Uncertainty magnifies the stress of waiting, while feedback in the form of expected wait times and explanations for delays improves the tenor of the experience.” In the same article, Stone also makes a good case for keeping customers in the loop about current waiting times: “Our expectations further affect how we feel about lines. Research on queuing has shown that, on average, people overestimate how long they’ve waited in a line by about 36 percent.” “Occupied time (walking to baggage claim) feels shorter than unoccupied time (standing at the carousel). As Alex Stone pointed out in a piece for the New York Times: For the most part, this has to do with how we can bridge the time waiting. We may attribute a period of time falsely to be “longer” than normal or deem another period “shorter” despite it actually exceeding the average waiting time. There is an interesting aspect about the experience of waiting in line: The waiting times we perceive often do not correspond with the actual times we spent in line. It is also possible to simply scan a QR code posted in a shop window. Kiosk-based and mobile queues provide a much more customer-oriented approach and have been implemented in a broad range of variations: In some cases, customers can book time slots online through a web interface or an app, join the queue by using a self-service welcome terminal or ticketing kiosk or queue in on a tablet or maybe even using a robot assistant on site. Additionally, they limit productivity and cause excess stress levels for customers and staff. Long queues, whether they are structured or unstructured, often deter walk-in customers from entering the store. They do not have to wait in the store but rather receive a notification when a spot becomes available. Mobile queues: Rather than queuing up physically, customers use their smartphones.Kiosks are often used in banks, as well as medical and governmental facilities. Kiosk-based queues: Arriving customers enter basic information into a kiosk, allowing staff to respond accordingly.Examples include taxi queues and waiting for consultants in specialist retail stores. Unstructured queues: Lines form naturally and spontaneously in varying locations and directions. Examples are supermarket checkouts or airport security queues. Structured queues: Lines form in a fixed, predetermined position.Generally speaking, you will likely find one or more of the following types of queue management solutions in a given retail environment: You can view a video of one of his talks here. One of the most referred to researchers on the topic is MIT Professor Richard Larson, who drew from a waiting experience to build what became a career as a researcher in queuing psychology. The topic of managing queues effectively has been a subject in the academic world, but certainly it has remained somewhat of a niche topic.
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