Top 11 Self-Service Kiosk Applications for Small Businesses and SMEs in 2025

The middle-east market is not just for the MNCs and large business establishments in the domains of banking, finance, aviation, oil and gas etc. In fact, the region also serves as a thriving niche for a plethora of diverse small businesses across various sectors.

The benefits of self-service kiosks are not limited to certain mainstream institutions and businesses like banks, financial institutions, airports, hospitals, large retail outlets, restaurant and fast food chains etc. Even small businesses like car wash outlets, laundries, small cafes and restaurants, and various other service providers can leverage the benefits of kiosk automation.

In this blog, we’ll delve into the same – how small businesses can leverage the benefits of automated kiosk machines.

Laundry Kiosk operations – Explained

Process and machine selection – The customer selects the desired process, washing or drying, displayed on the kiosk touchscreen and picks the available machine.

• Load and wash cycles selection - The customer may now select the appropriate load and wash cycles displayed on the kiosk screen.
• Payment time - The kiosk machine then displays the payment for the selected service. Customers have several payment modes to choose from like cash, card, cardless or mobile app payment.
• Drop the laundry After payment verification, the customer is allowed to drop the laundry into the selected machine.
• Press Start The machine performs the intended task as per the wash cycles selected by the user.
• Unload the machine - When the wash cycles are over, the user may unload the laundry items.

The functionality of a key-drop kiosk machine

Key-drop functionality

• Entering vehicle credentials : The customer finds the kiosk terminal and inputs the vehicle credentials at the kiosk screen. Vehicle credentials are necessary for vehicle identification.
• Service selection : now, the customer may select the preferred detailing service displayed on the kiosk screen.
• key drop time : The key drop kiosk terminal is equipped with a secure key storage box, allowing customers drop off their vehicle keys. The customer drops the key into the key storage box.
• Detailing center notification : Once the key is dropped, the detailing center instantly gets a notification regarding the customer and selected service via email.
• Customer exit : the kiosk displays the necessary instructions for the customer to leave.
• Detailing service starts meanwhile, the detailing center initiates the detailing service based on the selected service.
• Service completion notification Once the detailing service gets completed, the customer receives the necessary service ID details as notification via email/SM.
• Vehicle retrieval the vehicle is ready for retrieval.

Pick-up functionality

The customer may arrive at the facility at any convenient time to retrieve the vehicle. The instructions to retrieve the vehicle are as follows.

• Entering Service ID at the kiosk machine When the customer returns to retrieve the vehicle, the person gets back to the same kiosk terminal and selects the vehicle retrieval option, followed by entering the service ID.
• Access service order Once the service ID is entered, the customer can easily access the service order.
• Service payment After confirming the details published on the service order, the customer may proceed towards payment.
• Collect the key and leave Once the payment is confirmed, the key gets dispensed in the very next moment via the key pick-up box. The customer may collect the key and leave.

Your customers need not wait in the long lines, and the drop and pick-up facility offers immense convenience too. The key-drop kiosk improves CX, and thereby, customer satisfaction.

4. Self-ordering kiosks for QSRs, cafes and coffee shops

Self-ordering kiosks or food ordering kiosks are common in QSR chains and fast-foods outlets. And their benefits are not just confined to the order-taking process alone. They serve as efficient revenue generating and cost-cutting platforms too.

A QSR kiosk is loaded with various components to automate the order-taking task such as an Interactive touchscreen, receipt printer, payment device, customer identification hardware like facial recognition camera etc.

Even small restaurants can leverage the benefits of these versatile machines.

By investing in countertop kiosks, small restaurants can leverage the full potential of the full-sized standalone machines in a cost-effective manner.

Countertop kiosks for small restaurants

The customers can browse through the menu displayed on the kiosk touchscreen, select the preferred meal, perform the required customizations and make the payment, smoothly and securely, via single kiosk machine. Evidently, the kiosk machine becomes an all-in-one customer interaction terminal.

• Compactness In design perspective, countertops kiosks are compact and occupies less space compared to the standalone restaurant kiosks.
• Cost-effective Due to the minimal design and size, countertop kiosks are cost-effective.
• Mobility advantage Due to the compact size, the machine can be moved from one place to another.
• Tablet and iPad kiosks Countertops kiosks come in tablets and iPad design formats, which makes the customers feel at home.

The facility to provide personalised offers to the customers, the cross-selling and upselling benefits, the customer data acquisition feature, loyalty program integration etc., are highly rewarding and beneficial for the restaurant businesses.

You have a lot more to gain from these flexible, automated order-takers.

To read the full benefits of self-service kiosks for restaurants, please visit the link here.

6. Retail self-service kiosks for retail stores and establishments

A retail self-service kiosk serves as an automated product-browsing and self-checkout platform for retail stores.

The customers can easily order the products and services offered by the retail store by simply accessing the kiosk machine deployed at the entrance, mall corridors or any other convenient spot.

These kiosk machines are payment-integrated, and therefore, they serve as automated mini-stores or mini-branch-outlets that sell various commodities and products without human intervention.

The retail kiosk is integrated with several hardware and software components to facilitate an automated buying experience. The major components are an intuitive touchscreen, payment terminal, receipt printer, card printer, barcode scanner, etc.

How to order a product through a Retail kiosk?

• By tapping on the kiosk touchscreen, the kiosk machine displays the product listings and categories. With a gentle swipe the user can browse through the products listed.
• Most of the retail kiosks are equipped with customer search option, so that the customers can easily perform a product search by inputting the product name or keyword.
• By tapping on a specific product, the user can access a plethora of information related to the product such as price, description, features, image, reviews etc. The information helps the user take well-informed decisions.
• If satisfied with the product, the user may confirm the selection and proceed towards payment. The kiosk machines offer a wide range of payment modes like cash, card, cashless or mobile ap payments, which significantly improves the user’s purchase experience.
• After successful payment, the self-service kiosk machine issues a receipt in digital/printed format.
• Depending on the availability of the product the kiosk machine provides the necessary prompts for instant pick-up, or home delivery. The user may select any convenient option.

Similar to a fast-food concept, the retail kiosk serves as a “fast-purchase” outlet for customers, expediting the purchase process. The self-service kiosk for retail avoids the long waiting lines and congestions in retail outlets.

Moreover, the retailers can integrate customer loyalty programs, check real-time inventory, and perform upselling and cross selling via the kiosk machine.

The purchase of gift cards and their redemption are common in the UAE. And people make use of these cards in connection with special events, festivals, and for random shopping purposes. And of course, the kiosk machine can handle gift card issuance and redemption too.

How automated consultation works?

Visiting a doctor becomes highly convenient via a self-service patient-booking kiosk. Patients can avoid the long lines and the interactions with reception staff, thereby saving time and maintaining privacy.

• The patient taps on the self-service kiosk screen. The kiosk displays the necessary prompts for patient authentication. The patient may perform the authentication via patient card, through OTP or biometric verification.
• The kiosk screen displays the option to select the appointment type, either a “New appointment” or a “follow up” visit.
• If the patient is new to the clinic, the patient is required to input additional patient credentials like email ID, phone number etc. which is mandatory.
• Now, the patient may conduct a “doctor search” based on various categories like previous visits, doctor name, and specialization.
• When the doctor is selected, the kiosk displays various time slots to visit the selected doctor.
• As per the available time slot, the patient may select a convenient booking date and time.
• After confirming the booking date and time, the patient may proceed towards the payment. The kiosk terminal offers various payment modes like cash, card, cardless and mobile payments.
• After successful payment, the kiosk screen displays appointment confirmation with doctor’s name and date and time of appointment.
• Simultaneously, the kiosk machine issues the payment receipt with scheduled appointment information in both print and email formats.
• After appointment confirmation, the patient may follow the instructions to safely log out the session.

Panashi Patient Check-in kiosk (Medical City for Military & Social Services, Oman)

As part of our latest project, Panashi patient check-in kiosk serves the check-in requirements of our esteemed client in healthcare sector. The hospital check-in kiosk is intended to improve the patient check-in experience bypassing human interactions.

This system is designed for patients with pre-booked appointments to confirm their arrival at the facility. Instead of going to the receptionist, patients can use the kiosk either to enter their Electronic Medical Record (EMR) file number or civil ID number on the kiosk touch screen. Or else, they may insert the civil ID card in the card reader.

The kiosk then connects with the backend Hospital Information System (HIS) to retrieve and display the patient’s booking details. Patients can review and confirm their appointments directly at the kiosk. Once confirmed, the Hospital Information System (HIS) automatically queues the patient for the appointment.

The patient check-in kiosk eliminates waiting time at the reception, reduces congestion, and improves the overall patient experience.

The major components of the patient check-in kiosk are a touchscreen interface, thermal printer, card reader, the kiosk application, a dedicated TMS, a kiosk client listener, and a kiosk server.

Telehealth kiosk is the latest trend in the healthcare consultation domain. These kiosks facilitate remote consultation avoiding in-person visits to clinical or hospital facilities. Remote consultation kiosks are highly suitable for remote locations or in places where medical facilities are minimum.

The ticket issuance process - Explained

• The user starts the session by tapping on the kiosk touchscreen.
• The kiosk machine displays information regarding the shows, events or programs. Users may conduct category-based searches to find the desired event.
• Next, the user may select the date and time of the event. For repeated and schedules events, the user has to pick the available time slot.
• Now the user may opt for the number of tickets needed.
• When the ticket number is confirmed, the kiosk machine displays an order summary on the touchscreen. The user can go through the information and make the necessary adjustments, if needed.
• After finalizing the ticket order summary, the user may procced towards payment. And of course, your customers can take the advantage of a wide range of payment modes.
• After payment verification, the kiosk displays the confirmation message and instantly issues the ticket/s. The tickets are issued in both digital and print formats for user convenience.
• The kiosk issues a transaction receipt of the session. The user is allowed to print the receipt or direct it to the person’s email ID.
• The user may now log out of the session.

The ticket issuance is completed in a very systematic and efficient manner, preventing ticket frauds and other human manipulations.

Apart from the ticket issuance functionality, the event organizers or businesses may integrate loyalty programs into the self-service kiosk system, and thereby enhance the overall revenue.

Vending machine functionality – Explained

Vending machines come in two types. The glass panel type and touchscreen type. In glass panel type, these machines have glass panels attached to their front side. Therefore, customers can easily view the products displayed, and their codes.

Whereas, in touchscreen or digital type, the product information is displayed on the touchscreen of the kiosk machine.

Here is how touchscreen vending machines dispense items.

• The customers may select the item or product by selecting the desired produced listed on the touchscreen.
• After selecting the item, the customers can input the quantity and confirm their selection. After item-confirmation, the customers are allowed to make the payment. The vending machine offers a range of payment options like cash, card, cardless and mobile app payments.
• After payment verification, the selected item is dispensed by the kiosk machine into the collection tray. Immediately, the self-service kiosk machine displays the “Dispense successful” confirmation message with an Order ID on the kiosk screen.
• The user may collect the selected item/s from the tray, usually located at the bottom of the machine.
• The kiosk issues a printed receipt of the transaction. And that’s it!

24/7, uninterrupted item-dispensation functionality, customer loyalty program integration, remote monitoring facility, upselling opportunities etc. are highly beneficial and rewarding features for shop owners, small retail establishments, restaurants etc.

11. Self-service kiosks for real estate agents

Self-service kiosks serve as an effective communication portal between real estate agents and property owners, tenants or prospective customers. The kiosk is instrumental in automating the day-to-day operations, thereby improving the operational efficiency and enhancing the customer experience. Some of the vital functionalities of the real estate kiosks are furnished below.

• Automated sales and marketing agent Real estate providers may list their upcoming projects, completed projects, etc. and promote them via the kiosk machine. High resolution images, videos, creative designs and engaging write-ups can drive more engagement. To add on, AR integration can bring in more immersive experiences for potential customers. From customer perspective, they can easily browse through the listings 24/7 and gather legitimate, updated information about various projects. The kiosk machine serves as a 24/7 lead generating platform, as customers can access the kiosk machine at their convenience and submit their enquiries regarding various projects. The customer enquiry process, in turn, helps to collect vital customer information like name, phone number or email ID of the customer, which can be used for future follow-ups.
• Accept payments The kiosk machine can collect payments of various types like the monthly rental payments, monthly maintenance charges etc. with utmost accuracy and security.
• Bulk payments transfer The kiosk machine can handle bulk payment transactions, like in the case of real estate installments. A real estate kiosk is capable of accepting large volumes of money with a processing speed of 12 notes per second and a storage capacity of 30000 number of notes, at a time.
• Document scanning and printing facilities The tenants or owners can scan/print important documents like agreements and even perform digital signing. This speeds-up transaction and avoids time-consuming human intervention.
• Offer apartment, villa search The potential customers can perform a detailed search at the kiosk machine regarding upcoming projects, apartment availability, facilities and amenities etc. bypassing phone calls to human agents.
• Register maintenance requests Your customers can register maintenance or complaints via the kiosk machine, in a matter of few minutes, which significantly improves customer experience.
• Video conferencing with the backend agents With the help of video calling facility, customers with investment plans can communicate directly with a real estate official or agent via live video chat. The facility is highly suitable for international clients or those clients who are out-of-station. A real estate kiosk enabled with video calling facility can perform real-time document verification with a backend agent seamlessly. To add on, the customers can even scan relevant documents during the video call and get an instant approval. Customer convenience at its peak isn’t it?

Benefits of self-service kiosk machines

Small businesses enjoy several benefits by deploying automated kiosk machines in their premises. Many of these benefits are common and are applicable to all industries or sectors. And those rewarding benefits are listed below.

• Improved operational efficiency Automated and efficient kiosk transactions improve the speed of customer transactions. Faster the transactions, lesser the chances of customers queuing up at the counter.
• Improved revenue generation With improved operational efficiency, the business can attend a greater number of customers in a given time, resulting in improved revenue generation. The chances of upselling various products and services via self-service kiosk is possible in almost every domain. The businesses can intelligently make use of this feature to gather more revenue.
• Reduced staffing expenses Self-service kiosk automation reduces the staffing needs of the business, be it hospitality, healthcare or retail. This helps to reduce the staffing expenses. The existing employees who are already engaged in monotonous tasks like billing, front-desk operations etc. can be redeployed in more customer-centric and productive roles.
• Remote monitoring facility An admin can remotely monitor your kiosk machine from different location and perform quick fixes, troubleshoots, and even deploy updates, as and when required. This means that, the technical staff needn’t have to visit the kiosk site every now and then. Yes, you can save significantly on on-site maintenance visits.
• Multi-language facility For the purpose of kiosk interaction, the users can choose from a list of languages displayed on the kiosk screen and select their desired one. I’ve already explained about the feature in the very beginning of the blog.
• Avoid human errors Automated kiosk transactions are devoid of human errors. This adds to the operational efficiency of the kiosk machine.
• Gain customer insights The businesses can retrieve real-time customer data like user preferences, preferred payment modes, order-related preferences etc. via self-service kiosks. The data helps businesses take data-driven, well-informed decisions.
• Improved security Renowned kiosk providers offer top-notch protection for customer data and transaction details. Secured user authentication, data protection technologies, and minimum human intervention avoid fraudulent attempts and other malpractices.
• Integration with existing systems The kiosk system can be easily integrated with existing CRM or POS of the service provider. Hence, you don’t have to discard your existing applications for the purpose of kiosk integration. Afterall, the transition becomes smooth.
• Scalability-friendly Businesses need not set up a new physical branch at another location as part of their expansion plans. The kiosk serves as an automated, highly capable mini-branch that can handle most of the physical branch functions.
• Customization Most self-service kiosk providers are always ready to offer customizations to meet the unique requirements of the service provider. The business requirements and aspirations may change with the type of industry. And therefore, the customization aspect really helps!
• Improved CX the 24/7 uninterrupted service, the interactive touchscreen experience, fast and efficient transactions, the accuracy and consistency in operations, self-service functionality – all these factors improve the overall customer experience.
• Sustainability Kiosk machines can support sustainability-friendly practices like paperless transactions which helps to reduce the carbon footprint.

The final takeaway

Of course, there is the investment aspect involved. However, the cost efficiency, the improved operational efficiency and the enhanced CX of kiosk automation would soon bring the desired ROI.

The immense versatility and customization benefits of the kiosks help businesses deploy these machines in a wide range of business environments and use-cases. The scalability benefit that they offer supports your future expansion plans. For example: You may start with a single unit and later scale the business by deploying multiple units.

Even your customer mindset and needs are changing with the evolving technology. They demand more control and privacy in the purchase process. A smooth and efficient transaction coupled with personalisation is the KEY to improved customer experience.

Yes, you have a lot to benefit from automating your operations via self-service kiosk deployment.

Panashi FZCO is a renowned and reputed self-service kiosk provider based in Dubai, UAE. And when it comes to kiosk installation, we provide comprehensive technical support and guidance to our clients in the middle-east and Africa.

With just a call or an email citing your requirements, our proactive team is always ready to help.