One of the essential tools that your company needs is meeting room booking software. This is because it makes the booking of rooms easy and convenient. Other than that, it helps avoid room hoarding and wasted meetings. For example, if there is no set procedure for booking rooms, people will compete for any available spot with others arriving earlier to book. Wasted meetings happen when a meeting is canceled, the space opens up, but people do not know the space is empty.
A room meeting booking software will help you stay organized and streamline the meeting room booking process. While there may be many options to choose from, you must get one that fits your current needs. Here is what to look out for in a meeting room booking software;
Built-in reporting capabilities
Reports have become a critical component of any business. Many companies require a tool that offers quick reports. Software with built-in analytics will help you track room usage and assist in making decisions regarding the same. You could also use the statistics to improve on strategies regarding the everyday usage of the meeting rooms.
Ease of use
When choosing a meeting room software, you have to remember that not everyone may have a technical orientation. Therefore, you should go for something very intuitive and easy to use and learn too. Being user-friendly and having self-serving abilities make the process fast and painless.
Also, it encourages user adoption, and you won’t fear that users may reject it. The aim of transitioning to a digital solution is to save on time and effort, so selecting a meeting room booking system that takes ages to learn how to use defeats the purpose.
Accessibility
Do you want people to access the software anywhere and anytime? Then you need to factor in that when choosing the room booking software. The staff or anyone who needs to schedule a meeting should not have to be at a specific place to book a room. It should be easily accessible through the web and on mobile devices like smartphones and tablets.
Scalability
The number of people you expect to use the software to book rooms may be small now, but what happens when the number grows in a few years? Will the software keep up? You will have to consider the scalability of the software and if it has the functionality and capacity to accommodate many users. The way to go is software that can benefit the company for the long term rather than just being a temporary solution.
Additionally, suppose the organization has desks, meeting rooms, and resources in multiple locations. In that case, you will have to select a meeting room software that can scale to multiple locations and handle bookings across different time zones.
Ability to combine with the company’s ERP system
A meeting room booking software that integrates with the company’s ERP system makes the process more efficient as it allows users to complete the order-to-invoice process seamlessly. That way, one can book and make payments without having to do it manually. How convenient?
Ability to synchronize with the existing calendar
To avoid conflicts in your workplace, you will need software that is designed with integration in mind. For instance, if your organization uses Outlook to schedule meetings, it should be 100% integrated. It should also have the ability to utilize your existing Microsoft or Google calendar system. This helps in having meetings booked through the apps appearing immediately on the outlook calendar. Also, with synchronization, any changes can be detected immediately, giving users access to current information.
Customization tools
If you want to give people options in terms of the rooms they choose, i.e., in terms of size, several desks, and meeting rooms, you will need to select a meeting scheduling software that comes with inbuilt customization tools. This feature allows users to filter rooms based on the equipment or size they need. This will help you accommodate all the meeting room options you may have and reflect this variety to the users.
Ability to provide additional services along with meeting room booking
In addition to meeting room booking, the software should allow users to order catering and other services they need during the meeting. This reduces disruptions of having to look for the services elsewhere during the meeting.
Visitor management module integration
A visitor management system helps you deliver the best visitor experience. Not only does it assist you to monitor, track and record visitor information, but it also gives a great first-time impression to the visitors. By integrating it into the meeting room software, you can register visitors fast and alert hosts via slack, email, or text once the visitors arrive. This allows the receptionists to print name badges for visitors giving them ample time to concentrate on other things.
Conclusion
Having the right meeting room booking system helps manage meeting room logistics with ease. No matter the organization’s size, a meeting room booking software that offers the above is a good option. Here, we’ve explored the main things to assess when choosing one.