Release Details
Product: Bookings - EQ1
Release Date: Thursday 23rd January 2025
Summary: A new feature in Equiem One lets you download a QR code for a resource, making it easy for end users to scan the code and book instantly
Overview
QR Codes for Resource Bookings
Background
We’ve introduced a QR code feature that allows end users to scan a QR code to book a resource, like a meeting room or a bike, instantly. This provides greater convenience by enabling on-the-spot bookings without needing to navigate through the website or mobile app. It also improves accessibility, allowing users to interact with resources directly and make quick decisions, enhancing the overall user experience. It also encourages increased resource utilisation and streamlines the booking process for end users.
Obtaining the QR Code
A resource must be saved first in order to generated the QR code. If the resource hasn’t been saved yet, you’ll see the following message in the Additional Settings
section of the resource configuration form:
To obtain the QR code for an existing resource, navigate to the resource configuration form and go to the Additional Settings
section. Select the DOWNLOAD QR CODE
button in order to download a pdf file which includes the unique QR code for that resource.
QR Code Format
The downloaded pdf will include the QR code and the name of the resource, an example of which is shown below:
Scanning the QR Code
If you scan the QR code while not logged in, you'll be redirected to the login page. Once logged in, you’ll automatically be redirected to the booking form for that resource.
If I Have an Existing Active Booking
We determine a booking to be Active
based on the user having a current booking for the resource and it either:
Starts within 15 minutes of the current time
Has ended in the last 15 minutes
If an end user is currently logged in, and they scan the QR code on their mobile device, their web browser will be launched and they’ll be taken directly to their active booking as illustrated in the below example:
If I Don’t Have an Existing Booking
If an end user is currently logged in, and they scan the QR code on their mobile device, their web browser will be launched and they’ll be taken directly to the resource booking form as illustrated in the below example:
Preselecting the Next Available Time
When an end user scans the QR code we include a parameter in the URL which automatically selects the next available time/slot for the current day.
For Flexible Based Bookings
For resources configured as a flexible booking i.e. the end user can choose their start/end time, the next available START TIME
will automatically be selected. The END
time will automatically be populated based off of the start time and any minimum booking duration set against the resource.
Note that the default minimum booking period is 15 minutes.
For Slot Based Bookings
For resources configured with slots, the next available slot will be selected automatically.
If there is no availability for the current day, the user will see a message notifying them and can choose an alternative date.
The additional URL parameter isn’t limited to this QR code feature. You can also benefit from this feature across other parts of the platform (e.g. Quick Links) if you want to link an end user directly into the resource booking form and automatically select the next available time.
Simply add &first=1
to the end of the resource URL which you can obtain by navigating directly to the resource in a web browser. For example https://commercial.staging.equiem.one/bookings/resources/eae0f2da-3ebb-46d1-9c38-d28eda481ae4&first=1
FAQs
Question | Answer |
---|---|
How can I use this feature? | The QR code can be used in a variety of ways, here are a few examples:
|
Is there a way to remove the resource name from the QR code? | This can’t be done through the platform but you can crop the QR code to exclude the resource name if required. |
Can you check in/out for an existing booking? | Not currently. If you think this feature would be useful to you please submit a feature idea request. |
If I have the Equiem mobile app installed, when I scan the QR code will it take me into the mobile app? | No, it will open a web browser on your mobile device. |
Are there any other new Booking features we could benefit from? | Yes! Please refer to https://help.getequiem.com/page/release-notes where you can see all of our latest releases. For example we recently released a great feature for dynamic pricing/discounts, allowing you to increase the utilisation of your bookable resources: https://help.getequiem.com/space/CS/1576140802/Bookings+-+Dynamic+Pricing+Discounts |