Online Booking for Dive Charters

[AxeMan]

All this talk of stores, marking dives as 'advanced' and certification numbers just goes to show how different the UK dive charter business is to the US.

Never quite sure how to reply when someone asks me if I'm open water or advanced as if they're the only two options

[Garf]

From a diver perspective, it may seem attractive but.....

I am pretty sure what the skippers I know would have to say about a system that diverts some of their money to make it easier for divers to leave booking until the last minute, when they have an idea of the weather and conditions.

If however, someone were to charter the boat and use the app to fill the spaces then I am sure they'd be much more sympathetic.

I agree. Right up to the point where a skipper wonders why all the youngsters are booking with someone else. Then they will get on board with the idea quickly. I know quite a few skippers in the early 00's who said a lift was a bollocks idea that was completely unnecessary. All of a sudden people start booking based on whether the boat has a lift and it becomes urgent to get a lift fitted. the same would be true of an online booking system.

To get this working, the guy really only needs 1 skipper in an area to use it heavily. I'd give it to the skipper and their users free. I would even give that skipper a quid per booking for using it. Once that boat starts getting more bookings then get another skipper on board. now people are using the app to find spaces in a dive area. The other skippers would soon catch on. The challenge here is not how to monetise it, it's how to generate a market. I personally think this is a goer. If I had the time, I'd build it myself.

[Ken]

I have a thing like this partly done. My aim is to make administrating club dives easier for me, knowing who needs chasing for money etc. I can't see making money on it though.