Checkout this on air chat between Scott Pape (the Barefoot Investor) and me on radio MTR and 2GB this evening. It was a conversation about the increase use of self checkouts at supermarkets and the future of in store promotion and purchasing.

We chatted briefly about the rise of the self checkout over the last 2 years and how it now accounts for 40% of all grocery checkouts across Woolies and Coles, with Coles having 100 of their 395 stores converted (the remainder will be up by 2012) and Woolies having 1750 self checkouts across its 365 stores, before I took what I think was a step too far.

We went on to talk about in store promotion and whispering into the consumers ear through 100% opted in, chosen and downloaded MC (mobile computer) apps that feed real time real place information about selected products, specials, store activities and item locations, this definitely pushed the wrong buttons and for the first time ever the interviewer ended our conversation with “thanks for your insights, but I hope none of your predictions come true”.

Curiouser and curiouser!

Is in-store hyper-personalized absolutely 100% opt in (and therefore 110% opt outable – or you could just turn off or ignore your mobile computer) the devil incarnate, or is it finally a way for us to filter all that marketing and promotional deluge we are bombarded with everyday right down to the bare bones of what we want to hear and know about.

Listen now: