BONNIE IS NOW AVAILABLE ON WHATSAPP
When it comes to booking a table, arranging a group dinner, or simply walking in spontaneously, many guests still prefer to pick up the phone. Increasingly, they are greeted not by a rushed staff member or, worse, no one at all, but by out friendly AI assistant Bonnie.
Who is this technology suitable for? And how do you implement it in a way that fits the rhythm of your hospitality business? Together with our partner Adnamics, we looked at how hospitality businesses can use AI to improve guest experience and reduce pressure on the team.
In this article, our co-founder Mark Bender and Adnamics IT Manager Sander van den Burg share their experiences and lessons from implementing Bonnie in both hospitality and support environments.
Two-thirds of phone calls are missed revenue opportunities
A ringing phone is nothing new in hospitality. Many entrepreneurs have simply learned to live with it. But the real bottleneck becomes visible when you do the maths.
Mark: “Did you know that two-thirds of all incoming phone calls represent direct revenue? That could be a reservation, but also a cancellation. And if you miss that call, you can’t reassign that table to someone else.”
Those missed calls happen more often than you might think. “It’s not just one or two here and there. We see businesses missing up to 40 percent of calls,” Mark explains. Guests expect instant answers. If they don’t get one, they’ll call the next restaurant, bar or venue. “That was the perfect use case for René and me to solve using AI.”
Adnamics is using Bonnie in a creative and unexpected way that’s genuinely interesting.
— Mark Bender, Co-founder of Bonnie
Introduction to AI
Bonnie and Adnamics first connected through a shared customer. Mark and Sander quickly found common ground in their passion for innovation in the hospitality industry. They both have deep roots in the sector and believe in solving operational challenges through smart technology, with one important condition: the technology must support hospitality, not replace it.
“At Adnamics, we always work from a total solution mindset,” says Sander. “That includes choosing the right tools to optimise and automate operations. So when a new technology like Voice AI comes along, I want to understand every detail. That way, we can evaluate its impact on our own processes and those of our clients.”
The first phase
“By the end of 2023, we had a working version of Bonnie live and development moved quickly,” Mark says.
One of the first clients to adopt Bonnie was Republiek Bloemendaal, a well-known restaurant in North Holland. They saw the potential of using an AI phone assistant to reduce pressure on their team.
“In those early stages, we listened to every call to understand guest questions and fine-tune the technology,” Mark explains. “We also looked at the systems the restaurant used to improve Bonnie’s performance.”
Republiek Bloemendaal used the unTill POS system, so Mark reached out to their dealer, Adnamics. “We clicked right away. Our solutions complement each other, and we speak the same language as hospitality entrepreneurs.”
An out-of-the-box application
To explore further possibilities, Sander decided to implement Bonnie at Adnamics’ own support desk.
“Our customers call daily with questions about the POS system. It’s quite similar to how restaurant guests call with booking requests,” Sander says. “Bonnie was built for hospitality, but the technology also worked surprisingly well for this use case.”
They configured Bonnie to handle basic questions and refer customers to the online knowledge base. For urgent issues, Bonnie transfers the call to a colleague.
“Simple questions like where to find a button or setting are ideal for Bonnie,” Sander explains. “She answers immediately or offers a relevant link. If needed, she connects the caller to our support team.”
“The way Adnamics uses Bonnie is creative and compelling,” Mark adds. Sander agrees: “I was sceptical at first, but I’m impressed by how fast the system learns. Normally, implementing new software takes time. With AI, you can move fast. The trick is to start small and iterate.”
What hospitality business owners are saying
By now, hundreds of hospitality businesses have added Bonnie to their teams. “We keep hearing the same thing,” Mark says. “Bonnie feels like an extra team member. The floor is calmer because about 80 percent of calls are handled by the assistant.”
A guest calls to make a reservation. Bonnie asks for the date, time, number of people and any preferences. With smart integrations into reservation systems and POS software, the reservation is automatically processed.
“And if the same guest calls back the next day, Bonnie recognises the number and links it to the correct reservation,” Mark explains. “That takes pressure off the team.”
What about the guest experience? “They get fast and accurate support,” says Mark. “Of course, human contact is always available. But the real question is: do you want a 60 percent chance of answering the phone, or a 100 percent chance with consistent service?”
An AI phone assistant for your business?
Bonnie and Adnamics see AI not as a replacement for people, but as a valuable addition to the tools hospitality entrepreneurs already use.
Businesses that rely heavily on bookings and event planning can significantly reduce missed calls and increase efficiency with Bonnie. In many cases, that means bringing the missed call rate down from 40 percent to zero.
Mark is realistic about expectations. “I always advise treating Bonnie like a new team member. Every new colleague needs a few days to settle in. Bonnie learns fast, but those early days matter.”
Sander adds: “AI has limits. When Bonnie doesn’t know the answer, we connect the caller to a human colleague. We learn every day and share those insights with our clients. That’s how we grow together.”
Adnamics is now an official Bonnie partner. They are happy to help you explore how Bonnie can work alongside your reservation system and POS setup.
