Wednesday, February 24th, 2010
I’m happy to announce we’ve partnered with Element Payment Services, Inc., a company that provides PCI compliant processing solutions to software providers and merchants that accept credit cards. This partnership will allow our customers to securely accept credit cards, process payments, secure reservations and collect deposits directly through a unique portal located in their ReServe Interactive software without ever having to transmit or store sensitive cardholder information. Element’s solution simplifies processes for both our customers and ourselves, leaving us all risk-free and in compliance with today’s PCI specifications.
We researched several providers before we selected Element, keeping in mind our expectation of partnership that I blogged about in January, and found that not only is their solution exceptional, but they value a successful partnership as much as we do. The decision was easy because we knew that both sides would have the customers’ best interests in mind.
So far, the partnership process has been a wonderful experience. The staff at Element is friendly, helpful, generous with their time and accommodating to our needs. All of these factors are important when dealing with an issue as sensitive as PCI Compliance. We knew we needed a partner who not only understood the importance of compliance for our customers and our industry, but was willing to take the steps necessary to get our customers and our company compliant as quickly as possible.
A successful partnership can be easy to achieve when both sides are on the same page. We look forward to working with Element Payment Services, and providing our customers with the superior products and the highest level of service they’ve come to expect from us since 1996.
Wednesday, February 17th, 2010
It seems like the word ‘intuitive’ is getting thrown around more and more often. I’ve seen it used relative to medical devices, racing equipment and appliances. And while most of these products are truly intuitive or have intuitive features, there are some companies that make the claim, but fall very short.
Take, for example, some of the other catering and event management software products on the market today. They offer a lot of fancy features, have interfaces that look like other well-known software products, and claim to be easy to use. Many of our customers have tried these products and shared their experiences. Based on their input, intuition may not necessarily be the word they would use to describe the products. Functional? Yes. Easy-to-use? Sometimes. But just because a product is easy to use, doesn’t make it intuitive. What makes software intuitive? I guess that depends on your definition of intuitive.
Let me share what we think intuitive means. Intuitive, to us, means that we understand our customers’ businesses inside and out, top to bottom, and with that knowledge we’ve created a smart software system that is designed to become an integral part of a company’s day-to-day processes. It means we’ve built our software on a proprietary platform that was developed by professionals with years of experience in the design and development of effective user interfaces for high-tech products in a variety of industries. These individuals have an instinctive knowledge of user-centered design processes and, partnered with people that have extensive catering sales and hospitality experience, were able to design a product that incorporates human interface technologies with the specific, real world needs of the hospitality industry. Our software was created by people who have stood in the customer’s shoes. We know what our customers need because we know what we needed when we were standing at the hostess desk or taking calls in the sales office. Our software speaks their language, understands what they need moment by moment, and anticipates what they will need down the road.
Developed using our proprietary platform, our Event Lifecycle Technology™ (ELT) and Smart Reservation Technology™ (SRT) features can do what no other products on the market can do. The unique, process-driven architecture enables ReServe to anticipate a customer’s next steps and prompts them for the necessary information. The software knows what the customer needs every step of the way and puts the information right at the user’s fingertips where and when they need it. It remembers the details and enforces business practices automatically, so the customer doesn’t have to. That’s what makes our software so powerful – so easy to learn, so effortless to use – so intuitive.
We’d like to think that when we say intuitive, not only do we mean it, but we can prove it. Just ask any of our customers.
Wednesday, February 10th, 2010
If you didn’t catch it in our press release or on the web, we just promoted one of our employees, Tina Gangel, to sales associate. In her new role, Tina will be responsible for taking care of our existing customers, and working with customers throughout all stages of the sales cycle.
Tina joined ReServe Interactive in 2008 as a contract administrator managing support contracts and software renewals, and has impressed us since day one. Not only was her background with Nortel Networks impressive, but she proved herself to be invaluable to every member of the ReServe team and all of the customers she came into contact with.
Tina’s enthusiasm is contagious. She’s passionate about our company, our product and our customers. We’re glad to have her on board and eager to watch her grow in her new role.
Tuesday, February 2nd, 2010
I came across a great article in the January 2010 American Express Market Brief about restaurant trends. One of the things touched on was online dining reservations. It states that as few as 14 percent of consumers have made restaurant reservations online. That seems like a staggeringly low number considering today’s 24/7 Internet connectivity, endless cell phone apps and the ongoing push towards the use of technology for everyday activities, such as socializing, grocery shopping and schooling. But really, if you think about it, technology can be intimidating and with so many new applications and gadgets coming down the pipeline at a steady pace, it’s no wonder that so few have taken advantage of online reservation services.
The research also explained that 44 percent of consumers, when asked what they felt was the primary advantage of using an online tool said they liked the ability to make a reservation when it was convenient for them. Followed by not having to talk to a live human being, never being put on hold, getting an immediate confirmation of the reservation, having the reservation details entered correctly and earning rewards points for booking online.
What does all of this mean? Online reservation systems are just catching on with consumers and when they do take advantage of the ability to book a reservation online, they do it because it’s convenient and it eliminates some of the hassle associated with calling a restaurant during business hours to book a reservation.
Restaurants have several options for online dining reservation tools. The key is to find one that is convenient and cost effective for them. Steer clear of ‘per seat’ transaction fees. If a busy restaurant takes quite a few reservations online, this fee could end up costing thousands of dollars. The other consideration is finding a tool where reservation data is captured, owned and maintained by the restaurant, and the restaurant alone. Restaurants shouldn’t have to pay to use their own customer data. Finally, when a customer requests a specific reservation time and it’s unavailable, restaurants want to make sure that the guest remains on their site and in their dining room, so the ability to offer alternative dates and times is critical. No one wants a tool that will suggest different restaurants with that available date and time. That’s money out the window. The ultimate goal should be to implement a tool that will bring in business and boost revenue. Convenience should be just as important to the restaurant owner as it is to the consumer.
ReServe offers an online reservation tool called ReServeIT. We think it’s pretty convenient – for everyone who uses it.
