Livebookings Barometer Reveals what Diners Really Think
24 May 2010
Industry first enables restaurants to benchmark against competition
London, 24 May 2010 Today Livebookings announces the UK launch of Livebookings Barometer, a unique tool that offers restaurateurs the opportunity to find out what their guests really think about their dining experience – and to benchmark their service against the rest of the industry.
Every month, Livebookings, the global online marketing and reservations service provider for the restaurant industry, will use the Livebookings Barometer to reveal the state of guest satisfaction with UK restaurants.
Livebookings Barometer is available to all Livebookings customers – who can use the results to evaluate their performance over time, and compare customer satisfaction levels by day and by lunch/dinner session.
A Barometer of performance
The service works by sending an email to all guests who have booked a table online, asking them four simple questions about their experience. The results are analysed at the end of each month and a summary report is sent to the restaurant. Because the same standard questions are sent to guests of all restaurants, the results allow the restaurateur to benchmark their performance against the rest of the industry – and to track, respond to and resolve customer service issues. Livebookings Barometer provides unprecedented response rates of 32% - due, in part, to the fact that the feedback is private to the restaurant and not for public view.
Commenting on the launch, Andris Berzins, Livebookings, said: “The launch of Livebookings Barometer is a long-awaited and important step for the industry. Restaurateurs are fast realising that listening and responding to customer feedback is critical for getting guests to come back and spend again – and this is the first time restaurateurs have been furnished with the tools to measure their performance against their peers, something hoteliers have been using for many years.”
Berzins continues; “The launch of this free tool is also an opportunity to see what real customers who have actually dined at your restaurant think about the experience. This is in stark contrast to the usual information restaurateurs receive; reports from those guests who loved or hated the experience. Livebookings Barometer offers feedback from a much broader set of diners.”
Livebookings Barometer in action
Lisa Ahmed, manager of Hanams Kurdish and Middle Eastern restaurant in Edinburgh, has been evaluating the service for two months and has been impressed with the information received: “Until recently, the only feedback we got from customers tended to be immediately after or during service. Livebookings Barometer has changed all of that – we can now track our service levels constantly and even compare where we are with regards to our competition.”
The basic service is free to all customers, with more detailed reports available for a small monthly fee.
On a monthly basis, Livebookings Barometer will be revealing the state of the UK dining industry with the Livebookings Barometer Index.
-Ends-
Notes to editors:
• The Livebookings Barometer survey provides unprecedented response rates – 32%
- This is because it is private feedback to the restaurant – not a public review
- And because it is fully integrated with the reservation process – diner gets the email the day after eating in the restaurant, does not have to enter any details about who they are and when they dined
• Livebookings Barometer allows restaurateurs to benchmark their restaurant against their direct competition or against the industry as a whole for the first time.
• Livebookings Barometer customers can use the results to evaluate their performance over time, compare satisfaction levels by day and by session (breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner etc)
• Livebookings Barometer has been used by Livebookings customers for over two months in the UK – as well as across Europe and the US
• The service is free to all Livebookings customers with a more detailed report available for a small monthly fee
• Livebookings has developed an industry first – a unique tool for restaurateurs to find out what diners REALLY think about their restaurant – and to benchmark themselves against the competition
• Every month, Livebookings will be announcing the state of guest satisfaction in the UK restaurant industry as it releases the Barometer results
• Customers include: Hanams, Sofra, Bistro 1