Olo's Reservations and Waitlist features fully integrate with Reserve With Google. Enabling the integration will allow your guests to reserve a table or join your remote waitlist from Google by simply searching for your restaurant’s location. This functionality is available via web and mobile searches.
Skip To:
- Getting Started
- Activating the Google Integration
- Google Reservation Types
- Disabling the Google Integration
- Re-Enabling the Google Integration
- FAQ
Getting Started
To use this integration, your concept must have a Google My Business profile. To find more information about starting a Google My Business profile, visit the Google My Business portal.
Add the hours your business is open (i.e. the regular customer-facing hours of operation for a typical week). For days when you have unusual hours, like holidays or special events, set special hours. Learn more about hours guidelines.
- Sign in to Google My Business. If you have multiple locations, open the location you'd like to manage.
- Click Info from the menu.
- Next to "Add hours" or your current business hours, click Hours.
- Turn on each day of the week that your business is open.
- Next to each day of the week that your business is open, click Opens at, and then select the opening time.
- Next to each day of the week that your business is open, click Closes at, and then select the closing time.
- After you’re done setting your hours, click Apply.
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For advanced Google My Business help resources, please reference the Google My Business Help Center. |
Activating the Google Integration
Reservations:
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Confirm that you have built your inventory using the Reservation Availability tool.
- Confirm that you have checked the Sync availability to Google checkbox in your Reservation Type settings.
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Turn on the Reservations integration with Google in the Engage Dashboard within the Settings tab. Noting only Admin users have the access to enable the integration.
Waitlist:
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Google requires that the waitlist integration includes a waitlist status page for every party. Prior to enabling the integration, reach out to our support team to ensure your waitlist text notifications include a Guest Webview page.
- Google Waitlist will always allow parties of 1-6 guests to join. This is currently not customizable.
- Turn on the Waitlist integration with Google in the Engage Dashboard. See above image.
Once the integration with Google is turned on, it can take up to 24-48 hours before your Reservations/Waitlist buttons are active within your Google Listings.
Google Reservation Types
*Note: Please be aware that Google has guidelines regarding the naming of Reservation Types. You can find more information on that HERE.
The Google integration supports multiple Reservation Types. Within the Reservation Availability tool you can create multiple reservation types that can be selected to display on Google when guests are booking a reservation.
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How does this work?
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When creating a Reservation Type, you now have 2 new options in the Settings:
- "Select as Default"
- "Sync availability to Google"
- Check the "Sync availability to Google" box for every reservation type you'd like to be available via Google
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When creating a Reservation Type, you now have 2 new options in the Settings:
Important Notes
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Google My Business has a limit of 2 buttons present in Google Results. Online Ordering and Waitlist/Reservation buttons will be automatically consolidated if there are more than two.
- In order for the "Reserve with Google" option to show, your brand MUST have the Google integration for Reservations enabled by Olo Support.
- There is no limit on the number of reservation types that can be synced.
- Default reservation types - When creating a reservation on the iPad or Dashboard, rather than making the Host/manager select a reservation type every time, we allow a brand to choose a "Default" - this will automatically start the reservation flow with that reservation type selected. This saves taps/clicks for the operator
- The party size picker is now dynamic based on your Reservation Availability of the reservation types being synced to Google (with a max of 20). This does not apply to the Waitlist party size picker (hard-coded for a max party size of 6).
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For table-based reservation types, you no longer need to have tables that include 1 in capacity - all capacity ranges will sync.
Disabling the Google Waitlist Integration
Disabling individual or specific dates:
- Sign in to the Engage Dashboard
- Next to your concept's name, click the arrow down and select Settings & Configuration.
- From the menu on the left, select Host, and then Waitlist & Reservations.
- Click on the blue button Create a Block
- Select a date, time, location, and message you you like to display to customers when trying to access your waitlist or reservations via Google.
- Click Save to apply the block to the selected date.
Disabling Indefinitely:
Users with admin level access can disable the integration in the Engage dashboard via Settings > Host > Waitlist & Reservations. This is the same page where date specific blocks can be added.
Once in this page, admin users can use the on/off switches to disable the integration at a specific location:
Please note that this update can take up to 24h to reflect within your listings.
If you need the integration disabled indefinitely and do not have admin access to the dashboard, please reach out to the Engage Support team.
Re-Enabling the Google Integration
When re-opening, your Google Remote Waitlist and Reservations button may not be active. That will happen if your Google My Business profile's status is set to "Temporarily closed" or "Not supporting Dine In".
To resurface the integration and button, update your settings on Google My Business and make sure your location is not marked as closed, and/or not accepting "Dine In".
Please submit a ticket to Engage Support to ensure that the integration is enabled on our end as well.
Once the integration with Google is turned on, it can take up to 24 hours before your Reservations/Waitlist buttons are active within your Google Listings.
FAQ
How far in advance does Google allow reservation bookings?
Google allows bookings up to 30 days in advance as long as your Reservation Availability is configured with available slots.
I turned on the integration, but the Google button is not showing up. What is causing this?
That happens when your Google My Business profile's status is set to "Temporarily closed" or "Not supporting Dine In". To resurface the integration and button, update your settings on Google My Business and make sure your location is not marked as closed, and/or not accepting "Dine In".
Can I customize the messaging from Google Reservations?
No. Although Reservations descriptions and messaging are highly customizable in Olo Forms, we are unable to customize Google's messaging.
Can we disable Google's Waitlist without disabling Olo's online form? In other words, do Google Waitlist and the Olo online forms work together, or are they totally separate functions?
The Olo online form functionality and Google's functionality can be managed separately. We can disable Google and leave your form in place, or we can disable your form and leave Google Waitlist in place. We can also shut off all Waitlist functionality which would disable both at the same time.