Kiosk, QR code or website: three ways to check customers in
Updated
A counter tablet kiosk works best for walk-ins who are standing at your counter, a QR code sign or texted link lets customers check in on their own phone without waiting for the tablet, and a website or Google Business Profile button lets them start before they arrive. Most shops do best offering all three, because each one covers a gap the others leave.
There are three places a customer can fill in your check-in: a tablet you own at the counter, their own phone, or your website before they come in. None of them is right for every shop or every customer. This guide compares them honestly and covers the setup details that decide whether each one actually gets used. For what the check-in itself should collect, see the body shop check-in guide.
When a counter tablet kiosk fits
A kiosk is a tablet at your counter that runs only your check-in. The customer walks up, taps start, and fills in their details while your staff keep working.
- Good for: walk-in drop-offs, customers who don't want to use their own phone, and anyone whose phone is dead or out of data.
- Good for staff: someone can glance over and help. The customer is right there if a question comes up.
- Weak spots: one tablet serves one customer at a time, so a Monday-morning line still forms. You have to buy, mount, charge and clean it. It is only useful during business hours.
- Photos: a counter tablet is awkward for damage photos, since the car is outside. Take them at the walk-around, or, for an estimate request, text the customer the estimate link so they can add photos from the lot.
When a QR code or texted link fits
A QR code sign on the counter, the front door or the drop box opens the same check-in on the customer's own phone. A texted link does the same for someone who called ahead.
- Good for: busy mornings, since any number of customers can check in at once. Also after-hours drop-offs and damage photos, since the phone camera can walk around the car.
- Good for customers: they use a device they already know, with their own text size and accessibility settings.
- Weak spots: some customers can't or won't scan a QR code, and a small phone screen is harder for long agreements. Phones need signal or Wi-Fi.
- Cost: a printed sign and a texted link cost you next to nothing.
Website and Google Business Profile check-in
A "Check in online" button on your website or a link on your Google Business Profile lets customers start before they ever reach the shop. Google lets businesses add links that help customers book an appointment (Google), and a check-in or estimate request link fits there.
- Good for: estimate requests with photos, tow-ins where the customer is somewhere else, and drop-offs where the customer wants to skip the counter.
- Good for you: the paperwork is done before the car arrives, so the counter visit is a key handoff and a walk-around.
- Weak spots: people who find you on your website are not yet standing in your shop, so some start and never come in. You need a website that lets you add a script or a link.
Kiosk vs QR code vs website: side by side
| Factor | Counter kiosk | QR code or texted link | Website or Google profile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where the customer is | At your counter | At the shop, or anywhere you text them | Anywhere, before they arrive |
| Hardware | A tablet, a stand or mount, power | A printed sign | None beyond your website |
| Customers at once | One per tablet | As many as show up | As many as show up |
| Staffing | Staff nearby can help | Little help needed; some customers need a hand scanning | None at the moment of check-in |
| After hours | No, unless the lobby is open | Yes, from a sign on the door or drop box | Yes |
| Damage photos | Awkward; the car is outside | Easy with the phone camera | Easy from a phone |
| Accessibility | Fixed height and screen; staff can assist | The customer's own device and settings | The customer's own device and settings |
| Main weak spot | One at a time; upkeep | Not everyone scans QR codes | Some people start and don't show up |
Using all three together
The options don't compete. A typical setup: a website button and Google profile link for people who plan ahead, a QR sign next to the tablet so the line splits in two when the tablet is busy, and the tablet for anyone who prefers it. If all three feed one list on your side, it doesn't matter where a customer started. If the customer is not at the shop at all, as with a tow-in, a texted link is the only one that works (tow-in intake guide).
Practical setup tips
Mounting the tablet
- Use a stand that locks the tablet to the counter. A loose tablet walks.
- Put it where customers naturally stop, with room to set down keys and a coffee.
- Keep it plugged in. A kiosk that dies at 2 p.m. trains customers to skip it.
- For height, the 2010 ADA Standards set reach ranges for operable parts: an unobstructed forward reach of 48 inches maximum and 15 inches minimum above the floor (ADA Standards § 308). Keeping the screen within that range is a sensible target, and a tilting stand helps seated customers too.
This is general information, not legal advice. Have your attorney review your forms, and ask them whether accessibility rules apply to your counter setup.
Locking the tablet to the check-in
Keep customers from wandering into other apps. On an iPad, Guided Access restricts the device to a single app; you turn it on under Settings, Accessibility, Guided Access, and start it with a triple-click of the top button (or the Home button on older iPads) (Apple). On Android, app pinning keeps one app's screen in view until it is unpinned, and you can require your PIN to unpin it (Google).
Wi-Fi
- Test the signal at the exact spot the tablet will sit, and in the lot where customers scan the QR code.
- Put the kiosk and customer phones on a guest network, separate from the computers that run your shop.
- If the lot has weak cell signal, post the guest Wi-Fi name and password on the QR sign.
Cleaning
A counter tablet gets touched by greasy hands all day. Apple says a 70 percent isopropyl alcohol wipe, a 75 percent ethyl alcohol wipe or Clorox Disinfecting Wipes can be used on the hard, nonporous surfaces of its products, and warns against bleach, hydrogen peroxide, spraying cleaner directly on the device and getting moisture in any opening (Apple). For other brands, check the maker's cleaning guidance. Wipe it at opening and after lunch, and keep a pack of wipes next to it.
QR signs
- Print the code large enough to scan from a step back, and say what it does: "Check in on your phone."
- Print the short web address under the code for customers whose camera won't scan it.
- Put a sign at the counter, on the front door and at the after-hours drop box.
Helping customers who need it
Some customers won't want any screen. Have a staff member ready to walk them through it on the tablet, or fill in the details for them while they watch. Offer a language choice up front for customers who are more comfortable in Spanish (Spanish-language check-in).
How IntakeBay handles all three
IntakeBay runs in a web browser, so there is no app to install on the tablet or on customers' phones. You pair any tablet as a kiosk from your account. It resets to the welcome screen between customers, asks "Still there?" when a customer walks away mid check-in and then clears their details, and staff sign in to the shop side with their own account, which locks again when they step away.
You print the QR sign from the app and can text the same link. One line of code adds a floating "Check in online" button or an inline form to your website, and direct links open straight to an estimate request, a drop-off or a tow-in. Every check-in lands in the same live inbox, wherever it started. Pricing is one monthly price for the whole company, covering every kiosk, location and user.
Questions
Which tablet should I use for a check-in kiosk?
Any recent tablet with an up-to-date web browser works for a browser-based check-in. Pick one with a screen large enough to read an agreement comfortably, and buy a locking stand for it. A spare charger at the counter matters more than the brand.
What about customers who can't scan a QR code?
Print the web address under the code so they can type it, keep the counter tablet available, or have staff text them the link. Some customers will simply prefer a person, so make sure someone can help.
Will a check-in button slow down my website?
It shouldn't if the script loads asynchronously and the form loads only when needed. IntakeBay's embed script is a few kilobytes, loads with the async attribute and loads the form lazily.
Do I need a kiosk at all if customers can use their phones?
Not necessarily. A QR sign and a website link cover many shops. A tablet helps if a lot of your customers are walk-ins who would rather not use their own phone.
Can customers check in after hours?
Yes, from their phone. A QR sign on the door or the key drop box, or the link on your website, works whenever the shop is closed.
Sources
- Manage your local business links, Google Business Profile Help (accessed )
- 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design, § 308 Reach Ranges, U.S. Access Board (accessed )
- Use Guided Access on iPhone or iPad, Apple (accessed )
- Pin & unpin screens, Google (Android Help) (accessed )
- How to clean your Apple products, Apple (accessed )