Connect aleno

Connect aleno, and Fynn offers your guests free tables in the chat and reserves the one they pick, right in your aleno reservation book. Table reservations are part of the Business and Enterprise plans, and a 7 day trial of either plan includes them. They are in beta.

aleno is the restaurant system Deskwoot works with today. More restaurant systems follow later.

Create an API user in aleno

Deskwoot books through an API user of your restaurant. API access is part of every aleno restaurant contract. Only the account owner or an admin in aleno can create one.

1. In aleno, open the menu at the top right and go to Users/Roles.
2. Under API Users, click New User and enter Deskwoot as the name of the integration.
3. Copy the token from the login data. aleno shows it only once; under Actions you can reset it. Deskwoot does not need the email or the digest.

Paste the token in Deskwoot

1. Go to Settings > Integrations and click the aleno card. It opens the Appointments page.
2. Under Restaurant system, click Connect aleno.
3. Paste the token and click Connect. Deskwoot checks it with aleno right away and lists the restaurants it reaches.

You need the permission to manage integrations; administrators have it. Deskwoot stores the token encrypted and never shows it again, only its last 4 characters. If the token reaches no restaurant, ask the restaurant's account owner in aleno to give the API user access.

Pick the restaurants Fynn books

1. Switch on each restaurant Fynn may book tables at.
2. Under Name guests see, give it the name Fynn uses with guests, for example the name on your sign. Guests can ask for a restaurant by that name.
3. Click Save restaurants.

A restaurant can be bookable through one connection only. Under each restaurant you switched on, you see how changes in aleno reach Deskwoot: they arrive at once, or they are checked every few minutes.

Fynn then needs only the switch Fynn offers free times in the Fynn section of the same page, saved with Save booking rules, and he has to answer the inbox as a Support Bot. Appointment types, bookable hours and a time zone are not needed for tables: the free times, the party sizes and the time zone come from aleno.

What Fynn does

• He asks for the number of guests, the day and time, and the name to book under. Seating wishes and the occasion go into the note of the reservation.
• He offers only times aleno shows as free for that party, with your shifts, capacity, online limits and holidays already applied.
• He never asks about allergies or health, and passes on only what the guest tells him.
• When a time needs a card guarantee or a payment, or the party is bigger than you take online, he says a teammate will help and hands the conversation to your team.
• In live chat he first asks for an email address, because every message about the reservation also goes out by email.

In the Fynn section you choose who decides new bookings, cancellations and moves, as for appointments: Your team, with 1 tap or Fynn, after the customer's yes. Restaurants work best when Fynn books on his own: while your team confirms, no table is held in aleno, so a time can be gone by then. When your team confirms, Fynn offers a time only if aleno's own deadline for it is at least 60 minutes away. How the choice works in detail is in Appointments with Fynn.

The reservation in the conversation

Every reservation shows as a card in its conversation, for example "Table for 4 at Bistro Mitte, for Maria", with the area and aleno's reference where aleno has them, and where the reservation stands in aleno: confirmed, waiting for confirmation, cancelled, guest arrived or guest did not come. Open in aleno opens it in aleno.

Some times aleno takes only as a request, for example for a group. The card then says Waiting for the restaurant: you confirm the request in aleno, and the guest hears it in the conversation. When cancelling or moving a table may cost the guest a fee, your team decides on the card, never Fynn.

Paste a new key or disconnect

When aleno no longer accepts the token, the connection shows Needs a new key, and Fynn books no tables there until you paste a new one. When aleno refuses a booking for missing rights, it shows Needs booking rights: ask aleno to give the API user booking rights, then paste the key again. Paste a new key replaces the token at any time.

Disconnect stops Fynn booking tables at these restaurants. Reservations already made stay in aleno, and the conversations keep their history.

Beta

Table reservations through aleno are in beta, so details can still change. If something does not work the way you expect, write to us at hello@deskwoot.com.

Frequently asked questions

Which plan do I need?

Business or Enterprise. A 7 day trial of either plan includes table reservations. Connecting aleno costs nothing extra in Deskwoot.

Does Fynn reserve a table without asking the guest?

No. Fynn offers only times aleno shows as free and always gets the guest's yes first. Whether your team confirms after that is your choice.

Does it work with other restaurant systems?

Not yet. Today Deskwoot books tables in aleno. More restaurant systems follow later. Until then, Fynn can send your reservation link or pass the request to your team.

Can I book appointments and tables in the same workspace?

Yes. Calendars and restaurants sit on the same Appointments page, and Fynn books either one, depending on what the customer asks for.

What happens to my reservations when I disconnect?

They stay in aleno. Fynn stops booking tables there, and the conversations keep their history.