It’s not always about what is necessary because customer preferences can change, too. The automated ordering on machines in fast food restaurants or self-checkout in supermarkets may have been introcued to save businesses money and reinforced to limit interactions under COVID, but some people just prefer not to have that human interaction when it’s not absolutely required. As more people get used to and come to prefer managing things like that for themselves, the fact that it isn’t necessary will be overcome by the fact that people like it.
Yeah! I have a very soft voice. I’ve practiced to make it bigger, but even my loudest voice is not terribly loud. Ordering things behind the counter can be tough for me especially if there’s background noise of people chattering or machines whirring like in a coffee shop. Kind of an odd situation, and I’ve been able to get through life fine without self order kiosks, but I’m glad when they’re there because I just feel like I’m easier to deal with as a customer.
If it's necessary during COVID times, it could still be beneficial during non COVID times. Even if COVID goes away, there are plenty of other viruses lurking around that kill lots of people each year.
