She has come every August for six years
A long-standing customer rings in May asking for her usual fortnight in August for her two Labradors and her cat. The Labradors have been coming since they were puppies. This year she is too late. The runs went in March to people you had never met before, some of whom found you through a search.
She is disappointed, you are embarrassed, and she books another kennels that has space. Next year, she will probably book them again.
First come, first served treats regulars like strangers
Most kennels open peak dates to everyone at the same time, usually whenever someone asks. Regulars assume they will fit in, because they always have. Nothing reminds them when dates are filling.
- Past stays are in the booking system but nobody looks at them for next year.
- There is no early window for returning customers.
- Rebooking relies on the customer remembering to ring early.
- Regulars have to repeat their pets' details, vet and feeding every time.
- Staff know the regulars personally but have no time to ring round.
Losing the customers who cost least to serve
Regulars are the easiest customers you have. Their dogs know your staff, their paperwork is on file, and they rarely cancel. Losing them to a first-come rush means replacing them with new customers who need trials, vaccination checks from scratch and more reassurance.
Regulars also bring friends. A loyal customer who is turned away tells people, and the story is not a kind one.
There is a planning cost as well. Without knowing how many regulars intend to come back, you cannot tell in February how much of August is really spoken for, so decisions about seasonal staff, prices and how hard to advertise are made blind.
Invitations based on past stays
We build a rebooking process that looks at who stayed with you before, and when, and invites them in good time.
- Past bookings are analysed to find patterns, such as customers who booked the same school holiday or Christmas week in previous years.
- At a date you choose, those customers get a personal invitation by email or text: we have your usual August fortnight, would you like to book it again?
- The link opens a booking already filled in with their pets, vet, feeding and last year's dates, which they adjust and confirm.
- A priority window, whose length you set, gives regulars first refusal before dates open to everyone.
- Staff see who has rebooked, who has declined and who has not responded, and can call the ones they want to speak to.
- When the window closes, remaining runs open to the public and your waiting list.
| Customer | Invitation | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Same August fortnight three years running | Invited in January | Rebooks online |
| Came for one Christmas | Invited for Christmas | Declines, frees the slot |
| Regular with changed dates | Invited with last year's dates | Adjusts and books |
| No response | Reminder, then staff call list | Decided before public opening |
Who gets priority, and for how long, is your decision. Some kennels give priority only to customers who stayed in the last year or two, which the system handles.
January, not May
In January your regulars get their invitations. By the end of February most of August's regular bookings are in, with deposits paid and pet details confirmed. The long-standing Labrador customer books in a lunch break. In March, the remaining runs open to new customers, and you know exactly how many there are.
Are your regulars slipping away?
- Long-standing customers have been turned away for peak weeks.
- Regulars have to ring to rebook each year.
- There is no priority window for returning customers.
- Pet details are taken from scratch every booking.
- You do not know who rebooked last year and who did not.