Pre-visit questions collect details that help staff prepare for a specific reservation. They are useful when the answer changes service: allergies, occasions, seating needs, membership context, accessibility needs, or planning details for a larger visit.
Use questions carefully. Every extra question adds friction. A good question helps service. An unnecessary question slows guests down and gives staff information they may not use.
What Pre-Visit Questions Do
Pre-visit questions belong to an Experience. When a guest books that Experience, CoverCount can ask for visit details after booking and from the guest's manage-reservation page.
Staff can see submitted answers on the reservation detail panel under Visit details.
Questions can use:
- Long text for open-ended notes
- Short text for a short answer such as a member number
- Single choice when the guest should choose one option
- Multiple choice when more than one option may apply
Questions can also have a short code, such as DIET, OCC, or MOB, so staff can scan answers quickly.
Start With The Question Library
CoverCount includes common question templates:
| Template | Best for | Typical answer format |
|---|---|---|
| Dietary restrictions | Allergies, dietary restrictions, or food preferences | Multiple choice with optional text |
| Occasion | Birthdays, anniversaries, business meals, graduations, or other celebrations | Single choice |
| Mobility | Accessibility or mobility needs | Single choice with optional text |
Use the templates when they fit. They are written in plain guest-facing language and include practical short codes.
Add a custom question when the Experience needs something specific, such as wine club context, seating preference, tasting preferences, or private-dining planning details.
Ask Only What Staff Will Use
Before adding a question, ask:
Will this answer change how we prepare, seat, staff, or serve the reservation?
Good reasons to ask:
- The kitchen needs allergy or dietary information.
- Hosts need seating or accessibility context.
- The team wants to acknowledge a special occasion.
- A tasting room wants club/member context before the visit.
- A tour or large-party Experience needs planning details.
Weak reasons to ask:
- The answer is only nice to know.
- Staff will not see or use it before service.
- The question duplicates information already collected at booking.
- The guest would need to write a long answer for an ordinary reservation.
Keep Ordinary Experiences Short
For ordinary lunch, dinner, brunch, or standard tasting Experiences, use one to three questions.
Good starting set:
- Dietary restrictions
- Occasion
- Seating or accessibility needs, if the venue can act on the answer
Avoid asking for preferences the team cannot honor consistently. If patio seating is request-only, say so in the question or use a separate Experience when guests are actually choosing patio inventory.
Use More Detail For Higher-Touch Experiences
Some Experiences justify more questions because the team prepares more deliberately.
Examples:
| Experience | Useful questions |
|---|---|
| Chef's counter | Dietary restrictions, occasion, tasting-menu notes |
| Large-party dinner | Occasion, seating needs, menu planning notes |
| Reserve tasting | Wine preferences, club/member status, accessibility needs |
| Vineyard tour | Mobility needs, weather or footwear reminders, occasion |
| Private tasting | Group type, interests, membership context, planning notes |
Use a separate high-touch Experience when these questions would make an ordinary booking flow feel too heavy.
Choose The Right Question Type
Use Single choice when the guest should pick one answer.
Example:
Will you be celebrating a special occasion?
None
Birthday
Anniversary
Business
Graduation
Use Multiple choice when several answers may be true.
Example:
Are there any dietary restrictions within your party?
None
Dairy
Gluten
Nuts
Shellfish
Vegetarian/Vegan
Other
Use Short text for a short value such as a wine club number, membership name, or referral code.
Use Long text only when the guest may need to explain something in their own words.
Allow Additional Text When Options Need Context
For select questions, turn on Allow additional text when the option alone is not enough.
Good examples:
- Dietary restrictions with
Other - Mobility needs with details
- Seating preference with a short note
- Wine preferences with extra context
Do not add additional text to every question. It can make the form feel longer even when guests only need to select an option.
Use Short Codes And Important Flags
Short codes make staff answers easier to scan. Keep them short and recognizable:
| Short code | Meaning |
|---|---|
DIET |
Dietary restrictions |
OCC |
Occasion |
MOB |
Mobility or accessibility |
CLUB |
Club or membership context |
SEAT |
Seating preference |
Mark a question Important when staff should notice the answer quickly before service. Dietary and mobility questions are usually good candidates. Occasion questions may be important for some venues and ordinary context for others.
Map Choice Answers To Visit Tags When Helpful
Select options can be mapped to visit tags. This is useful when an answer should create an operational signal on the reservation.
Good candidates:
- Allergy disclosure
- Highchair needed
- Wheelchair access
- Birthday
- Anniversary
- Wine club visit
Do not map every option to a tag. Tags should make the reservation easier to work, not create noise.
Test The Guest And Staff Flow
Before publishing an Experience with questions:
- Open the guest booking path in a private browser.
- Create a test reservation.
- Answer the questions from the confirmation or manage-reservation page.
- Confirm select options and additional text behave correctly.
- Confirm the reservation detail panel shows the answers under Visit details.
- Confirm short codes are readable.
- Confirm important operational answers stand out enough for staff.
For the broader launch checklist, see Test an Experience before publishing.
Simple Starting Sets
Use these as starting points and remove anything the team will not use.
Restaurant
- Dietary restrictions
- Occasion
- Accessibility needs
- Seating preference, only if the team can treat it as a request
Winery Or Tasting Room
- Dietary restrictions, if food is involved
- Occasion
- Club/member context
- Wine preferences, only for guided or premium tastings
- Mobility needs for tours, cellars, stairs, or uneven ground
Large Party Or Private Tasting
- Occasion
- Group type
- Accessibility needs
- Menu or beverage planning notes
- Arrival timing or special setup notes