How to Implement a Restaurant Reservation System

Is your reservation book complete with scraggly handwritten notes? Are your staff sometimes struggling to read the reservations? Do you labor with reservation mistakes and double bookings? It’s time you considered a more innovative solution.

The Rise of Reservation Systems in Restaurants

A reservation platform is a piece of software you can use to manage bookings at your restaurant. It allows guests to reserve a table online through your website or some other portal, such as a mobile app. They can often even order their meals before arriving at the restaurant.

Technology is increasingly helpful in the restaurant business. Your business probably already has a website and a social media presence. So why not use a restaurant reservation system? 

Let’s examine some of the benefits.

• Attract new customers looking for a quick and easy way to book online

• Improve table turnover by allowing customers to preorder food

• Free up staff from taking a high number of phone calls

• Enhance the customer experience

• Reduce mistakes made through manual reservations

How to Setup Your Restaurant Reservation System

Explore reservation platforms that match your goals

There are quite a few reservation platforms from which to choose. You need a system that’s reliable, user-friendly, and cost-effective. You also want one that aligns with your goals. Take some time to think about what you’re trying to achieve as a business. 

• Are you trying to cut costs? 

• Do you want to improve the customer experience? 

• Are you looking for ways to boost efficiency?

• Is this an exercise in modernization?

Look for a platform with a variety of features. Some even go beyond reservation tools.

For example, one choke point is guests waiting for a server to bring them the bill. Deliverect has an Order & Pay feature whereby guests scan a QR code menu at their table and pay on a smartphone. That’s one way to improve the guest experience and boost efficiency.

Provide staff training for new tech and order management

Upon choosing the right platform for your restaurant, you must get your team on board. There may be trepidation from some on your team. Sometimes, people have an “if it ain’t broke, why fix it?” mentality. That’s natural. 

Overcome these feelings by demonstrating how a reservation system makes life easier. It’ll mean less time answering phones, fewer booking inaccuracies, and fewer no-shows. Restaurant reservation systems automatically send a booking confirmation email on the day of the reservation. You can have it set up so that customers click a link to confirm they’ll attend.

Once you’ve got your team to buy in, you’ll need to get them used to using the new tools. Restaurant reservation system suppliers often provide training materials. Look for a platform that does.

Begin by training managers and team leaders. Once confident with the restaurant reservation system, they can help train others. Then, before you go live, ensure everyone has had some hands-on experience with the new tools. Some people learn well from articles and videos. Others learn by doing.

You can make the system available to staff to access from home. Look for a remote desktop manager download link online. With one of these, your team can access on-site systems remotely. This means they can play with the new tools at their own pace.

Create a user-friendly menu and order system

Your next step is to create a QR menu and order system. Customers can preorder food to be enjoyed at the restaurant or delivered. Restaurant reservation system providers give you this ability. Take advantage of it. Write appealing descriptions of your delectable dishes with accompanying images —This is an opportunity to let your menu sing.

As with all aspects of your restaurant reservation system, this must be intuitive. A user-friendly system is a must. Poorly designed menus and ordering systems create barriers to entry. Avoid this by choosing a platform —Check Deliverect Online Ordering— that makes creating menus and order systems easy. Your provider will be able to offer support should you need it.

You may wish to update this from time to time. Just as menu dishes themselves benefit from a refresh, so do reservation systems. Stay on top of visual trends, especially where design and colors are concerned. 

Post a step-by-step guide for your customers

Many of your customers will likely have used a restaurant reservation system before. For those that haven’t, it’s a good idea to introduce them to the concept. If you have regular guests, you could give them a leaflet extolling the benefits of your new restaurant reservation system. You should also post about it on your website and social media accounts.

Crucially, this should describe the process of making a reservation online. Give clear step-by-step instructions on how it works. You want to ease your regular customers into the new system. Also, you’ll hopefully attract more customers who prefer to do more online.

Your less tech-savvy customers may be wary of this new process. They could feel intimidated by technology and have security concerns. Good restaurant reservation systems will have robust security. Speak to your chosen provider to learn more about their approach to security. That way, you’ll be able to reassure your more nervous guests.

Establish cancellation and no-show policies

No-shows and late cancellations are the bane of many a restaurateur. Unfortunately, they’re a reality of the restaurant business. Sometimes, last-minute bookings or walk-ins can make up for it. But it’s often just a lost table. A restaurant reservation system is no guarantee of eliminating the problem.

It would be best to protect your business with cancellation and no-show policies. These should be made visible to guests who book online. Display these policies on all portals: social media, website, mobile app. That way, the customer is fully aware before confirming their reservation. But what should these policies look like?

You can take a deposit to help mitigate the cost of a no-show. This is a financial incentive to help diners keep to their booking. It will also reduce the cost to your business. If guests have preordered, somewhere in the region of 30% is an appropriate deposit. If tables haven’t been preordered, consider a fixed amount equal to your average profit per table.

A last-minute cancellation is almost as bad as a no-show. It would be best if you treated it more or less the same. However, there’s room for discretion here, as emergencies can happen. You don’t want to punish a guest who’s undergone a tragedy at the last minute. Overall, though, you’ve got to be strong and protect your business. A cancellation within 24 hours of the booking losing their deposit is a sensible policy.

Some late cancellations will earnestly have attempted to call you in advance. It can be not easy to get through to the busiest eateries. You can help by using a virtual private branch exchange (PBX). A virtual PBX system makes it easier for customers to get through to your restaurant. Of course, they can cancel online with due notice even more efficiently, giving you time to re-sell the table. That’s one of the great features of a restaurant reservation system.

Leverage online reservation portals and mobile booking 

With a restaurant reservation system up and running, customers can order online. They can do so through your website or via links on social media. But they have other options that you should consider if you want to keep up with the competition.

There are several online services through which customers can book restaurant tables. There are also many mobile apps offering the same service. Take some time to research these options and get your restaurant listed with them. They can extend your restaurant’s reach even further. 

A key feature of such platforms is a review system. Ask your customers to review your restaurant and climb up the rankings. A better review score translates to a greater volume of bookings. 

Keep track of booking trends and customer preferences

A restaurant reservation system is a fantastic source of data. Take advantage of the most popular data collection methods to see what days and times are the busiest. The longer you use the system, the more data you’ll accrue. This will help you see patterns and trends emerge. That’s good news because it means you can efficiently manage staffing levels. 

You’ll also get fantastic visibility on what customers like on your menu. That’s if you allow preorders. You can adjust your menu according to customer tastes. Monitor it continuously as tastes change over time. For the same reason, don’t let the data put you off trying new things. Be assured that you can quickly see how successful these new offerings are.

You don’t have to be in the restaurant to see this information. Most platforms will have a secure remote access solution. You can access this data online through a home computer or mobile device. 

Key Takeaways

A restaurant reservation system is a great way to modernize your business. It begins with choosing the right platform. It’ll help you boost staff efficiency and give customers a better experience. 

You’ll also get valuable insights from all the data you can gather. Through such data analytics, you can learn a lot. Use what you learn to develop strategies to get more customers, improve your service, and grow your business. Improvement is served.