frederic Posted September 22, 2010 Report Share Posted September 22, 2010 Hi, I would like to create a kiosk from scratch using different parts (printer, software, pc, screen, etc...). I want it to print post cards. Coud someone help me get the name of a company or an engineer that would design the best combination and create a prototype ?? thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YEP Posted September 22, 2010 Report Share Posted September 22, 2010 you would get one of the big players with custom designed kiosk PC's and the be "tied" to their software and with a premium cost I bet just search "photo card kiosk" in google and you'll get a bundle of options Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DakisPat Posted October 4, 2010 Report Share Posted October 4, 2010 Fred, I would recommend you try out the Dakis software for kiosk / online. (As per my screen name I am related to the company.) It's a hardware independent software that also allows you to input your own templates for greeting cards, collages, photo gifts and any other photo products you can imagine. An online sample is available at: www.ipiphotodemo.com/gift_catalog.html Trying to hire engineers to program your own software is an incredibly costly and risky proposition, as even after dumping thousands upon thousands of dollars you may be left with an incomplete product or a product that doesn't necessarily meet your needs. I'll gladly give you more details as far as setup, pricing and a demo of the software if you contact me with a private message. Best Regards, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snpysnps Posted October 4, 2010 Report Share Posted October 4, 2010 A pal has recently put the Dakis online software in. Very impressive. If the kiosk software is the similar I am sure this would be a much better solution than starting from scratch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YEP Posted October 6, 2010 Report Share Posted October 6, 2010 Ehm ... to put things into perspective if Postcards is the only thing you're gonna do then you really have to make quite a few of them to make it worth while to get a KIOSK PC for that purpose alone. Even if you have a kiosk for this purpose and all kinds of templates/etc for easy user design etc. "slow" users will pull the air out of this buisnesscase. But you don't supply a lot of facts for us to dismantle so it's hard to give any solid advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DakisPat Posted October 7, 2010 Report Share Posted October 7, 2010 The postcards bit really depends where you are in the world. The holiday greeting cards, graduation cards, Halloween cards, Baptism, Bar'Mitzvah cards, wedding invites, wedding save the date, are very popular in some locals. If you are thinking of standard 'wish you were here' photo post cards, you haven't wrapped your head around the possibilities. You can use this type of kiosk to let users setup cards that they'll print out hundreds of times. We even have a customer that uses the kiosk and Photo Factory to offer real estate open house invites, real estate lawn signs, real estate agent x-mas cards, etc. etc. Doesn't take many of these orders to make it worthwhile. - Cost of the PC, which can range from $300USD to $1200USD depending on what type of look you want to project. The lower end being a standard desktop PC with 19'' screen and the higher end being a touchscreen PC with integrated card readers and 22'' touch screen. - The software is a monthly cost which can vary by group affiliation and where you are in the world. We're no longer talking about an initial investment of thousands of dollars tied in with a several hundred dollar yearly service fee per kiosk like it was years ago. Also keep in mind the kiosk can also be used for prints, cards, collages, books, photo gifts, etc. Take a look at what some retailers are offering up with the Photo Factory online (and in-store since they use kiosks as well) www.bobsphoto.com www.fullertonphoto.com www.fotofast.com.au Ehm ... to put things into perspective if Postcards is the only thing you're gonna do then you really have to make quite a few of them to make it worth while to get a KIOSK PC for that purpose alone. Even if you have a kiosk for this purpose and all kinds of templates/etc for easy user design etc. "slow" users will pull the air out of this buisnesscase. But you don't supply a lot of facts for us to dismantle so it's hard to give any solid advice. We should be looking for new marketing opportunities, new products to sell and new markets to sell to, not just dismantling ideas, that doesn't get anyone where they want to be, it just mires you in the same hole you are stuck in. Also slow users are a fact of life in specialty and non-specialty shops. Taking the time to educate slow users is what makes a customer for life. If they're slow on the kiosk, what are the odds they ditch you for snapfish? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YEP Posted October 9, 2010 Report Share Posted October 9, 2010 @ DakisPat ... I'm sure you know your "sales-pitch" I'm interested in the "business-case" that Federic is trying to make. His the one that has to bring the message accross to his customers. I'll be the first to hope for the best, but "just" wanting to do postcards isn't gonna cut it. I think it very important for the shopowner to know why he/she is making a certain choice. Don't get me wrong I think that Dakis has a lot of interesting products to offer (as I understand this mainly in the englishspeaking markets). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DakisPat Posted October 12, 2010 Report Share Posted October 12, 2010 Fair enough, I'm trying to give him ideas to expand his business case. Either way I don't think he's answered yet so it's just us arguing about it! (as I understand this mainly in the englishspeaking markets). Currently available in English and French, as we're based out of Montréal, Québec, Canada. We do have a handful of customers using it in a different language simply customizing it with the print format names and photo factory products. I know one of our Scandinavian customers found us through www.minilabhelp.com: Link to their website (If you do read Finnish, I'd recommend using Google Chrome as it will offer to translate it for you) www.fotolinda.net Direct Link to their online application in hybrid English and Finnish: http://s161429693.onlinehome.us/fotolinda/gift_catalog.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
noritsuvet Posted October 13, 2010 Report Share Posted October 13, 2010 Why on earth would you want to start from scratch when there are so many good solutions out there. Really, if you want to make money in this industry you shouldn't be hanging around trying to re-create the wheel - too many have gone before us and made the mistakes :-/ BTW. Sales pitch or not, that Dakis stuff is good and nice to see some of the Kex shops using it now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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