DON'T WAIT AROUND. QUEUING TO BECOME A THING OF THE PAST

Anyone who has had to wait in a queue will rejoice in the suggestions that queuing could be obsolete by the year 2021. Can you imagine? Just what would we do with all that free time?

The world is moving faster than ever before, but in a crazy twist of fate, speeding up the time-consuming, mundane parts of life – like waiting in line and making payments – can help us slow down a little more.

At the heart of this change is the growing role of smartphones. The rocket in our pocket that runs our lives is on the verge of changing it forever.

For most of the UK population the only link between smartphones and queuing is the ability to flick through Facebook or surf the internet whilst we wait around. However, a new dawn is coming.

From retail to music festivals, no sector is left untouched by the influence of mobile ordering and payments. Apps are enabling us to preorder tickets, scan clothing and pay for our groceries before we even reach the checkout.

It would be easy to think that it is the companies driving the change and the need to invest in the technology, but consumer demand has increased as their confidence in the workability and security goes up.

Another area that the smartphone is disrupting at its core, and one we know all about, is the hospitality sector. Mobile ordering is becoming the must-have of 2017 for restaurants, bars, cafes, and pubs.

According to recent reports, mobile order-ahead will be worth more than $38billion by 2020 and around 71% of customers have adopted mobile order-ahead apps in the US.

Swoopos, and our mobile ordering app Swoope, was launched in Birmingham in earlier this year and over 11,000 transactions have been put through the systems already. A big attraction to those downloading the Swoope App is the time it is saving them to order and collect their food and drink – saying goodbye to queuing.

What is most exciting is how adaptable this technology is. Trains, buses, and even airports are now adopting it, retail is investing heavily in it in order to bring customers back to the high street, and high-volume areas such as conference venues, sport stadiums, concert halls and theatres, and even hospitals are seeing what mobile ordering, and ultimately removing the long queues, can do for them.

Whilst it may seem like mobile ordering apps could be driving consumers away from venues, especially as delivery apps have gained more traction in the market, removing long wait times can actually drive consumers back.

Long queues can cause people to walk out – 86% of consumers avoid stores and outlets with long queues. Too many people waiting can mean customers can give up and leave. Consumers also have time to reconsider purchases and may second-guess their choices, leading to lost sales.

Removing this barrier can change the fortunes of any business, if the technology is applied and used correctly, and mobile ordering actually increases the amount spent by each consumer too.

Upselling and targeted marketing and deals also becomes easier, saving a business even more money by removing wasted promotional efforts. Data collection and analysis is made more simple too so understanding consumer wants and needs will put you ahead of the game.

All this from simply removing the need to wait in line. If the future really is one without a queue, then roll on 2021.