How to Design Kiosk Interfaces That Customers Actually Use

Simplicity Wins

A kiosk is not a website, it’s a purpose-built tool. The average user spends less than 40 seconds per interaction. Your layout must make that time count.

Best Practice 1: Limit Choices
Present 3–5 primary options max. Too many buttons cause confusion and hesitation.

Best Practice 2: Big, Clear Targets
Touch accuracy degrades with finger size variance. Use large buttons—at least 10 mm touch zones with generous spacing.

Best Practice 3: Visual Feedback
Each tap should give instant confirmation: color change, animation, or vibration. This prevents double-taps and improves satisfaction.

Best Practice 4: Logical Flow
Guide users step-by-step. Never send them backward unexpectedly. End every process with a clear confirmation screen (“Order placed”, “Check-in complete”).

Typography & Contrast

• Use high-contrast color schemes for legibility.

• Minimum text size: 24 px for body, 36+ for headers.

• Avoid pure white backgrounds—softer off-whites reduce glare on ELO glass surfaces.

Accessibility

Design for everyone.

• Use icons plus labels.

• Place key actions within central reach zone (20–40 inches from table height).

• Support multiple languages if your user base is diverse.

Real Example

A café deployed ELO 15.6” I-Series kiosks. Their first UI used small fonts and nested categories—resulting in 40% drop-off before checkout. After redesigning with larger buttons, high contrast, and a 3-step flow, order completions jumped to 92%.

Final Thoughts

Hardware gets attention; design drives conversion.
A well-designed ELO kiosk blends intuitive flow, accessibility, and visual clarity—turning a simple display into a seamless customer experience.

Tags: Kiosk Design, UX for Touchscreens, ELO I-Series, User Experience
Author: Emilio Bourdages
Blog: Learn