5 Reasons to Offer Online Booking

Are you still using an old hand-written scheduling book? If so, it’s time to get you into the 21st century. Not just with salon or spa software for scheduling and management, but specifically with online booking.

These days, people book a majority of their services online. For example, when booking a flight, most people don’t call the airlines and wait on hold until someone can get to you. No, you go online any time of the day that you wish, browse your options and then make the booking – just like that!

Booking appointments for salon and spa services should be no different. In fact, as more of the younger and tech-savvy generation fills up your salon’s schedule, you’ll soon realize that online booking is expected. Without online booking or quick access to it, eventually, your business will be at a severe competitive disadvantage.

So, to keep you and your salon for spa in the game, here are the top reasons why you want to offer online booking:

1. Because clients can schedule appointments whenever they want, online booking adds convenience for the customer and provides better customer service.
2. Booking online frees up your front desk staff. If more bookings were made online, the receptionist would have more time to do other tasks. In turn, these online bookings would help the salon run more efficiently.
3. Your clients will automatically maintain the database for you. If they’ve moved, changed email or have a new phone number, they are more likely to update their information when it’s in front of them as they make an appointment. This will happen more often than them remembering to tell the receptionist when they call in to book an appointment. Clients will also let you know how they prefer to communicate: by email, text or both.
4. It gives you the opportunity to sell memberships, gift cards or to recommend or reserve product for the client’s next visit. All of this without having even to be open for business. Achieved without any physical interaction, this kind of service helps build customer loyalty.
5. And the best reason to offer online booking? The average amount of time between client visits changes based on how the appointments are booked. For example, if clients call in or pre-book in person, the average time between appointments is five weeks and six days. However, when appointments are booked online, that time drops to four weeks, five days. That’s an increase in 25 percent! Using this model, your salon or spa gains two additional appointments per client for the year.

Do keep in mind that these reasons stated above only hold water if you choose software with the features needed to offer such options. With that in mind, here’s what you want to look for in online booking software:

Look for software that understands the unique workflow of a salon and allows flexibility for you to set gaps and control how appointments are booked.

Great salon or spa scheduling software will work better than any receptionist. You want the flexibility to set up bookings, so it’s foolproof. There will be no gaps, no isolated reservations, and no squeezing in appointments where they don’t fit.

Find software that allows the order of services to be set versus allowing your clients to do it for you. Think of it as adding in a men’s haircut or a fringe trim, for example, when another client’s hair color is processing. To make this scenario work, you will need the correct order for services for the client, such as hair color, cut and then finishing services, not the other way around. Without this ordering, you would not be able to correctly double book.

It’s also important to have software that’s easy for your customers to access, and to use. If you go with cloud-based software, all your client needs are an internet connection and a porthole either through your website or mobile web app. From there, bookings are made in real time, at any time of the day.

The whole idea with online booking is to save you and your salon time and effort.  It’s also to provide convenience to your clients. So, are you ready to start booking online?

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