Article written by Jonathan Azzopardi
Driving back to Paphos airport, gazing at the large sun setting over the horizon, I can’t help but wonder how the dawn of a new era is upon Cyprus, and it’s very exciting!
Having met with several restaurateurs from all over Cyprus, mainly Nicosia, Limassol, Larnaca, Paphos and Ayia Napa, one thing is for certain; they are noticing a shifting trend when it comes to restaurant reservations and an ever increasing number of people, both local and foreign, online are requesting the ability to make their reservations online, whenever they want, from wherever they want.
Traditionally in Cyprus, people have called the restaurant to place a reservation. It is still the standard way of doing things, but standards are changing as expectations change and this change is unstoppable, and it’s all happening very fast.
Over the past 2 years, restaurants have been forced to adopt technology at an unprecedented rate due to COVID-19. Almost every restaurant has one or more food delivery apps, they are moving to online POS Systems instead of the old hardware ones, and the time is ripe for them to make a shift to online reservations as well. It’s no secret that using the old paper diary to manage reservations is outdated. It’s tedious, slow and prone to many mistakes.
Online reservation management systems such as Tableo help restaurants of all sizes get more organised, save time, automate bookings, turn more tables, collect payments, reduce no-shows and so much more. They add to a level of professionalism by offering their guests the ability to book 24/7, and receive instant confirmation, without having to speak to a human.
Whilst there are many reservation management platforms, Tableo excels at being an [all-in-one booking platform]( https://tableo.com/service/reservation-management/ ) and is one of the [most loved platforms](https://www.capterra.com/p/255216/Tableo/#reviews) by restaurant managers because of its super ease of use and its smart and intuitive booking features. Indeed, 100% of Tableo clients say the same thing: “*you’ve packed so much important crucial information in such an easy-to-use system, if I can use it, anybody can!”.* Most restaurateurs are not tech-savvy, however immediately when they see Tableo, they feel confident that they can use the platform with no issues, and indeed they do. Several clients have switched over to Tableo from competing platforms because of Tableo’s super easy to use interface. Not only is the UI intuitive but the platform is designed with quick access buttons giving them the information they need instantly.
Moreover, restaurateurs using Tableo report a **reduction of even up to 60% in calls and online messages** from guests wishing to place bookings. This is because through Tableo, guests can book from pretty much any [online channel](https://tableo.com/service/increase-online-bookings/), be it your website, Facebook page, Instagram account, Google search as well as Google Maps (the latter are still not available in Cyprus however Tableo is pushing for this). This is saving countless hours of precious time which Tableo restaurateurs are now spending on other, more valuable tasks. Whether you manage a small eatery or a huge fine-dining spot in the city, Tableo can make restaurant management fun, convenient, and less stressful.
Tableo can also help you reduce no-shows with its prompt on-the-day SMS & email reminders. Customers who make a reservation receive instant confirmation with the complete booking details, including Google Map directions, and the ability to easily cancel ahead of time should somebody come up. By simply activating the daily booking reminders, restaurateurs are seeing a staggering 90% reduction in no-shows. The remaining 10% are also being addressed by enabling credit card pre-authorisation for bookings, where restaurateurs can claim a no-show penalty fee should the guests not show up for their reservation.
With the Christmas festivities just around the corner, Tableo can also help with reducing the stress that comes with event management and payment collection. Tableo is one of the few restaurant management platforms out there that also includes event creation in its feature set. This robust feature allows restaurant managers to specify event hours and provide event descriptions and define a payment amount per person that guests are requested to pay when they reserve a table. Tableo has partnered with world-renowned payment provider Stripe. Stripe has a very fast and straightforward onboarding process and you will be up and running in a few minutes. By setting up your Stripe account, funds will be sent directly to your IBAN, daily.
Last but not least, Tableo makes customer service personalised by managing and consolidating guest information smartly. Does your VIP guest like a particular wine, or prefers sitting at a specific table? Or perhaps they are vegetarian or have specific allergies or intolerances? You can now know all this information with Tableo’s guest insights feature. These amazing features are some of the reasons why 1000s of restaurateurs choose Tableo.
With this technology, you can improve your service and take it to the next level. From receiving books in various channels to confirming reservations, and reminding guests—Tableo’s smart and intuitive solutions make it a super convenient solution to modern-day booking challenges.
As a start-up armed with 2 years of experience in the restaurant industry backed by a smart, passionate and hardworking team and a solid product that is used by 100s of restaurants across Europe, the company is now setting their sights on Cyprus.
So if you are a restaurateur and you’re looking to take your restaurant to the next level, e-mail [hello@tableo.com](mailto:hello@tableo.com) – they’d love to chat with you and show you how they can help you organise and grow your restaurant business.
