Knowledge
A reservation system that belongs to you. Not one you belong to.
Portals solve the beginning: reach, a booking button, done. Then the commission runs per reservation - forever - and the guests belong to the platform. An own system turns that around. What it must do for that to work:
Updated: 22 August 2026
What an own system must do
The booking button is the smallest part. The house runs on what sits behind it:
- Widget on your own site - your domain, your brand, no drop-off to the portal.
- A table plan that mirrors your house: stations, shift models, groups, booking stop.
- Walk-ins and real-time availability - what is booked online is reflected in service immediately.
- No-show handling: reminder, confirmation, release. Every prevented no-show saves around 70 % of the seat's value (OpenTable Show-Up Data; GroupMenus Deposit Benchmarks).
- Operations dashboards: occupancy, shifts, capacity - so staff does not stand around for empty chairs.
- Your own data: guests, history, preferences - with you, GDPR-clean, hosting where you choose.
How to switch without interruption
The new system runs in parallel with the old one, historical reservations are migrated, then the cut-over happens on a set day. At Stiftskulinarium St. Peter, Quandoo was replaced exactly like that in live operation - without a single evening of downtime. That is proven, not theoretical.
When it pays off
A portal costs per reservation, an own system once plus hosting. The threshold lies in booking volume - and in what guest data is worth once you have it. We calculate that before anyone builds: reservations per month, fee per reservation, expected lifetime. Custom software does not have to cost a fortune.
Common questions
Do I have to change my website?
No. The booking widget is embedded into the existing site - your brand, your domain. No move, no drop-off of guests to a foreign portal.Can I keep the portal for reach?
Yes. Many houses keep the portal running as a shop window and take the second visit direct. The commission then only applies to the first contact.
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