In the very near future, you won’t even be carrying your debit card around. You’ll be clinging, instead, to your phone. This cellular device, in which “phoning” is one of the last functions accessed, will be used a routinely as debit and credit cards to pay for services. This technological change will, like most of the others, happen faster than one would expect.
This is only anecdotal information, but my son came home yesterday and explained how his favorite department store is remodeling and reducing the number of checkout counters by more than half. He said that one of the friendly cashiers—the cute one with a tear tattoo—was scared she would lose her job when they didn’t need so many tellers.
The teenage boy spent several minutes explaining to me why he now needed an upgraded smart phone. Then he bemoaned the fact he might now have his favorite person in the whole store there to wait on him.
“Can’t have both,” I said. “Advanced technology and people standing around waiting to flirt with you.”
He thought for several minutes. “I want both,” he finally said.
He may be able to keep both, because some stores recognize that counters are necessary for impulse buying. There are some aspects of checkout counters that are simply too compelling to give up.
Would you ever buy candy if you had to scan it yourself? What about pork rinds?
Whatever happens, you need to stay on top of the curve.
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