In the UK 62% of dine-in operators use table booking systems. With most diners preferring the convenience of pre-booking, identifying the barriers to why over 1/3 of pubs and restaurants are not offering online bookings seems an obvious opportunity. We believe the majority of those without a booking system are single and smaller multiple operators.
After all have you ever been to a pub or restaurant chain, or any large hospitality establishment and not been able to book online? It’s a no-brainer for bigger operators; pre-booked sales is known revenue, also making rotas and staff costs more accurate. Also, without a booking solution, what impression does that reflect about the rest of the offer? Expecting customers to call, especially when 65% of calls to hospitality go unanswered, is not a viable alternative.
Our experience of working with single operators tells us there are multiple factors at play.
Cost is certainly one, there’s a view that known suppliers (such as OpenTable, DesignMyNight, ResDiary..) are expensive and operators can’t afford another cost.
There’s also a general reticence of tech; either not working in the past, being cumbersome, or just a general lack of trust for systems generally.
The short answer when faced with a sceptical mindset is for operators to simply listen and see how modern booking systems (like any tech) have dramatically changed over recent years. We’re aware of over 30 bookings providers; from simple to complicated, from cheap to expensive, features and benefits all vary.. but like any buying decision, matching the right provider to the business is the challenge.
The solution means not only automating bookings but also attracting incremental trade, at least paying for the cost of the system. A system which just takes a booking is not clever and not enough.
Switch4profit also operate the queensheadchesham.co.uk, at the time of writing (w/e 22nd Sept ‘24) bookings were +8.7% vs the previous week and 31.7% vs last year. There’s many reasons for the positive numbers but a third is attributable to online bookings, for example, having the ‘Reserve a table’ button under our Google listing, then with subsequent Google reviews (currently 687/ 4.5 stars) has step-changed the business.
Another sales benefit is what customers see when they book. A calendar may seem the logical place to start, but it’s restrictive by only selling dining spaces. What about taking bookings for other activity; bookings for drinks parties, for special events, bottomless brunches, quiz nights, Christmas and so on. Encouraging customers to book, with headline information and any special menus on the front booking screen is more proactive and customer friendly than just a calendar.
While achieving sales and margin targets is harder than ever, a booking system can help during busy sessions via a ‘virtual queue’. For example if Sunday Lunch is fully booked, Saturday night, or special events, customers can receive a text message with a simple real-time countdown, or the option to ‘leave the queue’ at any time. It’s great for guests, while maximising capacity, also filling gaps from any no-shows. Being able to send text messages, as well as securing deposits are both simple features which grow sales and protect margin.
The right booking system should increase covers and sales.
Primarily that’s by marketing the whole business (not just food bookings), increasing bookings from Google, enabling busy sessions to become busier via a ‘virtual queue’, reducing no-shows and customer interaction being more professional (via confirmation emails with ‘directions’, ‘view menu’, ‘add to calendar’ and ‘amend booking’ options.)
Then there’s the important functional benefit of being GDPR compliant and having all your customers stored, for marketing purposes, or just knowing their frequency of visits, no-shows, spend and more.
If such a system was available, at a competitive price, I’m sure at least some of the 1/3 of pubs and restaurants without a booking solution would be knocking down their pre-conceived barriers to let more sales through the door.
Well the truth is that those systems do now exist, we just need to let a third of the sector, just under 15,000 operators, know there’s a more profitable way of working with a simple, modern booking system.
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