The humble hotel reception, with its familiar paper ledger and clunky cash register has come a long way over the last 30 years, explains John Jones, Managing Director of Welcome Systems Ltd.

The Pitsford-based hotel and restaurant booking software business, which also specialises in electronic point of sale (EPOS) systems, has witnessed the disappearance of bells, books and oversized computers across the hospitality sector.

John explains: “Everything about how hotels, restaurants and pubs operate on a day-to-day basis has changed to meet raised customer demands for improved comfort, value and convenience.

“Guests expect to be able to visit a hotel or restaurant’s website and view rooms, facilities, menus and check availability instantly, before choosing to make a reservation on a 24/7 basis.

“Similarly, hospitality managers need to automatically coordinate bookings and finances, send out confirmation emails to clients and accomplish everything easily and at the touch of a screen, whether they are using a PC, tablet, smartphone or a combination of all three.”

John adds that busy hoteliers, restaurant and pub owners are now embracing the latest online booking and EPOS technology to vastly improve their customer-service, while giving themselves more time to focus on the day-to-day necessities of running a successful business.

“There’s no doubt the future of hotel and restaurant booking is online,” he says. “As well as managing room and table availability, and avoiding double-booking, Google’s most recent Consumer Barometer information confirms that online searches account for 31% of all sales in the hospitality sector.

“If anyone is still managing their business with paper and pen we strongly urge them to take up the offer of a free, one-month trial of our Welcome Anywhere or Welcome Table systems, or get in touch to discuss their EPOS requirements.”

Further details available at: welcome-systems.uk