Connect your Libro Live Waitlist directly to your restaurant's "Reserve with Google" profile. This powerful feature adds a "Join Waitlist" button that is visible to any customer who finds you on Google Search or Google Maps, allowing you to capture guests who are actively searching in your area.
For full documentation on the Live Waitlist, please view the complete article: Using the Live Waitlist on the New Dashboard Layout
Key Benefits
- Capture More Guests: Secure diners who are actively searching for a table in your area right now.
- Reduce Phone Calls: Frees up your host staff from answering "how long is the wait?" calls, as the live wait time is displayed directly on Google.
- Streamlined Operations: All guests, whether they join from Google or as in-person walk-ins, are funneled into your single, organized Libro waitlist.
How It Works
The process is designed to be simple for the guest and requires no new training for your staff.
For the Guest
- A guest finds your restaurant on Google Search or Maps.
- They see the "Join Waitlist" button, along with the current estimated wait time (this data is pulled live from your Libro system).
- The guest selects their party size and enters their contact details (Name and Phone Number) directly into the Google interface.
- They tap "Confirm" and are officially added to your list.
For Your Staff
- Seamless Integration: The guest from Google appears in your "Waiting" tab automatically, just like any other walk-in.
- Clear Identification: The guest's entry on the dashboard will display the "G" from Google icon, just like a Google reservation.
- Standard Workflow: Libro immediately sends the guest your standard confirmation SMS, including the link to the Live Waitlist web portal.
- No New Process: You manage them (e.g., send the "Table Ready" notification, track their status) in exactly the same way you manage all other guests on the waitlist.
Controlling Your Waitlist Flow
Closing Time Slots
For more granular control, you can manage availability using your time slots.
- To disable the waitlist for specific hours: The only way to do this is to manually close the time slots for that period in your dashboard.
- To disable the waitlist for a full day: Simply close the entire day in your schedule.
Key Rule: If a time slot or a day is manually closed in Libro, the Google Waitlist will not be available for that period.
Advanced Availability Rules
The Google Waitlist follows specific rules to determine availability. It's important to understand what it does and does not consider.
What the Waitlist Ignores:
- Time Gaps: The waitlist ignores any "Time Gap" settings. For example, a 2-hour or 24-hour reservation time gap will not prevent a guest from adding themselves to the waitlist immediately.
- Ticketing & No-Show Fees: If your restaurant uses ticketing or no-show fees for reservations, these are not applied to the waitlist. Guests can join the waitlist without a ticket purchase or credit card hold.
- Widget Status: The Google Waitlist can be active even if your main Libro reservation widget is disabled. It operates off your schedule and waitlist settings, not the widget's active status.
What the Waitlist Uses:
- Total Table Inventory: The waitlist is active even if your reservation inventory is "full." It calculates the wait time based on the expected leave times of current and future reservations.
- Non-Web Tables: The system considers your entire inventory, including tables marked as "non-web." This means you can use the waitlist even if you don't offer online reservations (e.g., by removing all web tables from your floor plan).
- Internal Slots: The waitlist will offer availability for any time slots you have marked as "Internal."
- Opening Hours & Meal Times: The waitlist respects your restaurant's opening hours and meal times. For example, if your meal time is 2 hours and your restaurant closes at 11:00 PM, a guest cannot join the waitlist after 9:00 PM, even if the floor plan shows availability.
How to Activate
To request the Google Waitlist Integration, please contact our support team at support@librorez.com.