How to Improve Customers' Waiting Experience with TV

Between stoplights and airports, grocery store queues and bus stops, you spend many hours of your life just waiting. We all wait a lot, but that doesn't mean we like it. In fact, many people have a vocal contempt for waiting.

If your business includes a lobby or waiting area, you need to ensure that your customers can enjoy the time they spend waiting. Installing TVs in your waiting area can help. This blog discusses what makes waiting so disliked, how TVs help and how you can ensure that your business uses TVs correctly.

Understand What Makes Waiting Worse

Have you ever considered why you hate waiting? Below, we list several factors closely tied to this almost universal dread.

• Waiting feels like wasted time. Time seems to move slower when we don't have something to capture our attention. Waiting becomes especially frustrating for people who feel short on time already.
• We don't like waiting alone. Humans are social creatures, so we perceive time passing faster if we have someone to visit with. Without a friend, our wait drags out.
• Some waits feel uncertain, unexplained or unfair. People become annoyed when they don't know how long they'll have to wait or why their service is delayed. They also dislike it when they see others who arrived after them receive service before them.
• Waiting can increase anxiety. Waiting often takes place before appointments that can cause anxiety, such as a doctor's visit or a job interview. If we have to wait when we're already anxious, our anxiety has time to grow, and the wait feels even worse.

Recognise How TVs Improve Waiting Times

You probably can't eliminate waiting entirely from your business. However, you can minimise the factors that make waiting frustrating by offering patrons a distraction, such as TV. Many customers appreciate TVs in lobby areas because:

• They entertain or educate, which makes customers feel they didn't waste time waiting.
• They give patrons something to focus on while they wait, which helps the time seem to pass faster.
• They reduce anxiety in dental offices specifically, because they mask background noises such as drilling, according to a 2013 study.

Lobby and waiting room TVs also benefit the businesses that install them. They provide an inexpensive way to satisfy patrons, and they require minimal maintenance. You can even hire a TV installation service to install the right size antenna for your needs and mount your screens on the wall. An installation company can even put TVs in odd places, such as in ceilings over dental chairs.

Optimise Your Waiting Area TV Setup

When you install TVs in your waiting area or lobby, use the tips below to optimise them for your customers.

1. Follow copyright laws.

You cannot show videos or streamed content in your public, commercial space because doing so violates the terms of use. Owning a DVD or another version of the content only gives you permission to show it to a small group in a private space. Comply with copyright laws to avoid legal issues.

2. Match content to your service.

Keep waiting area TVs tuned to a channel with content appropriate for a general audience. Children's stations are appropriate for offices frequented by families, such as auto repair shops or hair salons. News channels may be optimal for business offices or hotel lobbies.

3. Give patrons an alternative to TV.

Not everyone in your waiting area will want to watch TV, so make it easy for guests to do something else if they desire. Give customers an alternative to TV, such as magazines or books. Arrange your seating so some people can face away from the screen. And most importantly, keep the volume at a reasonable level.

Follow these basic rules to ensure that your waiting area TVs enhance your patrons' experience. Consult a TV installation company for help setting up your system.