Self Service Machines/apps

PTH2009

Anyone think self service machines will become a disadvantage in society in terms of social interaction

People (including myself) with social difficulties will sometimes struggle in person with staff at the counter (sum with very poor understanding of English) while trying to order specific items . Definitely you rather go to a machine, order what you want and wait for a number (no awkward chit chat etc)

Already you see the new generation stuck to there phones on apps, online dating will become the new normal

It's a hard thing to try distinguish but it's always nice to have old ways to get back too but in this virtual society it will become harder

Gregor Samsa

Are you posting from the 1940s? We’ve had vending machines and Argos and shops where you pick the stuff off the shelves yourself for decades, and society hasn’t collapsed.

Strumms

Self service machines are not to make the lives of consumers easier, they are designed solely to make businesses more profitable by having the consumer do part of their work, the business needs less staff, so less cost to the business which equals more profit for them.

Ubbquittious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119741745#Comment_119741745

Yes the owners all dream of the day that it's a fully automated system and they can just lay on the beach in Barbados for the rest of their days drinking cocktails and occasionally lifting their phone to check their bank balance

This may very well cause society to collapse in the end. For now we are kind of lucky that most people still shop in physical supermarkets where you can meet your ex and other girls you shagged years ago. In due course shopping might go all online and people be living just like caged hamsters who just get paid their universal income every month. No need to ever leave said cage, they'll have good virtual reality and be all dosed up on MGTOW/Toxic feminism vitriol so they won't have any reason to find a mate either. Eventually all the normal non-robot-owning people will just die off and leave the planet to 100,000 or so of the elite robot owning class

Strumms

I was living in France when McDonalds and their self service machines came into service… I routinely on my way home from work on Friday to save the hassle of cooking got some food there… it was around 7pm so, busyish ! competent users who were familiar with the system… card in, select food, order, get receipt, move to server to collect, grand.

the breakdown in efficiency came when people..

1) bowed to the kids request to do it.

2) arguing over what they needed

3) couldn’t find their payment card.

of course, no staff member = no deterrent to just faffing around.

Stone Deaf 4evr

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119741953#Comment_119741953

the more sinister aspect to this, People buy more junk food when using the screens, The assumption being that you dont have the social awkwardness of being judged by the cashier for deciding to have a mayo chicken hors d'oeuvre , to go alongside your big mc meal.

dxhound2005

I never noticed this in takeaways where people were loading up on vast amounts of junk food. Sometimes the cashiers would even ask it the customer wanted a sugary drink to accompany the feast.

Ubbquittious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119746617#Comment_119746617

This is true. I suppose the theory is that the person asking for it might not have the nerve to do so when facing a real person. Similar to how people will refuse to even go into an "Adult Store" but will happily buy a 12" butt plug off amazon

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119744774#Comment_119744774

I’d say it’s more to do w/ the pictures. I personally couldn’t careless what someone in McDonald’s thinks of me. To tell you the truth as someone who worked there none of our crowd ever even considered who the order was for necessarily.

If it was massive and one person collecting that’s not really weird either most of the time they’re heading home w/ it or heading to the car.

But definitely the pictures would trigger something in your hungry brain to get things that look good. We’re very visual creatures and nice looking pictures (and more often these days videos) on screens grab our attention. Even going into the Drive Thru they have picture boards with slideshows of popular products to entice your fancy.

There’s probably a sinister element to it coming from both sides a bit though. You will have socially awkward folks who will try and avoid social interaction wherever possible and the machines are great— but someone who was fairly awkward to even be worried what the staff would think of their order, well, they still have to collect it!

kirk.

Back in the day the thinking was that we'd be eating out of a machine

That became a reality for a while with packet food and pills

The majority have moved away from that but it persists

dxhound2005

I doubt very much that there has been research to show that people restrict their purchases for fear of being judged by cashiers. Or that cashiers even care what people are ordering in takeaways.

I am rarely in takeaways, but when I am a lot of the purchases seem to be phone or internet orders being collected. How does this social awkwardness and judging work in that scenario? Or for orders which are being delivered. Do the drivers make judgements about the people they are delivering to?

L1011

In the case of McDonalds, trying to do an odd order - e.g. buy something without their woeful fries but still with a drink - can be quite difficult at the counter. The machine makes it possible without an awkward social interaction, something that those with social difficulties should be happy about surely.

Strumms

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119744774#Comment_119744774

Not sure I agree… I bought they exact same Big Mac meal regardless if I was ordering on a screen or with a human… i doubt many people would worry about what a cashier would think about their order.

Sweet Talkin Romeo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119752071#Comment_119752071

Ya, I reckon most blokes wouldn't give a toss, as, after all, they're in a chipper to begin with ! 😁 Likely a situation where les femmes might be a bit apprehensive alright - esp if there's a skinny young one behind counter 🙂

Del2005

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119741953#Comment_119741953

I'd a good experience using the machine in McDonalds in France. Had ordered in English and was looking at the receipt trying to figure out what 84 was in French when the called 84 in English.

The 3 issues you have can happen at the counter with a staff member, it's not the machines fault people are stupid.

Ubbquittious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119746773#Comment_119746773

Don't worry I'm sure they'll find ways to worsen their other products so you'll end up with something woeful no matter what you buy

riclad

I use a self service machine, i,m in control; i,m not waiting while someone pays for 10 euros worth of food with a credit card, or stupid people who have a load of grocerys and then wait til the reach the register before they look for their wallet ,also a shop has changing demand ,no of customers, eg busy after weekends and after 5 pm.

Lidyl can charge lower prices than other shops because they have 10 self service units in every store

BaywatchHQ

I go out of my way to avoid shops with no self checkouts for example Lidl. I have had so many bad experiences, the interaction at tills is so false and unnatural.

I wil give you an example, in Lidl once I was at a till and a woman let me Infront of her as I only had one item. I thanked her but obviously due to my quiet autistic voice the wretched girl at the checkout didn't hear me thanking her. As soon as she served me she was very nasty to me, she snapped my item from me and said "can I have that" in an angry manner. She then threw the change back at me. She was very nice to the other people so I assume this situation is because she thought I had ignored the woman who let me Infront of her.

Social interaction is a minefield that I refuse to even navigate at this stage. I can't interact like normies can do effortlessly. I can't speak loud enough, I can't smile when interacting and I can't execute the right facial expressions or use the correct tone of voice.

I avoid all social interaction at all costs.

dxhound2005

I was never in a Lidl with self service checkouts. And the ones I know in Dunnes and Tesco are only for baskets. The person with €100 trolley worth of shopping including crisps and Coke have to subject themselves to the judgement of the checkout staff. But the companies don't seem to have any shame in packing their shelves with vast amounts of highly processed food. Why do they sell so much of this stuff if they employ staff who look down on people for buying it?

Unless this odd claim about cashiers only applies in fast food joints?

Ubbquittious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119753858#Comment_119753858

😂😂😂 This is insane

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119753889#Comment_119753889

I’ve literally never experienced or witnessed a cashier looking down on someone for what they bought.

honestly I think it says more about how you feel about yourself and what you’re buying. Like if you know it’s bad you feel like people are judging you, but it’s really just you.

As for why they sell it, people buy it.

cj maxx

Self service is a way of getting the customer to do the staffs work for free

dxhound2005

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119754164#Comment_119754164

Did you read what I wrote before, and the last line of my post you quoted?

kirk.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119754043#Comment_119754043

This whole thread is insane

lawred2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119753565#Comment_119753565

Not seen such machines in any Lidl I'm aware of

Graces7

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119754043#Comment_119754043

Very sad.

Strumms

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119753858#Comment_119753858

Them : 146.28 please…

Customer : ok, there you go…. hand money / insert payment card

Them : thanks, here is your receipt, bye.

it’s pretty straightforward,

😳

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119754515#Comment_119754515

RTE repeated the documentary "The Middle aisle " last week one of the eveings, and the Parnell St one I think it was, had self service machines and was basket only.

B.A._Baracus

I'd say there is a fine balance between self-service and manned tills right now. But what's it going to be like in twenty years? You see the likes of Amazon and their completely self-service stores and even tesco allow you to scan your trolly stuff as you go. I can imagine, at some point, it's gonna be hard for a 16 year old kid to get a job in Dunnes or whatever as their first job.

kirk.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119759403#Comment_119759403

The staff will be ran off their feet checking customers

When it's busy they need more than 1

Graces7

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119759594#Comment_119759594

I remember when LIDL was totally new in Ireland. Loved it.