Are robots everywhere? At times, it certainly seems so, and the contemporary marketing environment is no exception. From the front lines of service providers to the last stages in the supply chain, advanced technologies support the expanded presence of robots and their intricate interactions with consumers, which in turn affect the way people obtain and cocreate value.
At the frontline, we find robotic technologies in a wide range of service interactions. Leveraging their substantial precision and accuracy, based on three-dimensional modeling technology, robot manicurists are now available in several Target stores. Looking somewhat like a large, table-top soft drink dispenser, the machine scans the user’s hands, then applies the lacquer, one nail at a time. Each nail takes about 30 seconds; the whole process takes around 10 minutes—about one-tenth of the time needed to get nails done in a salon. The machines don’t remove polish, file or buff nails, or push down cuticles. They don’t even apply a top coat. All they promise is a simple, robot-applied paint job.
According to the CEO and co-founder of the company that developed the robot manicures, she came up with the idea because she felt like she was wasting so much time sitting in salon chairs and wanted an alternative. “I felt like a fresh coat of paint should be as easy as getting a coffee,” she explained. Happily, reflecting consumers’ desire for convenience and speed, she likely can: As we discuss subsequently in this chapter, robotic technology appears increasingly in restaurant settings too. For example, in Panera restaurants, a CookRight Coffee robot relies on AI to keep the coffee consistently the same temperature, predict busy rush times, and anticipate how many pots it will need to make fresh, so that busy customers never have to wait for a fresh cup. McDonald’s is using more predictive analyses, along with robotic technology, to anticipate how many fries to drop in oil at what time of day, and then leverage voice recognition capabilities to take orders at the drive-through.
Consumers also encounter the growing trend of robotic-enabled interactions in their daily grocery shopping tasks, in more and less direct ways. Robots and the AI-supported inventory management systems improve replenishment efforts so that consumers are less likely to encounter stockouts. Other supply chain–focused robots also are in high demand. For example, Agility Robotics received $150 million in investments into its robot Digit, which has achieved remarkable advances in being able to grab packages in warehouses, navigate and avoid obstacles in the space, and work closely in conjunction with human coworkers. As a result, consumers can anticipate receiving the items they order from warehouse-based suppliers more promptly and accurately.
Consumers also might anticipate receiving deliveries from drones or driverless delivery vehicles. The latest generation of the has substantial, temperature-controlled storage space, a drive train that can handle potholes and slick roads, and a series of redundant safety sensors to prevent any collisions. In response, various retailers, including Walmart, Kroger, CVS, and 7-Eleven, along with Domino’s Pizza and FedEx, have entered into pilot agreements with the manufacturer to test the bots’ capacity to get groceries and sundries to consumers’ doors. Such continued developments imply that someday quite soon, consumers might open their door to a delivery vehicle, rather than a driver. Nuro’s own research into the marketing environment also indicates that once consumers have received one driverless delivery, they are more likely to repurchase through the same channel.
As robotic technologies spread and take on more tasks, the conveniences for customers increase, and competitive drives to obtain the most cutting-edge versions are likely to prompt greater innovation. But at the same time, these environmental trends imply radical shifts in employment trends. According to one study, there is virtually no chance that retail sales jobs for example will continue to be staffed primarily by human workers. Robots can recognize voices, take orders, clean floors, cook food, track and manage inventory levels, unload trucks, deliver items to customers, and so on. Virtually nothing in the marketing environment thus remains unaffected, suggesting the need to consider the implications carefully and in depth.
Discussion Questions:
- What other businesses could benefit from using robots?
- Are there any jobs you believe robots will not be able to complete? If so, what are they?
Sources: Matthew Stern, “Will Robots Nail in-Store Manicures at Target?” RetailWire, September 8, 2022; “Yahoo Finance Video Clockwork Partners with Target to Install Automated Manicure Machines in Stores,” Yahoo Finance, September 2, 2022; Alex Barreira, “Nail-Painting Robots? Startup Is Testing the Market,” bizjournals.com, June 14, 2021; David Yaffe-Bellany, “Would You Like Fries with That? McDonald’s Already Knows the Answer,” The New York Times, October 22, 2019; Mike Rogoway, “Corvallis Robotics Startup Raises $150 Million from Amazon and Others,” The Oregonian, April 22, 2022; Kirsten Korosec, “Nuro’s Newest Autonomous Delivery Bot Is Designed for the Masses,” TechCrunch, January 12, 2022; Lorraine Longhi and Ryan Randazzo, “Self-Driving Robots Can Deliver Your Groceries from Fry’s in Scottsdale,” The (AZ) Republic, January 24, 2019; Sarah Nassauer and Chip Cutter, “Walmart Is Rolling Out the Robots,” The Wall Street Journal, April 9, 2019; Caroline Jansen, “Walmart Adds Nearly 4K Robots to Stores,” Retail Dive, April 10, 2019