Last Updated: 27th October 2026

How pre-booking turns empty spaces into income

Empty spaces across your car park shouldn’t always be a cause for concern. Those empty spaces are an opportunity to promote your business in a new way, draw in new customers, help motorists and boost revenue.

And it’s easier than you think to turn those spaces into a valuable asset.

What causes empty space in a car park?

There are many reasons that a car park might have empty space; some are more easily fixed than others.

Prolonged abuse might have deterred genuine customers, meaning that as the abuse is fixed through ANPR and enforcement, it might take time for the customer to return.

You might have a business with much more noticeable peaks and troughs in use, such as gyms potentially being more popular in the morning and evening, leaving larger quieter periods during the day.

Your parking might be based more on seasonality; a tourist attraction, for instance, might be busier in the warmer months or during school holidays while being quieter during term time.

Quieter periods can be troubling for a business, especially as an empty car park might equate to fewer visitors or customers, but that space, when turned to your advantage, can become a useful asset.

How do you leverage extra space?

The first step is to identify just how much surplus space you have. This is where ANPR makes a major difference.

Data from your ANPR cameras allows you to create a detailed overview of activity on your site, charting capacity and occupancy at different times and creating a clearer picture of when opening the spaces on your site for pre-booking would be the most impactful.

This allows you to decide how many spaces you should make available without running the risk of impacting day-to-day operations and customers. From there, you can begin to promote your empty spaces for pre-booking.

The process for pre-booking is simple

Using the occupancy data that your ANPR system can provide, we identify how many spaces are available for pre-booking. From there a simple system for listing, booking and managing those spaces takes over.

Step 1

We identify your spare spaces

Occupancy data from your ANPR system shows how many spaces can be offered for pre-booking.

Step 2

You choose what to list

Set the number of spaces you want to promote, and pause listings when you expect a busier day, such as an event.

Pre-booking website shown on desktop, laptop and tablet

Step 3

Motorists book online via web or app

Drivers looking for parking nearby find your spaces and set the date, time and length of their stay.

Step 4

Payment is taken in advance

Motorists pay when they book, so each space is paid for before the car arrives.

Step 5

ANPR manages the stay

Cameras track each visit against its booking to help avoid overstays. Where offered, visitors can extend their stay and pay for the extra time.

How pre-booking benefits your business

Pre-booking puts your car park in front of drivers who are already looking for somewhere to park. They arrive with their space booked and paid for, and your business gets a visit it might not otherwise have had.

1. Reach new customers

Listing your spaces on a parking app shows your site to thousands of drivers who might have gone elsewhere. Some will simply park and get on with their day. Others will use the shops, cafes or services on site while they’re there.

For sites with several businesses, that extra footfall adds up. A good first visit can turn a driver into a regular customer.

2. Make quieter periods work for you

Pre-booking lets you fill spaces when your site is quiet. A gym could use daytime lulls to run new classes, or a restaurant could offer a lunchtime deal, knowing there’s parking for the extra visitors.

If your car park is near an event venue, you can also offer spaces to people heading to a show while your business is closed, in the evenings or at weekends.

Do more with your car park

Pre-booking is easy to implement and can transform how your car park performs. To learn more about pre-booking or the other ways we can support your car park, get in touch.