When pet parents visit your online reservation page, they should feel like they’re interacting with your business, not a generic booking system. A well-designed online reservation page can reinforce your brand, make important information easier to find, and create a more welcoming experience from the moment a client logs in.
With the right dog boarding software, you can customize your Online Reservations (OLR) page to better reflect your business and give clients a consistent experience from your website to your booking process.
What Is OLR Page Design?
OLR, or Online Reservations, gives clients a convenient way to request and manage appointments online. Kennel Connection allows businesses to customize the look and feel of their Client Portal and Online Reservations page using a built-in design wizard.
Instead of relying on a completely standard booking page, businesses can customize elements such as fonts, colors, logos, images, text, links, and promotional content. A live preview also makes it easier to see how changes will look before clients see them.
This means your online reservation page can become an extension of your brand rather than feeling disconnected from the rest of your website.
Why Does Your Online Reservation Page Matter?
Your OLR page may be one of the places where clients interact with your business most frequently. It is where they may log in, request a boarding stay, schedule grooming services, or manage information about their pets.
A consistent design can help create a smoother experience for clients who are already familiar with your website and branding.
Think about the difference between these two experiences:
Experience one: A client visits your website, sees your logo, brand colors, photography, and messaging, then clicks to make a reservation and is taken to a page that looks completely different.
Experience two: The client clicks to make a reservation and lands on a page that continues the same visual experience, with your logo, colors, messaging, and helpful information.
The second experience can feel much more connected to your business.
Start With Your Brand
Before changing individual design elements, consider what you want clients to recognize when they arrive at your OLR page.
Your logo is an obvious starting point, but branding goes beyond a logo. Consider your:
- Brand colors
- Fonts
- Photography style
- Tone of voice
- Tagline or business message
- Overall website design
Kennel Connection’s OLR design options allow businesses to customize fonts, font sizes, colors, logos, header images, and other elements of the page.
The goal isn’t necessarily to make every part of the page look identical to your website. Instead, aim for enough visual consistency that clients immediately recognize that they’re still interacting with your business.
Make Your Header Work for You
The header is one of the first things clients see, so it’s a good place to establish your brand and set expectations.
You can use a header image, logo, header text, and additional header information to introduce clients to the page. For example, your header text could provide a simple welcome message, while the additional information could reinforce your business tagline or a short statement about your services.
Keep this section easy to understand. Clients are arriving to complete a task, so your design should support that goal rather than overwhelm them with information.
A simple message such as “Welcome to [Business Name]” may be all you need.
Use Links to Give Clients Helpful Information
Kennel Connection allows businesses to add up to three links to their Client Portal/OLR page. These can direct clients to other websites or pages, such as your main business website or social media.
Consider using these links for information clients may need before or after making a reservation.
For example, you might link to:
- Your main website
- Your contact page
- Your social media page
- Your policies and procedures
- A page explaining your services
Choose links that genuinely help clients and make important information easier to access.
Use Welcome Text to Set Expectations
The welcome text area provides another opportunity to communicate with clients.
Instead of repeating information already displayed elsewhere, use this space to answer a simple question:
What does a client need to know before they start?
You could use your welcome message to provide a brief introduction, remind clients to review policies, or explain what they can accomplish through your Client Portal.
Keep it concise. Clients using online reservations are usually there because they want to complete something quickly.
Highlight Promotions with Promo Cards
If your business regularly runs promotions, the OLR page can also help put those offers in front of existing clients.
Kennel Connection’s promo card option allows businesses to add a title, promotional text, and a button that can link to a custom webpage.
For example, a business could use a promo card to highlight:
- Seasonal services
- Special packages
- Upcoming events
- New services
- Holiday promotions
- Referral programs
The important thing is to keep the promotion relevant. Your online reservation page should still make booking easy, so promotional content should complement the experience.
Choose Between a Background Image and Background Color
Your background is another opportunity to reinforce your brand.
Kennel Connection allows businesses to use either a background image or a background color. If you choose a background image, a high-resolution image is recommended, particularly if you want it to fill the entire screen. The system may tile smaller images instead.
When choosing an image, consider how it affects readability.
A beautiful photo of your facility or happy pets may fit your brand perfectly, but if the image makes text difficult to read, it can work against the overall experience. A simple background color may sometimes provide a cleaner and more professional result.
Don’t Forget About the Mobile Experience
Clients don’t always make reservations from a desktop computer. Pet parents may be booking from their phones while they’re at work, traveling, or even standing outside your facility.
That makes simplicity especially important.
When reviewing your OLR design, look beyond how it appears on your own computer. Pay attention to whether your messaging remains easy to understand, your branding is recognizable, and your important information is easy to access on smaller screens.
A good design should support the booking process rather than create additional steps.
Think of Your OLR Page as Part of Your Customer Experience
Online booking isn’t just about getting a reservation onto the schedule. It’s another touchpoint between your business and your clients.
Your OLR page can help communicate professionalism, reinforce your brand, provide useful information, and promote services.
With Kennel Connection, businesses can customize their Online Reservations and Client Portal experience with their own branding, images, colors, messaging, links, and promotional content.
The best design doesn’t have to be complicated. Start with your brand, keep the booking experience easy to navigate, and use customization options strategically. When clients recognize your business the moment they arrive at your reservation page, the online experience feels like a natural extension of the service you provide in person.
Create an Online Reservation Experience That Feels Like Your Business
Your booking page is part of your customer experience. With the right dog boarding software, you can make it more than just a place for clients to submit reservations.
Use your OLR page to welcome clients, reinforce your brand, provide helpful information, and keep your online experience consistent with the rest of your business.
