You\u2019re probably reading this because you have an automated booking confirmation process, right? You take trip reservations over the phone. You write your client\u2019s contact information and credit card details on a random piece of paper. Then you draft an email with the trip date, time, meeting location, and whatever they need to bring with them.<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve heard this story hundreds of times. In fact, one of our clients, Ryan, at Atlantic Climbing School<\/a>, realized he was working hours before and<\/em> after business hours doing menial and mundane tasks like sending confirmation emails to clients. All the extra time spent on manual tasks took time away from his personal life and drove him to the edge.<\/p>\n Since implementing Origin, Ryan\u2019s saved 15 hours a week and got his personal life back. So, you might still be wondering, what are booking confirmations, how do I automate them, and what are you trying to sell? Let\u2019s start with your first question<\/p>\n A booking confirmation is a receipt you give to your client after you successfully reserve their trip.\u00a0<\/p>\n A booking confirmation typically includes:<\/p>\n This doesn\u2019t just give your guests peace of mind, but it helps you as well. It keeps your records organized, helps you plan trips, and protects you from any disputes that could arise.<\/p>\n There are several different kinds of booking confirmations you can include in your booking confirmation system\u2014and we suggest including them all. This is likely your guest\u2019s first time adventuring with you so give them as much information as is necessary for them to feel confident and get excited.\u00a0<\/p>\n The most important booking confirmation is their receipt. Adventure trips are not cheap. Send your clients peace of mind with a booking receipt that breaks down their costs. If you\u2019re using booking and scheduling software<\/a>, the system will send this automatically.\u00a0<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n A booking confirmation can be part of the receipt or separate, depending on the booking and scheduling software you use. If you do this manually, then that\u2019s entirely up to you, but you\u2019re doubling your process and possibly annoying your customers by sending them separate emails with the receipt and trip information.<\/p>\n Origin includes the cost of the trip as well as the booking details in one automated email to your clients so they have all their information in one message. This helps prevent information getting lost or forgotten too.<\/p>\n Another automated booking confirmation is the digital waiver sent to your clients to protect your company in case any of your guests injure themselves. When it\u2019s automatically sent, there\u2019s less worry that it\u2019s A.) Not signed and B.) Not forgotten.<\/p>\n Depending on the system you use, your confirmation system may or may not send a message one day before the trip. Origin does this because people are human and clients forget. We include important details in case there is required gear or a certain meeting spot that your clients need to remember.<\/p>\n Using Origin, guests receive an email notifying we charged them the remaining balance owed on their trip (if you take deposits). If you don\u2019t take deposits, clients don\u2019t receive any Origin emails day of the trip, but if you\u2019re doing this all manually, you might be sending out another reminder email day of, which could be a waste of your time.\u00a0<\/p>\n Reviews<\/a> are what get you future business. In fact, 98% of people trust reviews<\/a> when buying sometihng. Asking for a review when your trip is still top-of-mind gives you a better chance of your customers leaving one. And if you don\u2019t have an automated post-trip review request setup, you\u2019re missing out on so many opportunities.\u00a0<\/p>\n Sometimes, your clients won\u2019t respond to your first review request and that\u2019s okay. That\u2019s standard and that\u2019s why Origin sends a friendly reminder one week after the trip. How many of you (or your current booking system) are giving up after the first attempt? If you asked first manually, it\u2019s likely you didn\u2019t ask again. Set up automated review request emails<\/a> so you don\u2019t have to think about it later.<\/p>\n Because your current manual process is holding you back. Operators who are sending every email from their account are wasting hours every day. You\u2019re likely coming into the office early and leaving late because of tasks like these.<\/p>\n There are several other reasons why tour operators should automate their booking confirmation communications:<\/p>\n When you automate your booking confirmation communications, you\u2019ll help reduce human errors and your customers will get immediate and accurate confirmations regardless of the time of day.<\/p>\n Incorporating automated booking confirmation systems gives your customers confidence in your guiding business. By sending them instant confirmations with important information like payment details, meeting points and times, and essential gear, you project a professional image throughout the booking process.<\/p>\n Automating your booking confirmations frees up staff time which could help reduce the need for additional personnel and lower operational expenses, especially during the busy when you have a higher booking volume.\u00a0<\/p>\n Automating your booking confirmation communications can be simple if you work with the right software, apps, or tools. Or, you can make it hard on yourself by continuing to do it all manually. And it\u2019s not just time that\u2019s at stake, right?<\/p>\n Your reputation and business are also on the line too when you continue to do things the hard, manual way.<\/p>\n Instead of jeopardizing your business, let\u2019s see how using Origin can help you create an automated booking confirmation system with minimal work.\u00a0<\/p>\n You only need two different tools: booking software and an email marketing platform. Outside of Origin, there are other booking platforms\u2014The Flybook<\/a>, Checkfront<\/a>, Peek Pro<\/a>, Rezdy<\/a>, and Acuity<\/a>\u2014but we can\u2019t speak to their automated booking confirmation communication capabilities.<\/p>\n With your chosen booking software, next you need to setup any email marketing that\u2019s not part of the platform already. Besides MailChimp, there are email marketing platforms like Constant Contact<\/a>, HubSpot<\/a>, ActiveCampaign<\/a>, GetResponse<\/a>, and MailerLite<\/a>. Make sure your booking and scheduling software integrates with your email marketing platform, otherwise, you\u2019ll create more work for yourself.<\/p>\n You could also get by with just using Origin if you\u2019re not ready to tackle email marketing (P.S. Origin integrates with MailChimp<\/a>).<\/p>\n If you\u2019re not using Origin, you\u2019ll have to create triggers and templates for your emails. It\u2019s work at the beginning because you\u2019ll be starting from scratch, but once you\u2019ve created them, you won\u2019t have to worry about it until you want to make edits in the future.<\/p>\n When you\u2019re on Origin, you don\u2019t have to set up any triggers or templates\u2014they\u2019re built into the system. Check out the graphic below to see the various booking confirmation communications the system automatically sends on your behalf.<\/p>\n When creating an automated booking confirmation communication system, you\u2019ll need to customize emails with your customer\u2019s information. You also want to make sure they\u2019re able to be read on different devices. Something an automated system can do for you.<\/p>\n If you want to do it manually or set up an automated system yourself, some components to include in your emails should be:<\/p>\n If that sounds like a lot, it\u2019s because it is, especially for guides with not much downtime. Instead, consider using booking and scheduling software<\/a> that will do all of that for you. Origin sends emails to your customers on your behalf with all the important information they need (your customer\u2019s name, details, tour information, guide\u2019s name, gear needed, and meeting points) to get excited and feel confident about their adventure with you.<\/p>\n You don\u2019t have to do anything to send these booking confirmation communications. We do it for you. When you\u2019re ready to take on email marketing (read Email Marketing For Adventure Guides In 5 Easy Steps<\/a> to get started), Origin connects with MailChimp so you have your customers\u2019 contact information already in one place. From there, it\u2019s as simple as creating marketing email templates and scheduling them to go out to different lists you make.<\/p>\n Rarely can you \u201cset it and forget it\u201d when it comes to booking confirmation communications when you\u2019re doing it yourself. There\u2019s always something to tweak and refine when you\u2019re managing it yourself.<\/p>\n Consider the following elements to monitor messages and use them to refine your automated booking confirmation communications:<\/p>\n By following these steps and continuously refining your system, you can create an automated booking confirmation system that saves time, improves customer experience, and drives success for your tour operation.<\/p>\n![\"checking](\"https:\/\/exploreorigin.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/onur-binay-rvQmTjflcsE-unsplash-min-1024x576.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nWhat Is A Booking Confirmation?<\/h2>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/exploreorigin.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/austin-distel-gUIJ0YszPig-unsplash-3-min-1024x683.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nTypes Of Booking Confirmations<\/h2>\n
Receipt<\/h4>\n
Booking confirmation<\/h4>\n
Waiver<\/h4>\n
Day Before Trip Reminder<\/h4>\n
Day Of Trip Reminder\u00a0<\/h4>\n
Review Request Day After Trip<\/h4>\n
1-Week Reminder Of Review Request<\/h4>\n
![\"manual](\"https:\/\/exploreorigin.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/felipe-furtado-2zDXqgTzEFE-unsplash-min-1024x681.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nWhy Should You Bother Automating Your Booking Confirmation Communications?<\/h2>\n
You\u2019ll mess up less and have 24\/7 availability<\/h3>\n
You\u2019ll better serve your customers<\/h3>\n
You\u2019ll reduce operational costs and scale easier<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/exploreorigin.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/jeshoots-com-LtNvQHdKkmw-unsplash-min-1024x683.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nHow Origin Can Help You Create The Best Damn Automated Booking Confirmation System<\/h2>\n
1. Choose Your Tools To Automate Booking Confirmations<\/h3>\n
2. Define Triggers and Templates To Make It Easier For Future Messaging<\/h3>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/exploreorigin.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/image.png\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n3. Customize and Optimize Your Booking Confirmation Emails<\/h3>\n
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4. Monitor and Refine Your Strategy<\/h3>\n
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