It’s hard to know where the list of jobs under threat from technology will end. I just read about Chinese restaurant Renrenxiang which  has replaced all of its front of house staff and payment equipment with a smartphone messaging service.

Renrenxiang, in Beijing, is using China’s most popular messaging app WeChat. Visitors begin by launching the app, browsing the menu and placing their order. They then pay for their meal using the messenger service and are given an order number. Their meal is prepared in the kitchen and their number called out over a tannoy system when it’s ready. The customer can then collect their food and seat themselves.

I’m not sure whether anyone is doing anything similar in the UK yet, but it could be worth investigating if you’re in the market. While some waiting staff do a great job, I’m sure we’ve all been to venues where they add little or nothing to the expeience.

www.wechat.com

Your Welcome is a  new service aimed at the growing band of people renting their homes out on a short term basis via the likes of Airbnb. For £9.95 per month the company provide home owners with  an iPad loaded up with software to help them create a comprehensive information pack about the property and locality for renters. The idea is for this to replace the written instructions which often get dog eared, lost or become quickly out of date.

The iPad enables the property owner to create an audio visual instruction manual, but also has other interesting functionality. For example, the device gives the homeowner the opportunity to earn extra income through affiliate links to local services. It also reports back on renter search activity so the homeowner can understand what visitors are most interested in and target their offering accordingly.

If you rent a property out via airbnb, this may well be of interest. Thinking more widely, it shows one way in which modern technology (the iPad) can be used to enhance a long established product (the property information pack). Are there other ways in which iPads might be used like this to replace and enhance existing products or services?

https://www.yourwelcome.com/

In a world where travellers have wide choice in who they fly with, Icelandair have come up with an interesting way to differentiate themselves from the crowd. Passengers flying over the Atlantic can stop over in Iceland for up to seven nights, at no extra cost. They can even be accompanied by a stopover buddy …an Icelandair employee…who will help them explore the country. The stopovers are available to anyone flying between Europe and the USA or Canada with Icelandair.

The scheme seems to achieve a number of things simultaneously:

1.    It gives people a reason to pick Icelandair over other carriers
2.    It promotes Icelandic tourism
3.    It creates free publicity for both the airline and the country

Is this an idea you could take inspiration from? Could you give your customers something free of charge, which none of your competitors can match? Or could you ‘hijack’ them mid-transaction to give them the opportunity to try out something else you want to sell?

www.icelandair.us/stopover-buddy