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Everywhere now makes you place your own order. I'm a tech guy, but it's sad and frustrating when I even have issues because "We weren't properly trained" to place our own orders. I think Starbucks is over it, and it looks like we'll be getting REAL PEOPLE to take our orders.
Don't get me wrong. I usually don't have a problem that often where I run into trouble trying to place an order somewhere. But you really end up missing the interaction you get from a real person. "How's your day?", "Are you having a good morning/afternoon?" These are things a computer can't do, remember your favorite order or even have a personal interaction with you. Don't @ me and yell that "you don't know how much faster blah blah blah." because it takes less time to talk to someone sometime then to figure out how to order on their systems.
Well it looks like Starbucks is going to lead the way in bringing real people back to your day. THANK YOU STARBUCKS!!
Their CEO Brian Niccol says “Equipment doesn’t solve the customer experience that we need to provide.” This move goes against the tide as many food and beverage establishments are relying more on automation to reduce costs. Which means you're paying for your coffee/service and you have to do your own order. So you basically work for them and you pay them to work. Think about it.
Starbucks’ high-tech Siren drink-making system will still be used in a few targeted locations. But with real people coming back, I might think about going back to Starbucks more often, and not just when I'm in Vegas and it's the only option at 4am.