Self-service can be found in all areas of life today, even if we often no longer recognise it as such, as many services have simply disappeared and “doing it yourself” has become the norm for consumers. Today, for example, everyone fills their own shopping trolley in the supermarket. However, the patent for this type of food market dates back to 1917 and is thus only a good 100 years old. We take it for granted today, but the modern supermarket is one of the cornerstones of the self-service idea. We also fill our cars with petrol ourselves, assemble our furniture ourselves, pick up our parcels from the packing station ourselves and in many places there are cash registers where you scan and pay for goods yourself.
Self-service – more than just a trend
Self-service is therefore no longer a niche phenomenon, but rather a steady trend that has taken hold of all areas of life. There are many reasons for this development. Cost saving is often a decisive motivation for the introduction of a self-service offer, but this should not be the central motivation. Of course, one cannot deny that costs can be saved. Empowering clients to do simple things themselves is a real service to the client! Who of us still wants to go to the bank to make transfers and thus be a slave to bank opening hours, only to stand in a queue – just to hand in a transfer slip?
