For whoever takes the call
After an Inquiry Call
Someone called about hosting something. Here is what to do with it in the next five minutes, and how it moves from a conversation to a booking on the calendar.
The one rule: make the row before you do anything else. Even if you only have a name and a rough month. An empty row is easy to fill in later. An inquiry living only in your head or your texts is the one that gets lost.
Right after you hang up
Open the Booking Desk and press New booking. You will not have most of this yet, and that is fine.
-
Name it the way you would say it out loud
Who it is and what it is. Keep it identical to the calendar event if you make one.
ExampleWomen's Retreat, Abby & Andrea
-
Set status to Inquiry
They asked. Nothing is promised and no dates are held yet. That is exactly what Inquiry means.
-
Put in the dates they mentioned, even loosely
If they said "sometime the weekend of the 10th," use that weekend. If the date is still a guess, tap Arrive and Depart under Still unconfirmed so the board knows.
-
Add their name, email and phone
The phone matters. Every later message goes there. If you only have one of the three, put in what you have and leave the rest blank.
-
Put the group size in, and mark it a guess
A range like "7 to 15" is not a number. Enter the top of the range, then tap How many people under Still unconfirmed. That way nobody plans catering off a guess.
-
Tick the buildings you talked about
Only the ones actually discussed. If it is still open, leave it blank and tap Where on campus under Still unconfirmed.
-
Write what you would want to remember in a month
What they are running, what they cared about, what you promised to send. Your own words. It shows on the board exactly as you write it.
ExampleFirst retreat for them, women's, not religious. Wants sauna and the forest fire pit. Owed: chalet photos, confirm the 10th after the wedding call. Interested in Folk Fest artist list.
-
Save
Press Review changes if you want to see what is about to be written, then Save to the Sheet. It is on the board within a minute.
What to get on the call
This is the shape the good calls already take. Ask in whatever order it comes up naturally, but leave with these.
Is this your first one?
Tells you how much hand-holding the whole thing needs, and whether they know what they want.
Walk me through the days.
The programme is what decides which buildings fit. Work backwards from it rather than starting with a price.
How many people, roughly?
Under 12 changes catering, so this number does real work. A range is fine on the call, but write it down as a range.
What dates are you looking at?
Check the
board while you are on the phone. Say what is open, and be honest about what is only tentative.
Do the facilitators want their own space?
Comes up often, and it changes which building you recommend.
Are you bringing a caterer or would you like ours?
Both are fine. It just changes how the booking is structured.
What is this rooted in, and what do people leave with?
The fit question. Ownership cares that anything on campus is safe and does not conflict with what they are protecting. Ask it warmly, and take the answer back to the team rather than deciding on the call.
The facts you will need on the call
Retreat pricing
$350 per person, per night, two-night minimum. That buys exclusive use of the entire upper campus and all amenities. Catering is priced separately.
Confirm with Roger before quoting. The number above came off one call where it was set deliberately high.
Catering
Julie V. is the on-site caterer, farm to table and flexible from one dinner to every meal. She works from a per-person budget and builds menu options from there. Outside caterers are welcome too.
The Campus Kitchen needs a group of 12 to open. Below that, an outside caterer.
The Cedar Chalet
Sleeps 9, the most intimate space on campus, with a private bedroom at the back if a facilitator wants their own quarters. Full kitchen. The furthest building out, so it feels like its own world.
If they outgrow it
Creekside and the Grotto sit right nearby and are covered the same way. Tamarack is a bigger step and needs a conversation first.
Tamarack needs additional insurance. Never offer it casually.
What people ask about
The sauna and pond for hot and cold, which lands well for groups moving through big emotion. The forest spot with the fire pit and string lights, used for weddings. Trails from the upper campus.
Sharing the campus
Something may run on lower campus the same weekend. Say so plainly. The two never interact, and being upfront about it builds more trust than pretending the place is empty.
As it firms up
Open the booking, press Edit, change the one thing that changed, and save. That is the whole habit.
Inquiry
They asked
Where every call starts. Nothing held.
Held
Dates are spoken for
You quoted them and put the dates on the calendar. Move it here the moment you promise a date, so nobody double books it.
Confirmed
Deposit and signature
Both in hand. Not one, and not a yes on the phone. Tick Deposit landed at the same time.
The things always owed after a call
- Photos of whatever you described. Put it in the notes so it does not evaporate.
- The date answer, once you know it. Same day or next day, even if the answer is no.
- Any introduction you offered, whether that is the caterer or someone worth knowing.
- Anything you said you would check with the team. Write it in the notes rather than carrying it in your head.
Two things worth keeping to yourself. How a prospect struck you, and any pricing judgement about them, belong in a conversation with Roger, not in the notes field. The notes show on the board and could be read aloud in a room. Write the facts there and keep the read for the team.