E-table: Boosting e-booking by reducing restaurant no-shows

Challenge

To begin with, E-table needed to assure their user data was private and that their identities were not being misused. They needed to prevent fake users from registering on their website with fake phone numbers and making reservations, as this was causing a lot of restaurant no-shows. Failing to address these issues can lead to major revenue losses.

Another thing that businesses like this try to implement is the automation of processes. Reservation confirmations and notifications are two main things that need to be automated. However, in some critical situations, there is need to have that extra communication flexibility and the option to contact the users or the restaurant manually.

To stay on the top of their business and offer their users the best possible experience, E-table needed new and innovative channels of communication. Regardless of the channel, they needed to ensure identity protection and seamless communication for their users.

Solution

With Infobip, E-table managed to protect their users, prevent fraud and lower the number of restaurant no-shows they had previously experienced. They were also able to add more flexibility to their business communication and to improve user experience by adding Viber as an additional communication channel.

Since phone numbers are very important for E-table’s communication, even more than emails, the first solution was implementing phone number verification, which enabled users to easily confirm their identity throughout the sign-up process. In this way, E-table overcame the problem of fake users in their database and reduced the number of bad requests for their restaurant partners.

Furthermore, Infobip provided E-table with both automated messaging and the ability to manually send notifications when there is need for immediate attention.

Last but not the least, to stay ahead of the competition, E-table found a way to engage their users and partner restaurants by providing a better experience with an additional communication channel – Viber. Except as additional way of communication with their users, they also started using it for promotion which elevated their advertising campaigns.

Result

By eliminating fake numbers in their database due to better security against fraud users, E-table managed to reduce the number of no-shows. While the rest of the industry is dealing with a 5-6% no-show rate, E-table boosted their business by decreasing no-show rate to a total of 1.75% which is 56.25% better than industry averages.

They decreased their costs because they were only sending messages to verified phone numbers, and were no longer wasting their resources on trying to service fake users.

After implementing Viber, E-table upgraded their communication experiences while still engaging with effective advertising. Viber also presented an additional channel, one users already know and love, and enhanced the quality of their messages with rich content. This wider reach allowed the company to promote their new deals to restaurant owners which led to an approximate 10% increase in sales.