Study: Consumers embrace some, but not all, automation

As retailers and restaurants continue to adopt new technology, automation is most acceptable with consumers for checkout and payment.

A majority (72%) of consumers are already users of automated technologies such as self-checkout, curbside pickup and contactless payment, according to a new survey from Software Advice of over 2,000 global consumers.  Nearly a quarter (73%) of consumers want to get in and out of the grocery store as quickly as possible, and 52% say the same of other retail stores, which these technologies help with.

“Consumers believe automated tech has brought speed and convenience to in-store shopping and restaurant ordering, and many are ready for more to be introduced,” said Software Advice.

Most consumers (67%) say human-centered customer service at restaurants is very important, while 31% say the same of retail and grocery stores. Over half (55%) of global consumers say automated food preparation is unacceptable for both quick-service and table-service restaurants. Still, some diners are more open to robot servers at quick service restaurants (30%) and table service (10%).

Nearly half (49%) of restaurant visitors say they’re likely to order food through an artificial intelligence (AI) tool, such as a chatbot or drive-thru, which have the potential to speed up wait times and make personalized recommendations based on past orders.

Despite increasing acceptance of automation, only 33% of consumers polled by Software Advice think it’s acceptable for businesses to exclusively use automated tech to deliver personalized recommendations. Only a slightly higher figure (35%) say it's okay for businesses to fully automate returns, exchanges and refunds.

While consumers believe technology makes their in-store shopping more efficient, they still have concerns about their privacy.

“With the recent expansion of AI-equipped security cameras at self-checkout kiosks, many customers are aware that their purchases, and their likenesses, are never truly private, even when they scan and bag their own items,” said Software Advice.