Website setup

Test your CoverCount booking flow before launch

Use this checklist to test direct booking links, embedded widgets, selected experiences, mobile layout, deposits or card holds, confirmation messages, and booking-source attribution before publishing.

Updated 2026-06-22

Use this checklist before you publish a new booking link, website button, embedded widget, QR code, email campaign, Google Business Profile link, or social profile link.

The goal is to confirm that a guest can open the link, choose the expected experience, complete the booking, see a confirmation, and appear correctly in the staff app.

Before You Start

You need:

  • The direct CoverCount booking URL or the published page with the embedded widget
  • A test date and time with real availability
  • A guest name for the test booking
  • A phone number or email address for the test booking
  • Staff app access to confirm the reservation after booking
  • Payment test approval if the experience requires a deposit or card hold

If your venue is already live, use a low-risk future slot and cancel the test reservation afterward.

1. Start From The Published Guest Link

Test the same URL guests will use. Do not test only from a website-builder preview.

For a direct booking link:

https://explore.covercount.io/oak-and-vine/reserve?utm_source=venue-website&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=reservations

For one experience:

https://explore.covercount.io/oak-and-vine/reserve?experience=wine-tasting&utm_source=venue-website&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=reservations

Replace oak-and-vine and wine-tasting with your CoverCount values.

For an embedded widget, open the live website page where the widget is installed.

2. Confirm The First Screen

Check that the guest sees the expected venue and booking flow.

Confirm:

  • The venue name is correct.
  • The correct experience appears, if the link is experience-specific.
  • The date selector starts on an expected date.
  • The party-size control works.
  • Available times appear.
  • Seating choices appear when the experience has multiple seating options.
  • The page is not blocked by a login, password page, cookie overlay, or website-builder preview mode.

If the wrong experience appears, check the experience value in the URL.

3. Test Desktop And Mobile

Test the booking flow in at least two sizes:

  • Desktop browser
  • Mobile phone browser

For embedded widgets, confirm:

  • The widget is visible without a blank area.
  • The widget is tall enough to show the booking flow.
  • Guests can scroll through the entire form.
  • Sticky headers, chat bubbles, cookie banners, or popups do not cover the booking form.
  • The widget is not hidden in the mobile version of the website.

If the widget is blank, cut off, or missing on mobile, see Troubleshoot the CoverCount booking widget.

4. Pick A Real Available Slot

Choose a slot that should be bookable.

Confirm:

  • The selected date is inside the public booking window.
  • The selected time is one the venue wants to offer.
  • The selected party size is allowed for that experience.
  • The selected seating option is available, if seating choices are shown.
  • Any cancellation policy or deposit/card-hold notice looks correct.

If no times appear when you expect availability, check the experience schedule, table eligibility, public booking window, party-size rules, and minimum-notice settings.

5. Submit Guest Details

Enter realistic guest details.

Required:

  • First name
  • Last name
  • Phone number or email address

Optional:

  • Special requests
  • SMS consent
  • Marketing email consent

Important checks:

  • Submitting with blank required fields should show field-level errors.
  • SMS consent requires a phone number.
  • Marketing email consent requires an email address.
  • The guest can complete the booking with either phone or email, as long as one contact method is present.

6. Test Deposit Or Card-Hold Experiences

If the experience requires a deposit or card hold, test that path separately.

Check:

  • The payment or authorization amount is correct.
  • The cancellation policy appears before the guest pays or authorizes.
  • The payment form loads.
  • The button text matches the flow, such as Pay ... and Book or Authorize ... and Book.
  • After payment or authorization, the guest can finish the booking.

If your venue is in production, confirm before testing whether the flow will charge or authorize a real payment method. Use a staff-approved test booking and clean it up afterward.

7. Confirm The Guest Success Page

After submitting the booking, the guest should see a confirmation page.

Confirm:

  • The page says the reservation is confirmed.
  • The guest name appears when available.
  • The experience, date, time, and party size are correct.
  • The reservation number appears.
  • A Manage reservation link appears when available.
  • The page says a confirmation is on its way to the contact information on file.

Open the manage link and confirm the guest can view the reservation details.

8. Check The Staff App

Open the staff app and find the reservation.

Confirm:

  • The reservation appears on the expected date and time.
  • The party size is correct.
  • The experience is correct.
  • The table or seating assignment looks reasonable.
  • Special requests are present, if entered.
  • Payment/deposit/card-hold state looks correct, if applicable.
  • Guest contact information is correct.
  • Confirmation communications are queued, sent, or intentionally suppressed according to venue settings.

If the test should not remain active, cancel it after verification.

9. Check Source Tracking

If the link has UTM parameters, confirm the booking source.

For a quick grouped view, check Reports > Reservations by source.

For row-level detail, use Reports > Reservations export and inspect:

  • BookingSource
  • BookingSourceDetail

Example source values:

BookingSource: venue-website
BookingSourceDetail: utm_source=venue-website;utm_medium=referral;utm_campaign=reservations

For more detail, see Track where CoverCount bookings come from.

10. Test Every Public Entry Point

Repeat the checklist for every place guests can start booking.

Common entry points:

  • Website header button
  • Mobile menu button
  • Embedded website widget
  • Google Business Profile
  • Instagram profile
  • Facebook page
  • Email campaign
  • QR code
  • Printed flyer or table tent

Each entry point can use the same booking flow, but it should have its own tracking parameters.

Launch Checklist

Before announcing the link:

  • The published public link opens correctly.
  • Desktop and mobile both work.
  • The correct experience appears.
  • Guest validation works.
  • A normal no-payment booking can be completed.
  • Deposit or card-hold bookings work, if used.
  • Confirmation page details are correct.
  • Manage reservation link works.
  • Staff can find the reservation.
  • Payment state is correct.
  • Booking source tracking is readable.
  • The test reservation has been cancelled or left intentionally.

More Help

Related guides:

For help with a launch test, contact support@covercount.io with the guest link, website page URL, test date and time, and the result you expected.