Over my first cup of coffee of the day and my usual scan of Google Reader this morning I found a blog post by Stephen Johnston, who in frustration over the poor experience when booking a restaurant using one of our interfaces voiced some really good and very true opinions.
So, I try and use their whizzo online ordering capability. This is provided by Livebookings and creates a java popup to identify the\slot you want which is quite cute. Unfortunately, it then requires you to register your name, ADDRESS and phone number. I already have far too many social networks requiring me to register with them, now I have to register at some obscure service (ok, used by other restaurants too) with username and password etc. They then reject my proposal because my password suggestion is not 7 characters long. Look!, I cry, this is a bloody restaurant booking service, not my bank.
I totally agree. We have been working a long time to move towards registration free booking processes, but change takes time. A lot of sites and companies still think user registration provides a sense of security and professionalism, and that people really want to register with a service provider for the times they come back. Not so, at least not when it comes to such a straight forward thing as restaurant bookings. Our statistics clearly show that when the need for user registration is removed, booking levels increase.
This is my response to Stephen:
Good morning! I work at Livebookings with technology and booking services. I am sorry to hear about your poor experience, and must say I apologise profusely. We are well aware of the shortcomings of the current version of our restaurant homepage booking window and based on evaluations we have done over the past months we have come to the same conclusions as you.
In a few months we are poised to release an upgraded version which will address all of the shortcomings you describe above.
No need to register (you still have to give your contact details though, so the restaurant can contact you should they need to), no drop of information if desiring to change something, no dead ends in the booking process and the option to remember your contact details for next time so a booking is just a few clicks away.
I agree with you that online booking interfaces in general, and when it comes to the restaurant industry in particular, leave a lot to be desired. As we are now ramping up to expand rapidly in Europe we are focusing a lot of our efforts on creating efficient, user friendly and simple tools for restaurants as well as diners in order to improve the online experience.
By the way, it is possible to run the current version without user registration and we have seen that without the registration form restaurants do get more bookings. I will get in touch with Bombay Bicycle Club and see if they are interested in changing their settings.
Have a nice day, and thanks for voicing your opinions!
// Manne
Link: Get the service right first, and figure out the techology later.
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