Vending

Hudson Group, Inspire Brands execs keynoting Self-Service Innovation Summit

Networld Media Group's first in-person Self-Service Innovation Summit, "The Future of Self Service," Dec. 14–16, at the Diplomat Beach Resort in Hollywood, Florida, will delve deep into how businesses can create exceptional self-service experiences.

July 9, 2021

Although the coronavirus is mostly behind us, the changes it left on consumerism are permanent. While self-service had been gaining momentum before the outbreak in March 2020, customers were forced to adopt it at a breakneck speed and now rely on it to fulfill daily needs.

As things return to normal and the economy continues to grow, self-service isn't fading into the background, a fact that retailers must take into consideration when enhancing their customer experiences.

More than one in five adults anticipate using self-checkout (23%), contactless credit cards (24%), and contactless mobile payments (22%) more a year from now than they are now, according to a Verizon Look Forward study released in March of 2021.

And in an effort to help them do just that, the Self Service Innovation Summit is kicking off its first in-person event, Dec. 14-16 at the Diplomat Beach Resort in Hollywood, Florida.

Summit content to delve deep

"The Self-Service Innovation Summit will delve deep into how businesses can create exceptional self-service experiences that are simultaneously safe, easy, convenient and engaging for consumers," said Kathy Doyle, president/publisher of Networld Media Group, which produces nine daily industry news sites, including Vending Times and Kiosk Marketplace.

The event will draw business and thought leaders from retail, restaurants, hospitality, theme parks and entertainment, academia, office buildings operations, government services, banking and other industries to explore the technological advances that are empowering businesses to provide products and services when, where and how consumers wish to purchase them, said Elliot Maras, editor of Vending Times and Kiosk Marketplace and emcee of SSIS.

Ruth Crowley

"Sessions and speakers address the nuts and bolts of repositioning a business to allow consumers to exert the control they now want to take in ordering and paying for products at their convenience," he said. "We're especially thrilled to have Ruth Crowley, vice president of merchandise and brand strategy for Hudson Group, and Raghu Sagi, chief information officer for Inspire Brands, as keynote speakers. They each bring a unique perspective to the challenges and opportunities self service brings to businesses in today's environment."

Dual vending, kiosk tracks

Raghu Sagi

The Vending track includes these sessions:

• New Self-Service Technologies for a Changing World.
• Ready-to-Eat Food Vending: The Revolution Continues.
• Touchless Vending and Coffee Service Machines: Success Beyond COVID-19?
• Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency for Vending and ATMs.
• Hot New Amusement Vending Technology: Immersive Entertainment and Virtual Reality.

The Kiosk track includes these sessions:

• Phygital: Where Physical and Digital Intersect.
• The Third Customer Set: An Opportunity You Didn't Even Know You're Ignoring.
• How to Successfully Navigate Pricing and Supply Chain Issues in Today's Self-Service Landscape.
• The Nuts and Bolts of Omnichannel Integration.
• Germ-Free, Contactless and Beyond.
• Thought Leader Roundtable: Executive Predictions

The summit will integrate the collective intellectual power of self-service industry stakeholders — buyers, suppliers, ICXA association members — with the editorial teams at Kiosk Marketplace, Vending Times, Digital Signage Today, ATM Marketplace, Retail Customer Experience and Restaurant Operator Daily.

The summit also will feature the 2021 Self-Service Innovation Awards for:

• B2B Innovation of the Year.
• B2C Innovation of the Year.
• Best COVID-19 Solution.
• Reader's Choice Award: Innovator of the Year (company).
• Reader's Choice Award: Innovator of the Year (person).

Qualified attendees who register by Aug. 20, 2021 will receive an early bird discount. Registration information is available here.

Businesses interested in sponsoring summit activities can learn more here.