Feature Overview: Pencil-In Hold

Discover how this feature can complement your booking strategy and simplify the process of providing quotes to your guests for future bookings.

Summary:

Pencil-In Holds in Campspot let you temporarily reserve a campsite for a guest when their payment information isn't immediately available or they're not ready to commit to a booking. This feature empowers guests to finalize their reservations within a specified time frame, ensuring a smooth and flexible booking process. Explore the details of this powerful tool in the overview below.

Uses:

Default Hold Period: As an operator, you can define a default hold period, giving guests a specific timeframe to confirm their booking while keeping the reservation secure.
Automated Booking Process: Once a site is added to the cart and guest contact information is captured, your users can quickly convert an unconfirmed booking into a Pencil-In Hold. This allows your team to focus on other guests, as the system handles communication and finalizes the booking online.
Enhanced Guest Experience: The automated email from your Admin Site provides guests with a summary of the held reservation and a link to complete the booking, offering convenience and efficiency.

Overview of Pencil-In Holds

Pencil-In Holds are a transformative tool designed to elevate your park's booking strategy. Imagine a scenario where a potential guest identifies the perfect site and receives a quote, but needs additional time to make a decision. With Pencil-In Holds, you can effortlessly send them the quote via email, allowing them to book at their convenience.

Pencil-In Holds on your Booking Grid

Pencil-in holds display on the grid as grey blocks with text indicating the reservation holder's name. This type of hold can be locked and therefore may appear candy-striped.

pencil-in-block

New to Pencil-In Holds? Check out these articles for even more information:

How does this feature work?

Pencil-In Hold Setup

Your park Administrator defines the Pencil-In Hold expiration period in hours within the Admin Site settings. To configure:

Navigate to Campground Setup.
Click on the Properties tab.
Select the General page.
Scroll down to the "Define Time Periods" section.
Define the number of hours to "Hold" the site and reservation.
Click Save Changes.

Pencil-In Hold _ Setup Hours

Converting an Unconfirmed booking into a Pencil-In Hold

After adding a site to your Admin Site cart and capturing the guest's contact information, you can choose to "Continue to Pencil-In Hold details" at the checkout screen. Here, you can either confirm the default expiration date and time for the hold, or adjust it as needed with approval from your Park Administrator.

Once set, the guest will automatically receive an email from your Admin Site with a reservation summary and a direct link to complete their booking online.

Click here to learn more about How To: Create a Pencil-in Hold.

Who can use this feature?

Any front desk user or those with Booking User permissions can access and use this feature. While there are no restrictions on updating individual Pencil-In expiration periods, a System Admin with appropriate permissions can set up the default expiration period setup.

Why Use this feature?

Utilizing Pencil-In Holds boosts your booking strategy, enhances guest satisfaction, provides an additional touchpoint to convert inquiries into confirmed bookings, and reduces the need for repetitive follow-up calls.

Using a Pencil-In Hold

Whether creating or claiming a Pencil-In Hold, you will find the process is fairly straight forward and easy to use. Check out these resources to learn more:

Additional Resources:

When a Pencil-In Hold expires, the held reservation is deleted. However, the report below provides information from those holds. Check out this report to track and leverage data collected during the Pencil-In Hold process:

Report Overview: Pencil-In and Group Hold by Expiration Date

How is a Pencil-In Hold different from an Admin Hold?

Pencil-In Hold

Temporarily reserves a site for a guest during the reservation process.
Empowers guests to hold a site while finalizing their booking online.
Ideal for guests needing extra time to confirm their plans.
Complements a park's booking strategy by increasing flexibility and customer satisfaction.

Admin Hold

Internally "closes" individual or multiple sites from accepting new bookings.
Used for specific date ranges due to maintenance or housekeeping issues.
Ensures smooth operations by preventing unexpected guest bookings during downtime.

Click here to learn more about using Admin Holds.

Most Common FAQ:

Q: What is a Pencil-In Hold in Campspot?

A Pencil-In Hold is a feature that allows you to temporarily reserve a campsite for a guest when they are not ready to commit to a booking or their payment information is not immediately available. This provides guests with a specific timeframe to finalize their reservation.

Q: How do I set up a default hold period for Pencil-In Holds?

Your park Administrator can define the default hold period within the Admin Site settings by navigating to Campground Setup, clicking on the Properties tab, selecting the General page, and defining the number of hours in the "Define Time Periods" section.

Q: What happens after a Pencil-In Hold is completed?

Once a site is added to the cart and guest contact information is captured, a user can elect to convert the Unconfirmed booking into a Pencil-In Hold. The user will select an expiration period for the hold.

From there, an automated email is sent to the guest with a reservation summary and a link to complete the booking online. Learn more by checking out these articles:

Q: Who can access and use the Pencil-In Hold feature?

Any front desk user or those with Booking User permissions can access and use this feature. The system allows individual Pencil-In expiration periods to be updated, with System Admins setting up the default expiration period.

Q: What are the benefits of using Pencil-In Holds?

Pencil-In Holds enhance your park's booking strategy, increase guest satisfaction, provide an additional touchpoint to convert inquiries into confirmed bookings, and reduce the need for repetitive follow-up calls.

Q: How is a Pencil-In Hold different from an Admin Hold?

A Pencil-In Hold temporarily reserves a site for a guest during the reservation process, empowering guests to complete their booking online. An Admin Hold, on the other hand, internally "closes" sites from accepting new bookings for specific date ranges, typically for maintenance or housekeeping issues.