A pet clinic starts getting a line at the counter every evening after office hours. The owner searches for “queue ticket machine price” and finds ticket printers, touch-screen kiosks, calling displays, thermal paper rolls and wireless pagers. Each has its own price, installation and upkeep.

The question to ask before buying is: does your business really need a machine? For most clinics, service centres and service shops, the answer is no, because you already have the three things you need:

  1. A QR code, printed and stuck on the door or the counter.
  2. The customer’s phone, which nearly everyone already carries.
  3. A screen or tablet you already own, as the calling display.

This article explains how each part works, compares it with a classic ticket machine, and says plainly when hardware is still worth it.

What a ticket machine does

A classic queue system has a few main parts:

  • A ticket machine or kiosk: the customer presses a button or taps a screen and gets a paper ticket.
  • A printer and paper: the number is printed on thermal paper.
  • A calling display: shows the number being called, often with an announcement.
  • A staff button or console: to call the next number.

It works well, with one clear limit: the customer has to stay close to hear or see the number. A customer who waits in the car or pops out for an errand may miss the turn.

How a QR code queue works

  1. 1Scan the QRAt the door or the counter, with the phone camera
  2. 2Get a numberPick a service and see the number on your own phone
  3. 3Wait anywhereThe ticket page updates by itself
  4. 4Get an alertIn LINE when your turn is near
  5. 5Your turnThe number shows on the calling display, called by staff from a phone

1. A QR on the door instead of a kiosk

You print a QR code and put it on the door or the counter. The customer scans it with the phone camera, picks a service and gets a number, say A013, on the phone screen. It takes a few seconds.

The cost of this part is one sheet of paper. If the sign gets worn, print another. There’s no paper roll to refill and no print head to repair.

[Screenshot: a “Scan for a queue ticket” QR sign on a pet clinic door]

2. The customer’s phone instead of a paper ticket

After scanning, the customer sees a ticket page with the number, how many are ahead and the estimated wait. The page keeps itself up to date, so the customer can wait in the car, take a walk, or take the pet somewhere quiet.

When the turn is close, a LINE alert arrives. It does the job of a wireless pager, with no devices to hand out and collect again.

The ticket page on the phone replaces the paper ticket.

3. Any screen instead of a dedicated calling display

A calling display is really just a screen showing numbers. A tablet, a computer or any other screen that can open a website can open the calling page full screen straight away, showing the numbers being called and the next ones, with a chime for each new number.

If the screen in your waiting room is an older model that can’t open websites, a tablet or a computer you already have can do the job.

[Screenshot: the calling display on a screen in the waiting room, with large numbers readable from across the room]

4. A staff phone instead of a calling console

The person at the counter opens the queue screen on a phone or tablet: a few big buttons for call next, recall, skip, served, and a new ticket for a customer who didn’t scan.

A straight comparison

Ticket machine QR code queue
Upfront cost Machine, display, installation A printed QR and a screen you have
Consumables Thermal paper None
Customer must stay close Yes No, a LINE alert comes when the turn is near
Seeing the wait On the screen in the shop On the customer’s phone
Customer without a phone Works Staff add a ticket
Customer data Usually none Customers who join through LINE can become your customers
Moving or opening a branch Move or buy more machines Print a new QR

When hardware still makes sense

A phone-based queue doesn’t suit every place. There are cases where a ticket machine is still a good choice:

  • Most customers don’t use smartphones, such as a hospital with many elderly patients. There, a paper ticket is still the easiest thing for many people.
  • Very large crowds at once, such as a big bank branch or an office with hundreds of people a day. A kiosk at the entrance sorts people by service quickly.
  • Poor mobile signal inside the building, so pages won’t load.
  • Organisation rules that require a paper record.

For clinics, service centres, pet clinics and small to mid-sized service businesses, a front desk that adds tickets for customers without a phone is enough.

Before buying a machine, ask yourself five questions

  1. On your busiest day, how many people wait at the same time?
  2. Do most of your customers use LINE?
  3. Do customers want to wait inside, or step out and do something else first?
  4. Do you already have a screen or tablet you can use?
  5. Who will look after the machine, refill the paper and get it repaired?

If most of your answers are “customers use LINE” and “we have a screen”, start with a QR. If you find later that you really need hardware, you can still buy it then.

Customers who wait can become regulars

A ticket machine gives a number and that’s it. The customer is served and leaves, and you never learn who came. A queue linked to LINE and your customer list does more. Customers who join through LINE are saved as your customers, see your stamp card on the ticket page, and can book ahead next time.

For clinics and service centres with both appointments and walk-ins, a system that puts booking and the queue together helps most. More in book first, then get a queue ticket on arrival.

The Tellfox queue

The Tellfox online queue is an add-on to booking in LINE. It is fully digital and runs on the phones and screens you already have:

  • A QR on the door: customers scan it and get a number, with no name needed.
  • A live ticket page that opens in LINE or any browser, with nothing to install.
  • At most two LINE alerts per ticket: almost your turn, and you’re called.
  • A calling display on any screen or tablet, opened with your business’s private link, with a chime.
  • Staff call numbers from a phone and add tickets for customers without one.
  • Booked customers tap “I’m here” on the booking page (the link in the confirmation) and join at the booked time.

The queue is an add-on per branch on the Starter, Business and Pro plans. You add it yourself in your account and pick a size by the queue tickets a month, with the queue’s LINE messages included. See the queue prices, or read the overview in the online queue system guide.

Frequently asked questions

Does a queue system need a ticket machine?

No. A QR code queue uses a QR on the door, which customers scan to get a number on the phone, and a screen you already have as the calling display. Ticket machines suit places where most customers don’t use smartphones, or where very many people wait at once.

Can any screen be the calling display?

Any screen or tablet that can open a website can. Open the calling page full screen.

What about older customers who don’t use phones?

Staff add a ticket from the staff screen and tell the customer the number, which then shows on the calling display in the waiting room as usual.

Is a QR code queue safe if someone photographs the QR?

The door QR only creates a new ticket. It doesn’t open anyone else’s details. Each ticket page has its own private link.

Try it first

Send a photo of your price list to Tellfox in LINE and see your booking page in seconds. Try it in LINE