What would you say was the main purpose of the booking system?
"Our main goal with the design was to make life easier for the typical Cottage Owner and their customers. Having booked cottages to stay at many times I was often surprised at how late into the evening property owners would answer their phone! Understandably most owners I spoke to were eager not to miss any potential business."

So do you still need to talk to your customers?
"Yes, you still speak to your customers, but it doesn't have to be about finding suitable dates for them! You don't have to constantly update the calendar once a customer has booked. All you have to do is confirm the bookings online, and speak with your customers more at your convenience. To me this makes for a much better work/life balance and the customers are impressed also."

How can the system increase bookings?
"It was also a desire of ours to find a way of using the existing customer base to promote new business. This can happen by existing customers talking about how pleasant, painless and different the booking process was to their friends. Because a booking summary email is sent out with a link to their cottage web site, this link will soon be forwarded to friends and collegues!"

"We were also aware of the fact that many many people looking for a holiday cottage like to do the booking online and often send off two or three emails to make sure that they get a property they like, on the dates they want. Although this is good for the bookee, it often means wasted return phone calls for the cottage owner, and more importantly missed bookings."

Are there any other benefits?
"Yes, there are many other minor benefits which I won't go into now. The other major benefit to cottage owners is that it gives them the potential for some independence from their current agency arrangement. All they have to do advertise their property web site, which is far cheaper than an agency arrangement, and the booking calendar handles the bookings."

What about the customer, what point would they see in the system?
"Well for them they now have more choice of how they can book. They can now know what is available instantly, without phone calls or emails. If it's 12:00 at night they can still have their booking provisionally confirmed instantly."


Chris Ferguson
Business Director