While customers may sometimes spend more than an hour shopping as they browse or try out products, all that time in the store may not matter if they encounter a problem at the point of sale. At least that is what a recent study from Tensator indicated, with the company finding that nearly one in three shoppers walked out of a location without completing their purchase because of problems during self-checkout. 

Furthermore, 84 percent of polled customers stated they needed assistance when using the self-checkout line, which may account for why the majority of respondents preferred using staff-operated registers. Half of respondents were also unsure about where the line started when using the service. While merchants know they must be aware of poor customer experiences, this is more difficult to notice without enough oversight of self-scan areas. 

"This research makes very interesting reading against the backdrop of growing online retail sales, where queuing and the checkout experience is so different," said Cathy Barnes, professor of retail innovation at Leeds Metropolitan University. "Shops need to pay increasing attention to the experience they provide in store to ensure they do not drive consumers away to competitors or other channels." 

Potential solutions
To avoid customer dissatisfaction, merchants deploying self-checkout POS systems should ensure that their software runs smoothly and that it is focused on providing a simple customer experience. While the platform should be easy to understand, additional help to assist shoppers can also reduce the chance that customers won't finish their transactions. More clearly marked lanes may also minimize the amount of confusion about where a line starts and ends. 

Retailers might also consider eliminating self-checkout lines. Jewel-Osco chose to remove them earlier this year, according to the Daily Herald. Rather than attributing the change to problems at checkout, Jewel spokeswoman Allison Sperling stated that the company wanted to focus on providing more personalized service. Loss prevention was cited as a secondary reason for the decision. However, this runs the risk of alienating customers who prefer the option. One critic of the self-scanning option, Jeff Weidauer, vice president of marketing and strategy for Vestcom, remarked that it is like shopping online – but for some consumers, that may be exactly what they want, so long as brick-and-mortar locations can replicate its convenience.