There are features that have been available to the public before the pandemic started. But most of these services that have been making our lives easier seemed to have been given more importance now.
Last year, I thought Panera Bread’s order ahead service was groundbreaking. While working part-time and heading to my SCAD classes afterwards, and with only one our in between, ordering ahead was the best thing ever. It gave me the chance to grab a bite even though I was short on time.
But then I discovered curb-side pickup and how I could demand my food to be ready in a few minutes by tapping a button on my phone. Recently I tried it out for the first time, because I wanted to know what the obsession was all about.
I have also noticed that this curb-side pickup situation doesn’t just apply to the food industry, but it’s actually big within retail. CNBC reported that the use of this feature has gone up to 208% in just the first 20 days of April, compared with a year ago which it went up 49% in just one month.
Several times in my retail job, I have picked up the phone to customers calling saying they’re parked outside and would like to have their online purchase delivered. All I have to do is go with my mask and hand them the bag through their window, since it has already been paid for.
I used to draw conclusions and ask myself why would one choose to do curb-side pickup? It’s so nice to get out of the car and browse through a store, can this actually be worth it?
I can say it is, the food and retail stores give more importance to this kind of service since it’s becoming a widely used trend. Workers drop what they’re doing and take care of that curbside pickup customer.
This type of service is something we might actually get to see for the next years, and I think we all hope the treatment gets better.