Hostme
Hostme is a modern restaurant management system that provides automated waitlists, online reservations, and table management tools to help you streamline front-of-house operations and improve guest experiences.
KickoffLabs
KickoffLabs is a viral marketing platform that helps you grow your audience through referral contests, sweepstakes, and rewards programs designed to turn your leads into brand influencers.
Quick Comparison
| Feature | Hostme | KickoffLabs |
|---|---|---|
| Website | hostmeapp.com | kickofflabs.com |
| Pricing Model | Subscription | Subscription |
| Starting Price | $59/month | $29/month |
| FREE Trial | ✓ 14 days free trial | ✓ 0 days free trial |
| Free Plan | ✘ No free plan | ✘ No free plan |
| Product Demo | ✓ Request demo here | ✓ Request demo here |
| Deployment | ||
| Integrations | ||
| Target Users | ||
| Target Industries | ||
| Customer Count | 0 | 0 |
| Founded Year | 2014 | 2011 |
| Headquarters | Washington, D.C., USA | Seattle, USA |
Overview
Hostme
Hostme is an all-in-one front-of-house solution designed to help you manage your restaurant's flow without the high commissions of traditional booking platforms. You can handle everything from online reservations and digital waitlists to table assignments and server rotation from a single interface. The platform eliminates the need for bulky pagers by sending automated SMS notifications directly to your guests' phones when their table is ready.
Beyond simple bookings, you can manage deposits, track guest preferences, and implement loyalty programs to keep customers coming back. It works across any device, allowing your hosts to move freely while staying connected to the floor plan. Whether you run a small bistro or a high-volume eatery, you can customize the system to match your specific seating capacity and operational rules.
KickoffLabs
KickoffLabs is a specialized marketing platform designed to help you generate leads through viral referral mechanics. Instead of just collecting email addresses, you can encourage your audience to share your brand by offering rewards, leaderboard positions, or early access to products. You can set up sophisticated referral loops where every new sign-up is incentivized to invite their friends, effectively lowering your customer acquisition costs.
The platform provides you with everything needed to launch a campaign, including hosted landing pages, embeddable widgets for your existing site, and automated email sequences. It is particularly effective for product launches, waitlists, and e-commerce growth. You can track your most influential fans with detailed analytics and manage your entire contest lifecycle from a single dashboard without needing a dedicated developer team.
Overview
Hostme Features
- Advanced Table Management Design your digital floor plan and assign tables instantly to optimize your seating capacity and turn tables faster.
- Online Reservations Accept bookings 24/7 through your website or social media without paying per-cover fees to third-party platforms.
- Digital Waitlist Quote accurate wait times and send automated SMS alerts to guests so they can wait wherever they like.
- Server Rotation Balance workloads automatically by tracking covers per server to ensure fair distribution and better service quality.
- Guest CRM & Loyalty Store guest preferences, dietary restrictions, and visit history to provide a personalized dining experience every time.
- Event Management Organize special events and sell tickets or take deposits directly through the system to secure your revenue.
KickoffLabs Features
- Viral Referral Tracking. Assign unique referral links to every lead so you can track exactly who is sharing your brand and driving new sign-ups.
- Reward Level System. Set up automated milestones where you can give away digital or physical prizes once a lead refers a specific number of friends.
- Leaderboard Giveaways. Create healthy competition among your fans by displaying real-time rankings to encourage more sharing and higher engagement.
- Waitlist Management. Build hype for your upcoming product launch by letting people jump ahead in line when they refer others to your list.
- Verified Actions. Award extra contest entries when your leads follow you on social media, watch videos, or visit specific pages on your site.
- Fraud Protection. Protect your campaign integrity with built-in tools that identify and flag fake emails or suspicious referral activity automatically.
Pricing Comparison
Hostme Pricing
- Unlimited reservations
- Digital waitlist
- Table management
- Guest database
- Basic reporting
- Web & social media booking
- Everything in Piccolo, plus:
- Server rotation
- Advanced reporting
- POS integration
- Customizable guest surveys
- Deposits and prepayments
KickoffLabs Pricing
- Up to 2,000 unique visitors
- Unlimited leads
- Viral referral tracking
- Standard templates
- KickoffLabs branding
- Email support
- Everything in Lite, plus:
- Up to 10,000 unique visitors
- Custom domain support
- Reward levels & milestones
- Advanced fraud protection
- A/B testing tools
Pros & Cons
Hostme
Pros
- No per-cover fees saves significant monthly costs
- Intuitive interface is easy for new hosts to learn
- Highly customizable floor plans and reservation rules
- Reliable SMS notifications reduce no-show rates
Cons
- Initial setup of complex floor plans takes time
- Occasional sync delays with certain POS integrations
- Advanced reporting only available on higher tiers
KickoffLabs
Pros
- Excellent viral mechanics for rapid list building
- Easy to set up without technical coding skills
- Highly responsive and helpful customer support team
- Detailed analytics for tracking top influencers
- Flexible embedding options for existing websites
Cons
- Lower tiers include KickoffLabs branding
- Visitor limits can be reached quickly during peaks
- Learning curve for complex multi-step rewards