Stop Double Bookings From Phone and LINE: Write in One Place
The first step against double bookings from phone and LINE is one place to write them all, whichever channel they came in on. This is true for a paper book and for an app. In Rezabo, staff enter each booking. On the same table, a booking that starts too close to another cannot be entered, and if the times overlap, a confirmation screen appears.
Why do phone and LINE bookings end up doubled?
A booking that exists only with the person who took it can’t be seen by anyone else, so someone else gives away the same table. It is not a matter of careless staff.
It usually goes like this:
- A manager takes a phone call and writes the booking on a note.
- Before the note reaches the book, a host sees a LINE message asking about the same time.
- The book shows the table as open, so the host replies “ได้ค่ะ” (yes, we can).
- When the manager copies the note into the book, the table has two parties on it.
While a booking sits between a note and the book, nobody else can see it. More channels mean more of these moments.
What can you decide today?
Three things: where to write, what order to do it in, and what counts as booked. None of them needs a new tool.
- Write in one place. Phone calls, LINE, Instagram DMs and messages to someone’s personal LINE all go to the same place.
- Write first, then reply. Check the book, write the booking, then answer the guest. Stop writing notes to copy later.
- A booking counts once it is written. A LINE “read” mark or “thanks for your message” is not a booking. Say “ได้ค่ะ” after the booking is written.
When a guest asks about a table, everyone checks that one place before answering. With this in place, the mix-up above gets harder to make, even on paper.
When is paper enough?
Whether you need software at all is covered in this article.
If your paper book is working, you don’t need to change it. One book, in a spot everyone taking bookings can reach, in handwriting anyone can read, already is one place to write.
Paper starts to strain in these situations:
| Where you write | Suits | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| One paper book | Restaurants where everyone taking bookings can reach the book | It can’t be read from outside the restaurant. Dates with no sheet yet get written somewhere else |
| Shared spreadsheet | Teams at ease with spreadsheets | Nothing stops two bookings on the same table at the same time |
| Reservation book for staff | Restaurants with many people taking bookings, or owners who want to check from outside | It stays empty unless staff enter bookings. It needs internet. It costs money |
Where did paper strain in our own restaurants?
The operator of Rezabo runs three restaurants in Bangkok: yakiniku, izakaya and shabu-shabu. The izakaya used a paper book.
We printed Excel sheets one week at a time and flipped through them to write by hand. When a booking came in for next month, the sheet was not printed yet, so we wrote it on a calendar to copy over later.
That is two places to write. A booking on the calendar is not on the sheet until someone copies it.
The other problem was not knowing how the other restaurants were doing. To find out how many parties a restaurant had that night and at what times, we had to call and ask. Paper can be read only by someone standing next to it.
Why write the end time as well as the start?
A table is taken from a start time to an end time. If you write the start alone, you can’t see whether the next booking overlaps. With the end time in view, busy-hour seating gets easier to decide too.
- A table with a booking later on. Before turning a guest away because the table is booked, check how much time there is until that booking. If it fits, seat them and say up front what time the table is needed back.
- Joining two-tops. Seating four at two joined tables leaves fewer tables for the pairs who come later. Check that night’s bookings before joining them.
- Walk-ins. Write them in the same place. If you don’t, the table looks open. How to write them.
- Tables that have finished. If a finished table isn’t updated, you can’t see that it is free. If a party is running long, change the end time.
How you use your tables is your call. Rezabo does not assign tables by itself. It shows each table’s bookings from start to end, and staff decide from there.
What changes when Rezabo is your one place to write?
Phone or LINE, staff enter each booking into the same book. Guests can’t book by themselves.
- Overlaps show up when staff enter the booking. On the same table, a booking that starts too close to another cannot be entered, and if the times overlap, a confirmation screen appears. On that screen, staff look at it and decide whether to go ahead.
- Future dates go on the same screen. There is no waiting for a sheet to be printed and no copying from a calendar.
- Entering a phone number suggests registered guests’ names. Guest records and notes are shared across your restaurants. The number of bookings and the latest booking date show on a tablet or PC customer screen, and count only the restaurant you have open.
- Adding, changing and cancelling a booking is recorded. On screen you can see the time of the booking’s last update and, if one was selected, the staff member’s name.
- Each device can show Thai, English or Japanese. The owner’s phone can be in English and the floor tablet in Thai.
Two things to keep in mind:
- The book shows only what staff entered. A booking left on a note is as invisible as it is with paper.
- Don’t assume an open screen changes by itself when another device adds a booking. Reopen the screen before you tell a guest a table is free.
Which book do you trust while running paper and Rezabo side by side?
Rezabo is the one you check when answering guests, even while you keep the paper book. Paper is the backup copy. If people check both, you have two places to write and nothing has improved.
Running both takes more work, so set a time limit and go in this order:
- Pick a start date. Within the free month, tell the whole team which day bookings start going into Rezabo.
- Enter all future bookings. By the start date, copy every future booking from paper into Rezabo. A booking that isn’t entered won’t trigger the confirmation screen.
- Enter first, then reply. Check availability in Rezabo. Write the paper copy afterwards.
- Fix differences on the spot. If a booking is on paper and not in Rezabo, enter it right away and find out who took it.
- Decide after the month. If you continue, stop using paper. If it doesn’t suit you, go back to paper. Rezabo can’t export bookings, so keeping the paper copy makes going back easier.
Which restaurants is Rezabo not right for?
Rezabo is not a fit if you need any of these:
- Online booking that guests make themselves
- Automated confirmations or reminders, including LINE notifications
- Deposits or prepayment
- POS sync
- Exporting your booking data
Restaurants that need these are better served by an all-in-one service with guest referrals and payments.
Questions owners ask
What if staff don’t enter the bookings?
Bookings that aren’t entered don’t appear in the book, and overlaps with them can’t be caught. No tool prevents that. Start by making “write first, then reply” a house rule.
What happens if the internet goes down?
Rezabo runs over the internet. While you are offline, you can’t open the book or enter bookings. Write those bookings on paper and enter them when you are back online.
How do we move the bookings already on paper?
Send a photo of your floor plan. A hand-drawn sketch is fine. We set up table names, seat counts and the basic layout at no cost. Please enter your future bookings yourselves. Setup does not include moving guest lists or copying past bookings.
Can Thai-speaking staff use it?
Yes. Each device can show the screen in Thai. Buttons and field names change language. Guest notes stay in the language they were typed in.
How much does it cost?
1,900 THB per month per restaurant, or 19,000 THB per year per restaurant, paid at once. Both exclude VAT. Three restaurants come to 5,700 THB per month plus VAT. There is no setup fee or referral fee.
The first month is free. No card is needed and there is no automatic charge. Before the free month ends, we check with you on LINE whether you want to continue. See pricing details.