now, your company might only be providing the physical cash payment options and you may also find it overwhelming to expand the payment methods.
For the time being, your business may allow physical cash payments, and expanding the payment options will be difficult. However, the current crisis is pushing every business to adapt remote and digital services to keep consumers safe and happy.
In-Store Communication Media
Any business must spread social distancing knowledge among customers using existing media or platforms, in addition to implementing advanced safety measures.
Consider adding COVID-19 recognition audios or videos to your digital display if your company already uses them. If not, an LED display can be set up to remind your customers about COVID safety precautions and the value of social distance.
Larger businesses, on the other hand, must make announcements about company social distancing protocols and strategies every other day. The service providers currently using handout or paper menus must switch to digital versions.
Businesses can also rely upon social media for reminding the customers that in-store shopping is safe and secure,
Businesses may also use social media to remind consumers that shopping in-store is safe and secure. It might also be a smart idea to post photos of customers and staff wearing masks. Overall, safety precautions should be put to keep the customers engaged and provide them with a risk-free shopping experience.
Temperature Check and Hand Sanitization at Entry Point
Temperature checks have become common in every store like hair salons, spas, and healthcare practices. Additionally, getting the temperature check of every customer sighs relief and boosts confidence at the same time.
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Regardless of what services you offer, safety must be the priority in these tough times. As a result, make hand sanitization and temperature checks a part of your store’s routine to prevent infection spread.
Final Thoughts
Being available for customers in the midst of the COVID crisis is difficult, but it is possible with a little creativity and adherence to distancing norms. Businesses need to drive as much as possible customer flow to stay ahead of the competition and create a customer base. However, it asks for strict precautions and safety rules. Hence, the tips we have shared above can be implemented by any business to get started. By integrating security, innovation, and imagination in one place, you can easily create a healthy environment for customers to shop. Furthermore, consumers will trust you based on the services and security you provide and will be eager to shop with you. Hope you’ll find this write-up helpful. Thanks for reading!