RocketRez, the all-in-one POS for tours and attractions, has worked with Fort Lauderdale Water Taxi to bring in contactless technology ahead of the annual Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show. This local business runs a fleet of passenger boats, providing guided tours and hosting private events complete with a fully stocked bar.
The yearly Boat Show brings more than 100,000 luxury boat fans to Fort Lauderdale, the yachting capital of the world, to see over 13,000 boats on display. The event brings in nearly a billion dollars to the local economy, as well as an influx of customers to the Water Taxi company.
Keeping guests safe
Speaking of the uncertainty that the global pandemic brought to the annual event, Bill Walker, owner of Fort Lauderdale Water Taxi, says:
“Everyone was saying – are they going to do it? Can they do it? We realized technology is what is going to help us through all this. We’ve got to make it easier and faster to process.”
The company has already been working with RocketRez for several years, having chosen its cloud operating system. In the wake of the pandemic, RocketRez’s customer service team collaborated with Fort Lauderdale Water Taxi to bring in several new features aimed at driving revenue, increasing efficiency and meeting COVID-19 protocols.
One key change was the implementation of contactless technology, including staff training.
More efficient solutions
“When we started back in 2016, we were handing people paper receipts that had barcodes on them,” says Walker. “Staff needed a printer on their waistband, and a separate device that did scanning. An iPad would tie that all together.”
However, the RocketRez cloud system allowed the business to connect all ticket sales channels through one system to send tickets to customers’ phones. Not only was this more efficient, but it also leads to an improved customer experience. This centralised digital system also means that employees can log into the system with their device to easily access all prices, capacities and settings, pre-populated.
With each tour able to access the system even while out on the water, the cash bar, food and souvenirs can all be purchased and reconciled on the spot.
RocketRez has also allowed the Water Taxi to simplify how it deals with its local network of resellers, which in turn makes life easier for its customers too. Water Taxi can now deploy a custom reseller link for any applicable medium. The preset pricing, discounts and capacities mean that managing these sales is easy, and custom reports can be produced.
Welcoming the Boat Show once more
As the city prepares to welcome the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show once more this October, the changes made to the Water Taxi business will improve efficiency as well as keeping guests safe and happy well into the future.
“My staff is definitely putting in a lot less time,” says Walker. “The processing is that much better and that much faster. Best of all, our total volume of customers is off under 15% from 2019 – even including capacity mandates!”
Earlier this month, RocketRez also announced that it has partnered with TourOpp Go!, an automated chatbot service delivered through SMS or Whatsapp.
