It has kind of bummed me out the past few years how quickly “customer service” has disappeared. ATM machines instead of bank tellers, automated self serve checkouts at the grocery store rather than actual human service and even the Redbox DVD kiosks you can find at many grocery and convenience stores (Though I do have to admit, I really like the Redbox kiosks).
What kills me is that with all of this “do it yourself” technology I have not seen the price of goods go down. When companies start using these automated machines it means they have to hire less employees which means less wages and benefits paid out. I have yet to see those savings get passed onto the consumer. They even guilt us into “Going Green” and spending our own money on reusable bags that we can purchase from them. I do believe in helping out the environment however, if these companies are no longer paying to purchase bags to provide for their customers, why don’t we see any savings?
I remember when I first started driving, there was no such thing as “Self Serve” at the gas station. You didn’t even have to get out of your car, someone came to your window, took your money, pumped your gas and sometimes even cleaned your windows. Sometimes there would even be a little banter (about what I can’t remember) but I think they actually still do this in New Jersey.
Imagine my surprise when I was at the gas station the other day and there were employees standing by the pumps. When I got out of my car one approached me and asked if I would like my windows cleaned for free as it was Customer Appreciation Day. While I was pumping gas and he was doing (a very nice job) on the windows we had some idle chat about the earthquake we had experienced recently. We also talked about Haiti and Chile, and how people could help them out with their recent devastation. We also chatted about other much more trivial things. I offered him a tip but they were not allowed to take any, so I drove away waving goodbye. It put me in a really good mood, Not because anything that we talked about make a profound difference in my life but it was nice to chat – even though I never got his name.
Are we actually de-socializing ourselves with all these automated services? I would have to say yes, because at the moment I am sharing my thoughts via the internet rather than another human presence. Is there an answer to all this? Who knows, maybe we all just to need stop using automated services (which I really doubt will happen, we all love the conveniences they provide) but maybe we should host more dinners, picnics or lunches so we can talk rather than blog. Or bring back the “Cocktail Parties” that were so popular in the 50’s and 60’s – Yep – that's the one I vote for!
What kills me is that with all of this “do it yourself” technology I have not seen the price of goods go down. When companies start using these automated machines it means they have to hire less employees which means less wages and benefits paid out. I have yet to see those savings get passed onto the consumer. They even guilt us into “Going Green” and spending our own money on reusable bags that we can purchase from them. I do believe in helping out the environment however, if these companies are no longer paying to purchase bags to provide for their customers, why don’t we see any savings?
I remember when I first started driving, there was no such thing as “Self Serve” at the gas station. You didn’t even have to get out of your car, someone came to your window, took your money, pumped your gas and sometimes even cleaned your windows. Sometimes there would even be a little banter (about what I can’t remember) but I think they actually still do this in New Jersey.
Imagine my surprise when I was at the gas station the other day and there were employees standing by the pumps. When I got out of my car one approached me and asked if I would like my windows cleaned for free as it was Customer Appreciation Day. While I was pumping gas and he was doing (a very nice job) on the windows we had some idle chat about the earthquake we had experienced recently. We also talked about Haiti and Chile, and how people could help them out with their recent devastation. We also chatted about other much more trivial things. I offered him a tip but they were not allowed to take any, so I drove away waving goodbye. It put me in a really good mood, Not because anything that we talked about make a profound difference in my life but it was nice to chat – even though I never got his name.
Are we actually de-socializing ourselves with all these automated services? I would have to say yes, because at the moment I am sharing my thoughts via the internet rather than another human presence. Is there an answer to all this? Who knows, maybe we all just to need stop using automated services (which I really doubt will happen, we all love the conveniences they provide) but maybe we should host more dinners, picnics or lunches so we can talk rather than blog. Or bring back the “Cocktail Parties” that were so popular in the 50’s and 60’s – Yep – that's the one I vote for!
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