Is a longer wait always a bad thing? Can automated queuing technology improve the pharmacy experience? How far will your customers go to reduce their wait times? What’s the top frustration for grocery store customers? Are your dressing room queues turning customers away?

Here are five recent research findings about queue management you can use to inform your strategies.

1. Sometimes, longer wait times result in more sales.

It is commonly accepted that long waiting lines are bad for both consumers and brands. However, new research shows that longer waits are not necessarily the end of the road for encouraging purchases. In fact, it was found that in certain situations, the longer a customer invests their time in waiting in line, the more they ended up buying in the end. The driving force behind this phenomena is mental accounting whereby researchers found, “a larger purchase allows people to offset the fixed cost of the long wait.”

Purchasing more after a long wait can be one way for the brain to justify the amount of time spent waiting to prevent it from seeming like a complete waste.

2. Long wait times drive pharmacy customers to competitors.

Americans are filling prescriptions more than ever before. Wait times play an important role in deciding which pharmacy to go to: recent research found 21% of pharmacy-goers will skip a pharmacy for a different one if the line is long, even if it means paying more elsewhere. Literature on the subject suggests that pharmacies can apply queuing technology to improve customer flow and make for a more pleasant, stress-free pharmacy experience.

3. Customers are willing to adopt new technology for shorter lines.

A staggering 87% of customers reported they would adopt queuing technology if it reduced the amount of time they spent waiting in line. More than that, 67% shared they would be willing to download an app or use a virtual queue to reserve their place in line.

This is great news for companies considering virtual queuing solutions as it points to the fact that virtual queuing has graduated beyond just the early adopters.

4. Long lines are the top frustration in grocery stores.

For anyone in food retail wondering whether investing in queue technology is worthwhile, the answer is probably yes. A study found that waiting in line at checkout was the top frustration of 70% of grocery shoppers. More than that, 64% of customers disclosed they would prefer to just walk out the door than spend a long time waiting in line.

5. The majority of consumers will abandon a dressing room and store altogether if not given prompt attention.

Customer service can be a make or break: a recent TimeTrade study found that 85% of consumers would consider abandoning a dressing room and leaving the store altogether if an associate was not promptly available to help.

With this research at your fingertips, how will you take the insights and apply them to your queue management strategy?