Unpopular opinion: paper tickets at counter service spots beat ordering kiosks every single time

I timed it at our local diner last week, and the old ticket system got people through in 2 minutes while the new touchscreen had three people stuck on the payment screen for 5, so why do we keep adding tech that slows things down?

2 comments

2 Comments

tessawebb18d ago

You said "three people stuck on the payment screen for 5 minutes" and that's exactly the thing that drives me crazy. Why do these places think a machine that glitches out on the payment step is better than a person who can just say "that'll be $8.50, here's your ticket"? I swear, the tech folks who design these kiosks never actually watch people try to use them in real time. Have they ever seen a confused customer just tap the screen over and over while a line builds up behind them?

gavin92818d ago

Wait, have you ever tried just walking up to the counter and handing them cash while the kiosk is freaking out? I did that at a burger place near me, the cashier took my money, wrote on a paper ticket, and I had my food in under a minute. Meanwhile the lady next to me was still poking at the screen trying to find where the tip option was hiding. The thing that worked for me was just skipping the machine entirely and going straight to the person, even if the sign says "order here." It felt weird at first but the staff actually thanked me for not making them reset another frozen kiosk. I get that places want to save on labor but they end up paying more in maintenance calls and lost customers who just walk out.