Sakurabook, a reservation site construction tool, is a new reservation system developed in anticipation of the post-corona era.This time, we would like to introduce how it differs from similar conventional reservation systems, and how it excels in dealing with post-coronavirus situations.

Online demand for business changes due to COVID-XNUMX

First, let's check how the business environment has changed due to the spread of the new coronavirus infection.

According to the White Paper on Information and Communications in XNUMX,

・Consumption at home, such as ordering and purchasing products online, is increasing.

・The acceleration of the D2C movement, in which products designed and produced by oneself are sold directly to consumers

have been reported.

Due to the spread of the new coronavirus infection, it was recommended to reduce contact with people as a countermeasure against infectious diseases. “Stay-at-home consumption” is growing, and there is a change in consumption behavior.

The movement of D2C (Direct to Consumer), which sells products designed and produced by oneself directly to consumers, is accelerating (Chart 2-1-3-2).This will also create new connections, such as allowing consumers in big cities to purchase products from individuals and small stores in rural areas.Behind this, it is thought that the growing need to retain existing customers and the presence of service providers who support e-commerce expansion are major factors.Such changes in consumer behavior are not merely temporary, and may lead to major changes in the industrial structure in the future.

Source: Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications White Paper on Information and Communications XNUMX

https://www.soumu.go.jp/johotsusintokei/whitepaper/ja/r03/html/nd121310.html

After Corona, it is important to "do it with a smartphone" and "do it on the Internet"

Looking at these changes in the business environment, it can be said that many consumers have come to place value on things that can be done with smartphones and things that can be done online.In the past, the penetration rate of the Internet had been steadily expanding since before the corona crisis, but it seems to be safe to assume that it has increased rapidly.

Expansion of online demand and D2C business

The “D2C” business model is rapidly expanding with the increase in online demand.For example, in the past, product sales required manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers at each stage of the commercial distribution, but online shopping requires manufacturers to build and operate their own EC sites. can deliver the products directly to the customer.

Unlike opening stores on major EC malls such as Amazon and Rakuten, selling directly through your own EC site or SNSis a key feature of this business model.

Not a temporary change! Towards the era of “direct sales through our own EC site”

The White Paper on Information and Communications also states that "this kind of change is not just a temporary thing" and "the industrial structure will change significantly in the future."

An increase in the number of consumers who value what they can do with their smartphones and what they can do online, and an acceleration of D2C sales through their own e-commerce sites.These two will be the major characteristics of the post-corona business environment.

Rather than predicting that things will return to normal once the coronavirus is contained, we should regard this trend of change as irreversible, regardless of how the spread of the new coronavirus infection unfolds.

Rapid expansion of new “reservation site demand” that has never existed before

Online demand in the post-corona era is not limited to product sales.An increasing number of customers want to make online reservations for visiting stores, using facilities, and using services.In addition to product sales, there are an increasing number of business operators who want to install a reservation system on their EC site and have an online reservation function, such as when holding store events.

Due to this trend,Demand for "reservation sites" as well as "product sales and EC sites" is increasing in various industries, which was almost unheard of in the past.It is considered.

Let's look at some concrete examples.

Wine cellar: Not only selling products, but also holding store events, etc.

For example, take the example of a privately owned wine cellar.In the past, it was normal to meet the requirements only by online sales of the wines handled, even if it was said to be online support.However, in the future, D2C marketing will also increase the importance of interacting with consumers, so the demand for in-store events such as "wine tasting parties" will increase.In such a case, you need an infrastructure that allows you to make reservations for wine tastings on your own EC site.

Yoga classes: Demand for online courses and online lessons is also growing

The fitness field, which used to be based on face-to-face instruction, is one of the fields where online demand is rapidly expanding after the corona era.For example, in the case of yoga classes, expectations are rising for services that provide online lessons using services such as video distribution and online calling.

As stated in the White Paper on Information and Communications, an increasing number of modern consumers are emphasizing things that can be done at home and on smartphones. , we are exploring the development of online services one after another.

In such a case, in addition to conventional reservations such as facility usage and visits, there is a need for a system that can also make "digital service reservations".

“Online reservation” is important in various other industries

In addition to the ones introduced here, the implementation of “online booking” has become important in various industries.

As a feature, it is still conventional,New demand is emerging even in industries where there was little need for reservation sites and reservation systems before the corona crisis.It's a dot.

In reality, however, various challenges also arise.

The existing reservation system may not be able to meet the new "reservation site demand"

The demand for reservation sites in industries that have never existed before, which was born after the corona disaster, cannot be met by existing reservation systems.

For example,"I want to realize product sales, digital service reservation and visit reservation at the same time on one site (domain)"such a demand.Today's customers expect to be able to perform various actions "on their smartphones" and "at hand", such as purchasing goods, using digital services such as online lessons, and making reservations for visiting stores and using facilities.but,Most of the conventional reservation systems are specialized for accepting reservations such as visits to stores.There is no reservation system that can handle product sales and digital service reservations at the same time.

In addition, consumers usually demand "services similar to those of major e-commerce sites," regardless of the size of the business.Regular product delivery course, monthly fee system such as online lessons, etc.Membership system and subscription billing (monthly billing)However, it has now become a common requirement for many customers.

However, there are various difficulties in realizing a reservation site that can provide such a fulfilling service for small and medium-sized companies.

"I want to realize this" Sakurabook was born from the voice of the site in the corona era

After the corona era, the need for online support is increasing in a variety of industries like never before.Retail stores, school lessons, certification courses, visiting services, creators and artists.Many companies, organizations, and people who say, "Until now, I never thought of taking reservations online, and there was no need for that," are under pressure to respond online.

However, when I tried to realize it, I ran into various obstacles.

"There is no reservation system that can simultaneously receive product sales, digital service reservations, and store visit reservations."

"I want to realize a reservation site that can support subscriptions (monthly billing) with a membership system, but it is difficult."

"If you want to realize it, you'll need full scratch development, and you'll need an initial investment of tens of millions of yen, but you can't find that kind of money anywhere."

“Sakurabook,” a new reservation system for the post-corona era, was developed based on these voices from the field.

With Sakurabook, web production that meets the demand for reservation sites in the post-corona era

Sakurabook was developed in response to the requests of various businesses facing the post-corona era, "I want to realize this".We will introduce the essence of what specific points we were particular about realizing.

XNUMX: Unification of product sales, store reservations, and digital service reservations

Sakurabook is a reservation reception system developed as an extension of the EC site construction cloud service "Shopify".It will be possible to add a calendar reservation function to the normal Shopify function that handles product sales.

Sakurabook's reservation function is added to the normal product sales EC function by ShopifySince it takes shape, it is possible to unify all product sales, store reservations, and digital service reservations.Since one site (domain) can handle product sales and reservations in a common design format, it is easy for end users to understand and effective for branding.

XNUMX: Enable staff appointment reservation

Staff nomination reservation is also one of the functions requested by many businesses.For example, on a hair salon reservation site, you can check the working days and available hours of a specific stylist, and make a reservation by appointing that person.

Sakurabook makes it possible to make staff-designated reservations like this.

XNUMX: Flexible time reservation by end user

One of the major features of Sakurabook is that end users can flexibly specify the time required for booking.

For example, the conventional reservation system can only accept reservations in 30-hour increments if the time required for one frame is set to XNUMX hours. It is not possible to meet the different requests of each person, such as "I want to use it for XNUMX hours" or "I want to use it in XNUMX hour and XNUMX minutes".

However, in Sakurabook,The end user can freely specify the required time and make a reservation by multiplying the usage time by the unit price.It's a system.For example, if you make a reservation in 30-minute increments, you can make a reservation by specifying the required time such as "30 minutes", "30 hours and XNUMX minutes", "XNUMX hours".

XNUMX: Supports digital services such as online lessons

Sakurabook can be extensively integrated with other Shopify apps (Shopify extensions).Therefore, for example, by linking with the Shopify app that creates and sells online courses, it is possible to develop a full-fledged online lesson business.The same goes for features such as membership and subscription billing.

XNUMX: Realistic introduction and operation costs that are easy to introduce even for small and medium-sized enterprises

The biggest feature is that it does not require full-scratch development and can be introduced and operated with a realistic budget.

In the past, when trying to realize a reservation site or EC site with a wide range of functions as we have introduced so far, it was necessary to develop from scratch or create a website on a scale comparable to that.

However, Sakurabook does not require full scratch development as it will be deployed on the EC site construction service "Shopify".Various functions can be realized by linking with other Shopify apps, so it is possible to add and customize functions.

for that reason,It is possible to introduce a highly functional reservation site that is comparable to a full scratch development that costs tens of millions of yen, with a realistic budget starting at a minimum of several hundred thousand yen.It will be.

To web production companies: Joining Sakurabook partners to meet the demand for new after-corona reservation sites

We are looking for Sakurabook partners for web production companies.

One of Sakurabook's great strengths is that it can realistically respond to the demand for building a reservation site, such as "this kind of reservation site with this budget", which was difficult to meet with the conventional framework.This is a powerful advantage in today's business environment, where even small and medium-sized companies are required to have highly functional reservation sites comparable to those of large companies.

Join us as a “Sakurabook Partner” and create a website that meets the demand for reservation sites in the post-corona era.Please consider this opportunity.