Reservation system: manage allotments sensibly

Do you use an online reservation system? Congratulations on this decision! Not only can your guests make reservations with you at any time, you will save a lot of time when used correctly. Time that you can devote to your guests contingent meaning.

But what does correctly mean? What is the perfect balance between controlling incoming reservations and saving you time? And how do you manage your allotments sensibly?

How does the reservation work with the contingent?

You define a number of places that the reservation system can allocate. This is the so-called contingent. You can assign a different quota to each shift.

Let us assume that your current shift has a contingent of 20 places and no reservation. If you now receive a reservation request for four people, the system will automatically confirm this and deduct the four places from the allotment.

This continues until your quota is used up or the latest reservation time you have defined has been reached.

How many places should I make available online?

This depends entirely on the needs of you and your restaurant. Do you have many regular customers who will never reserve? Then it should not be possible to reserve these places via a contingent.

Are you lying in the pedestrian zone and many guests drop by spontaneously? Take this into account!

Or are you regularly fully booked, often days in advance? That calls for a high quota.

Pedestrian zone

These are just some of the things you should think about before setting your quota. Basically, however, the following applies: What can be regulated via the quota saves you work. The entire process, from accepting the reservation to confirming it to the guest, works automatically.

If you are working with a reservation system for the first time, you have to find the ideal number. We recommend an initial contingent of 50 - 60% of your places.

You should also think carefully about how many places you want to vacate at what times. After all, not all guests should be on the mat at 7 p.m. sharp. Or?

What happens when my quota is used up?

As soon as your allotment has been used up or the latest reservation time you have defined has been reached, you have two options:

You can have the reservations forwarded to your phone through a system called IVR.

A message appears in the system that there are no more places available online and that guests should report to the restaurant directly.

If you have the reservations forwarded to your telephone, you have the option of accepting or rejecting a reservation at the push of a button. As soon as you do not want to accept any further reservations, you can block the shift directly via your phone or via your forAtable account.

Can I adjust the quota per day?

Of course you can. You can even enter a quota per shift. For example, if you serve two shifts in the evening, you still want to give guests on the first shift the opportunity to extend their visit.

Here, too, it pays to consider the different needs of your guests. 

How do I know whether my quota is ideally set?

If you have the IVR option activated, this is a good indicator. Do you receive many inquiries via IVR and approve them? A clear sign to increase the quota.