Top 6 Benefits of Using a Parking Validation Machine in Your Lot

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If you are frustrated with the challenges of parking lot design and time-consuming parking validation machine procedures, our blog could be the answer for you. Discover a wealth of knowledge that could transform your parking experience, streamline your business operations, and make parking more convenient for your customers. Let’s make parking hassle-free.

What Is a Parking Validation Machine?

Parking validation is a co-operative effort between businesses and local parking laws. It gives customers the ability to waive parking fees. I know that garages and parking lots offer validation to customers of nearby shops, restaurants, and entertainment venues. The goal of this system is to promote business by offering free parking, while the businesses return the favor by paying the city a small premium.

Where Parking Validation Machines Are Used

Validation is usually offered at city-owned or operated lots. The organization in charge of managing the lots will set prices for available parking and give local merchants the chance to offer their customers free parking as a reward for shopping with them. Some cities or towns charge merchants by the number of times the validation is used, while others impose a monthly fee for the service. Ideally, the merchant will see increased business for a nominal fee, and the city will still be getting paid for the use of its parking facilities.

Basic Functions and Capabilities of a Standard Parking Validation Machine

In many garages and lots, signs are posted stating that participating merchants should be visited for parking validation. Most garages offer a limited amount of free parking with validation, usually between one and four hours. Not all merchants offer it or advertise that they will validate, so customers should be sure to check with the business they are visiting before leaving.

Purchase Requirements for Parking Validation

Some merchants require the purchase of goods or services before agreeing to validate a parking ticket. In movie theaters and other entertainment businesses like arcades or skating rinks, typically the price of admission will serve as expense enough for this benefit. At restaurants, it is usually available after finishing a meal.

Self-Validation Machines in Malls and Shopping Centers

In some larger malls or shopping centers, self-validation machines are also available. These machines will be in various locations throughout the mall, and often do not require purchase to be used. Since a shopper must be in the mall to be using the machine, he or she is most likely a customer and therefore receives the benefit of free parking in the shopping center’s lots. Systems like this encourage visitor loyalty, as customers may feel relieved or grateful that they don’t have to pay for parking simply because they couldn’t find anything to purchase.

Steps to Ensure Proper Parking Validation

Drivers should be sure to bring their parking tickets with them to receive parking validation. Most businesses use either an automated machine to give free parking or will stamp the parking ticket as proof. If the local businesses use automated systems, customers can often just insert the ticket into the machine in the garage or lot, and the validation will be verified. Stamped or signed tickets will usually need to be checked by a parking attendant at the exit.

5 Key Features of a Highly Efficient Parking Validation Machine

1. Integration: Seamless Integration with Existing Parking Management Software and Hardware

A highly efficient parking validation machine should seamlessly integrate with existing parking management software and hardware to work with the current infrastructure. This helps to ensure that the machine can communicate and exchange data with other systems, such as payment gateways, barrier controls, and CCTV cameras, to streamline parking operations and improve efficiency.

2. User Experience: Enhancing Customer Experience with a User-Friendly Interface

When it comes to parking validation machines, user experience is paramount. A user-friendly interface guides customers through the validation process, improving their experience and reducing wait times. Clear instructions, intuitive design, and quick processing times all lead to a positive user experience that keeps customers satisfied and coming back.

3. Data Reporting: Analyzing Parking Patterns and Usage Trends

Parking validation machines with detailed reporting capabilities facilitate the analysis of parking patterns and usage trends. By tracking key metrics such as peak hours, utilization rates, and revenue generation, businesses can identify areas for improvement and optimize their parking operations. This data-driven approach helps in making informed decisions that maximize efficiency and profitability.

4. Scalability: Easy Expansion to Accommodate More Parking Spaces

A parking validation machine should be scalable, allowing businesses to easily accommodate more parking spaces as they grow without significant additional investment. This scalability ensures that the machine can adapt to changing needs and requirements, enabling businesses to expand their operations seamlessly and efficiently.

5. Security Features: Ensuring Data and Access Security

Security is a top priority for parking validation machines. Secure data storage, access controls, barrier controls, CCTV cameras, and alarms are essential features that prevent unauthorized access and activity. These security measures protect sensitive information, ensure compliance with data protection regulations, and maintain a safe environment for customers and employees.

Shift Your Parking Operation into Top Gear with Parqour

Parqour offers a comprehensive end-to-end management platform to increase revenue, reduce operational cost, and enhance transparency. Say goodbye to piecing together different vendors and integrations. No need to spend huge capital on bulky hardware. Control all operations from one platform. Contactless parking and online payment methods make the parking experience easier for your customers too.

The end result is:

Higher utilization and lower operating costs

99,6% license plate recognition rate

Online QR payment & 3rd party APIs (integrated with Parkmobile, SpotHero, Honk, PayByPhone)

Data analytics (real-time occupancy, revenue, utilization, parking trends)

Validation and permit management (free flow access for approved drivers)

24/7 remote control system

Hardware with zero upfront costs

Zoning and violation detection (control POD, VIP and nested zones), and much more!

Book a free demo to learn about how Parqour can shift your parking operation into top gear!

6 Benefits of Using a Parking Validation Machine

1. When a business validates your parking, they bears a portion or the full parking fee

As parking validations are usually time-limited (1-hour free parking with validation, for example), it isn’t a huge expense to the business. Besides, they attract more sales by incentivizing visitors who make a purchase.

2. Enhanced Parker Experience

One of the primary benefits of parking validation software is the convenience it offers to parkers. Being able to provide parkers with a digital validation solution in the palm of their hands is a much better experience than requiring them to obtain a physical pass or decal, or enter a coupon code into a meter or pay station. Parking validation software makes the overall experience more seamless and enjoyable.

3. Efficient Parking Management

Parking validation software simplifies the parking management process by automating validations and the tracking of parking transactions. Not only does this reduce manual errors, it also allows parking managers to focus their resources on higher-level initiatives and providing excellent service.

4. Increased Footfall and Revenue

By offering parking validation, businesses attract more customers who might otherwise choose competitors without such benefits. This can lead to increased footfall, higher customer retention, and ultimately, improved revenue.

5. Marketing and Customer Loyalty Opportunities

Parking validation software can be used as a marketing tool to engage customers and build loyalty. By offering targeted promotions or discounts through the validation process, businesses can incentivize repeat visits and build stronger relationships with their customer base.

6. Data-Driven Insights

Parking validation software generates valuable data on parker behavior, including parking duration, frequency, and preferences. This data can be analyzed to gain insights into parker patterns and make informed decisions regarding pricing, operational improvements, and marketing strategies.

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What Is Parking Validation

How Does a Parking Validation Machine Work?

There are two main types of validation solutions that parking facility operators can choose from — virtual and physical — and which they choose will depend on both the equipment they have installed and the type of service they’d like to offer to their tenants and customers.

Cloud-Based Virtual Parking Validations

Virtual validations are completed with an active connection to the cloud or a parking solution’s central management system. In a non-gated environment, it might mean using a tablet at a medical office reception desk to enter your license plate number so enforcement officers know not to ticket your vehicle.

Physical Parking Validations

Physical validations, on the other hand, are those that are produced either using physical equipment or in advance. In advance, physical copies can be printed in large batches to distribute at trade shows, or a movie theatre might choose to email you a barcode to scan to gain free entry (or discounted exit) at the show. In a more “on the spot” scenario, this can entail a grocery store cashier using a small thermal validator to apply a discount to an entry ticket that was obtained at the entry terminal of a gated parking lot.

Regardless of the type, businesses of all kinds offer validations as a way to promote themselves to prospective customers or increase loyalty among existing customers, all with a view to increasing revenues. Some of the common discount types that can be offered in both online and offline modes include

Dollar-value discount: a fixed-rate discount on the total parking fee

A variable discount that can be configured to offer up to a 100% discount for no-charge parking

Time discount

A fixed-rate discount that offers, for example, free parking up to a configurable limit beyond which patrons are expected to pay at the advertised rate

So, how do they work?

Virtual Validations

Virtual validations” are commonly offered in multi-tenant or multi-residential environments where each occupant is allotted a certain number of parking instances on a recurring basis.

For instance, a resident of a condo building may be offered five free guest parking sessions per month as a benefit that comes with living in the building. Upon arrival, guests would enter their vehicle information on a tablet in the reception area, registering the parking session as valid for enforcement officers and deducts one parking session from the resident’s allotment.

Professional Office Parking Validation Systems

The technology works on the same principles for professional offices, such as clinics, where a similar registration system might be located at a reception desk if it’s stipulated in the tenancy agreement. These systems are fully configurable to offer a range of discount types and generally come with a suite of reporting capabilities that allow a parking operator to charge lost revenues back to the relevant tenants as needed or make other informed business decisions. Reporting usually include the most common output types: .xlsx, .csv, and .pdf.

Integration with Cloud-Based PARCS Technologies

These solutions are also often designed to integrate with a variety of other cloud-based PARCS technologies, whether pay-by-license-plate parking meters in non-gated lots, automatic license plate recognition software controlling access in gated solutions, and handheld or vehicle-mounted enforcement software.

Smartphone-Based Mobile Validation Solutions

Some technologies even turn smartphones into mobile validation machines, using an app to scan an entry ticket and select a validation option, then uploading that validation to the cloud to be drawn from at a pay station or exit terminal.

Physical Validations

Physical validations leverage PARCS equipment’s network connections as much as virtual validations do to apply discounts to parking in real time. Instead, the major difference lies in whether the discount is created in advance or “on the fly.” These are also commonly referred to as coupons or chaser tickets.

Barcode and QR Code Validation Methods

These validations typically take the form of barcodes or QR codes programmed with all the same validation types as their virtual counterparts — that is, fixed-rate discounts, percentage discounts, etc. They can also be offered to customers in a wide variety of ways, such as a chaser ticket to accompany a pulled entry ticket in a pay station or exit terminal, printed cards to be distributed at networking events to be scanned at an external barcode reader, or a QR code emailed to customers and displayed on their smartphone.

Expiration and Reporting Capabilities of Physical Validations

Also like online validations, these come with a full range of reporting capabilities and can be programmed to expire on a set date (e.g., hotel or permitted parking with in-and-out privileges) or after so many uses (e.g., a store’s promotional offer).

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8 Best Parking Validation Software Providers

1. Parqour

Parqour is a software platform that simplifies parking operations and improves the customer experience. It offers real-time data, automated plate recognition, and contactless payments. Parqour operates in more than 22 countries, 300+ parking areas, and has detected over 100M+ vehicles. It offers a comprehensive end-to-end management platform to increase revenue, reduce operational costs, and enhance transparency.

Parqour offers services such as:

Online QR payment & 3rd party APIs (integrated with Parkmobile, SpotHero, Honk, PayByPhone)

Data analytics (real-time occupancy, revenue, utilization, parking trends)

Validation and permit management (free flow access for approved drivers)

24/7 remote control system, and much more.

2. Frogparking ™

FrogValidate, our Parking Validation Software, stands as an exceptional addition to your parking management suite. Crafted to enhance operational efficiency, as well as potential to attract more customers to your parking facility, FrogValidate prioritizes the end-user experience. The software is customizable, offering many options such as mobile applications, unique QR codes, and manual validation codes.

3. ParkingBOXX

The Validation BOXX by ParkingBOXX allows for multiple available validation types to be pre-programmed as buttons on the screen. Selecting the parking validation, then scanning the ticket takes seconds. The discount is applied immediately, making the process seamless for the customer.

4. HUB Parking's J4M Merchant

HUB Parking's J4M Merchant is a mobile validation solution for quick and accurate validation. As a parking operator or a local merchant, you can reward your customers’ purchases easily and quickly with the J4M Merchant app, turning your smartphone or tablet into a powerful validation unit.

5. OperationsCommander

ViolationAdmin is a ticket management system and parking compliance tool by OperationsCommander, complementing parking management. This violation mobile enforcement software includes innovative mobile technology exposing violation mapping, enforcement management, and analytical insight.

6. IPParking

In addition to the advanced ParkBase parking management system, IPParking presents a validation app for Android and IOS called The ParkBase Validation App. The app allows you to directly grant discounts and convert visitors to a monthly subscription, all from your smartphone.

7. DESIGNA

DESIGNA offers software functions that prove themselves daily in various business areas such as airports, shopping centers, operating companies, cities, universities, hospitals, and hotels. These software functions significantly improve the service portfolio of a car park operator by providing software functions that cater to specific business needs.

8. Amano

Amano offers a variety of flexible validation solutions with their Pro+ and OPUSeries devices and Pro+ Parking Management Software. Apply time, fee, percentage discounts, or rate switches directly to a patron’s entry ticket or issue validation coupons with the ability to specify different store accounts, values, descriptions, quantities, and number of uses.

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6 Factors to Consider When Choosing a Parking Validation Solution

1. Define Your Objectives

Consider your main goal when looking for a parking solution. Determine if your aim is to generate revenue, upgrade outdated equipment, or incorporate the latest technology into your parking operations.

2. Assess Your Budget

Understand the costs associated with the parking solution you require. Factors such as the type of parking (gated or open-access), the number of entry and exit lanes, and the pricing model (flat rate or hourly) will influence your budget.

3. Evaluate Your Timeline

Take into account the timeline for installing the parking solution. Some products may require pre-ordering, while others can be swiftly installed. Choose a provider that aligns with your schedule and objectives.

4. Analyze Your Customer Base

Consider the different types of parkers who will be using your parking facility. For tenants and employees, ensure the solution can manage access control, while for transient parkers like customers, opt for a system that facilitates payments.

5. Review Your Payment System

Select a parking solution that meets your revenue needs and offers various payment options. Whether charging by the hour, day, or a flat rate, consider if your facility will offer validated parking or require a cashier or automated payment system.

6. Automation and Technology

Implement advanced parking equipment to streamline operations and reduce human error. By leveraging sophisticated reporting tools, you can enhance operational efficiency and analyze performance metrics.

Simplify Your Parking Operations and Improve Your Customer Experience with Parqour －Book A Free Demo Today

Parqour is a game-changer for parking operations. It offers a wide range of features and functionalities designed to simplify parking management, boost revenue, and enhance the overall customer experience. One of the standout features of Parqour is its real-time data capabilities, which allow parking operators to access critical information at their fingertips.

Automated Plate Recognition for Enhanced Efficiency

Another key feature of Parqour is its automated plate recognition technology, which significantly streamlines the vehicle entry and exit process. By automating plate recognition, Parqour reduces the need for manual interventions, resulting in improved operational efficiency and reduced labor costs.

Convenient Contactless Payments

Parqour also supports contactless payments, providing customers with a convenient and hassle-free parking experience. By offering online payment methods, Parqour makes it easy for customers to pay for parking without the need for physical interaction, enhancing customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Centralized Parking Operations Management

One of the key benefits of Parqour is its ability to centralize all parking operations in a single platform. Instead of piecing together different vendors and integrations, Parqour offers an end-to-end management platform that allows operators to control all parking operations from one centralized location. This streamlined approach reduces complexity and enhances operational efficiency.

Comprehensive Features and Third-Party Integration

Parqour offers a range of other features, including data analytics, validation and permit management, 24/7 remote control capabilities, zoning and violation detection, and much more. With a 99.6% license plate recognition rate and seamless integration with third-party APIs such as Parkmobile, SpotHero, Honk, and PayByPhone, Parqour is a comprehensive solution for parking operators looking to elevate their operations to the next level.

Comprehensive Features and Third-Party Integration

If you're looking to drive higher utilization, reduce operating costs, and enhance the overall parking experience for your customers, Parqour is the platform for you. Book a free demo today to learn more about how Parqour can help you optimize your parking operations and take your business to new heights.