Oftentimes, people may not trust the results of an online booking process. It’s important for a client to see a resulting action from their online request which in the case of a table booking, would be an immediately confirmed reservation.
Potential diners are often asked to fill in a booking form, and after pressing the button “Book”, they (instead) receive a response that asks them to wait for further confirmation. Well, is it booked, or not? That’s not a reservation system, it’s a request system!
Booking systems should be instant as customers will often desire an immediate confirmation so they know whether or not to book somewhere else. Many reservation systems require a responsible restaurant staff member to manually complete this request which slows the whole process down.
It is obvious to customers that reservations made on pending confirmation offers no guarantees. and that’s why online reservations should always be immediate.