While I’m not at Extreme Cheapskates-level penny pinching and rationing sheets of toilet paper, I do love a deal.

Two restaurants I’ve worked in use OpenTable and from the perspective of reducing chaos, I treasure it.  But today, I’m talking about my favorite customer-facing feature, the 1,000 Point Program.

Guests can earn points towards a $20 gift certificate in the OpenTable network just for booking a table.  It takes 2,000 points to get that certificate.  Each reservation honored earns the guest 100 points.  If the guest cancels or is a no-show, the points are not rewarded.

Through OpenTable's 1,000 points program, restaurants have the option of offering an additional incentive that bumps their tables above all other availability.

For restaurants, this is a win to offer an incentive for diners to book a table at off-peak times.  Alternately, those 1,000 points can simply be offered to allure guests your way throughout the day.  

The app has built in gamification so guests receive notifications and are rallied to keep earning those points. 

As far as pricing for this feature, OpenTable is shy about disclosing its fee structure online; however, this specific points program costs per booking.  Contact OpenTable directly through multiple channels to chat it up.