Continuing the Top 10 Tech Trends in 2022, here are five more areas of innovation to watch in the coming year.

Loyalty Apps and Memberships

2022 will see companies compete harder than ever before to keep consumers within their ecosystem. Most restaurant and retail chains have some form of loyalty app or membership program to push their own promotions and products. Fast-food promotions over the last six months have been offered exclusively to rewards members and retailers like Walmart and BestBuy have leveraged memberships to give subscribers an early chance at in-demand items. Data collection is the key component to this trend and consumers seem to be willing to exchange that information for a free burger or a PS5. Companies will place more products and services behind these memberships as the year continues. Want to know which companies have loyalty programs? Chain Store Guide tracks that! Call (800) 927-9292 for more information.

Data Privacy

Speaking of data that consumers are willing to part with, the security of the data will become more important this year. The number of accounts and passwords that a single consumer must manage just to shop and eat at their favorite places has grown astronomically and the public has taken an interest in what is being done with all of that data. Companies will need to be transparent about what they collect and ensure that private data is kept secured. Apple has already rolled out a new update that will make it more difficult for organizations to gather data from users without disclosures first.

The Future of Purchasing

What do the future of checkout and drive-thru lanes look like? 2022 will see these lanes move faster than ever before and some of them will be automated. Technology has been a driving force throughout the last few years and a more efficient point of sale has been at the forefront of that technology. Touchless payment and ordering kiosk have become popular to speed up operations and keep exposure between people low. Kiosks that use hand movements to select items over touch screens are also in rapid development. A.I. powered drive-thru lanes have gained traction and self-checkout lanes can be found in every grocery store chain. These options will grow exponentially in 2022 as stores look to overcome a labor shortage.

Omnichannel

Physical retail is not dead, yet few can survive without an online presence. Just having a website won’t be enough either as customers come to expect companies to be available at any time in any space. A company’s availability must also coincide with consistency across all channels as customers look to get the same quality service in person or through their phone. By merging coordinating departments and services, a company can make sure that a product missing in one medium can still be seamlessly procured by a customer through other means.

Automation

From burger flipping robots to those who stock shelves, automation will define the evolution of retailers and restaurants. A.I. can make tailored selections for each consumer and can ensure that inventory is at an optimum level. Increased efficiency is just the beginning of what this technology can provide in 2022. It can also cover gaps create by the labor shortage and reduce the strain on existing employees and the supply chain. Greater time management will allow employees to focus more on overall operations and it will create goods at cheaper prices that will entice customers.

2022 will be an interesting year for sure. Backed by nearly two years of rapid adaptation, the retail and foodservice industries are poised for accelerated growth and innovation. The time has finally come to get back to business.