Earlier this week we launched an exciting inside look at the availability of open seating and real-time capacity at three popular cafes in Portland, Oregon.
Since the beginning of Workfrom, way back in 2014, we’ve focused on leading innovation for those who work outside of a traditional office and from coffee shops, bars, cafes or just about anywhere we can comfortably be productive. Built specifically for today’s “always-on, on-the-go” worker, the Workfrom community has grown rapidly—in large part by surfacing the top places from city-to-city to get work done.
With the launch of our real-time seating capacity, we’re providing a fresh and innovative look into open seating from a distance. This inside information will help us stay more productive than ever and visit our favorite venues at times most conducive to getting work done throughout the day.
Here’s how it works
A photo of a sensor gathering real-time data in one of Portland’s top remote working cafes, Bare Bones Cafe.
Several of Portland’s remote working hot spots have been outfitted with high-tech sensors, allowing the entrances and exits of patrons to be determined in real-time. Using this data, while taking into account the total available seating capacity of each location, we can accurately display open seating to members of our community through a simple and intuitive widget. The information is updated about every 30 seconds to ensure reliability.
What it looks like
The screenshot below shows the real-time capacity widget in action. The venue shown here is Portland’s only 24 hour coffee shop, Southeast Grind on Powell Blvd. Curious what this place will look like at 3am? So are we…
A view of live seating capacity displayed on Southeast Grind’s venue page.
You can see the live insights in action by clicking through to any of the locations shown here. Give it a try and tell us your thoughts, and reach out to the venues and let them know your excitement. They are on the cutting edge of the future and that’s something for us all to celebrate!
We’ll continue to improve the experience in every way possible. A big part of the excitement comes from helping these great businesses understand traffic trends and attract new, loyal customers through this innovative inside look into their spaces.
As always, we need your feedback so don’t hesitate to share your experiences in the comments below!
Responses
Yep, this is rad! I was wondering how it worked. I imagined someone sitting in the corner, counting everyone coming in and coming out. But, alas, technology is doing it for us! Super cool – excited to give Open Seating a try for next time I go to Bare Bones 🙂
This is so cool! Congrats, guys!