How to help your customers remember their appointments

There are two types of person in this world. On the one hand, there are those who make an appointment and then immediately note it in their diary, circle it on their calendar, put an alert in their phone, and tattoo the date and time on their forearm in block capitals.

Then, on the other hand, there are those who… don’t do any of that.

When your entire business model relies on the premise that people make appointments and then actually turn up to those appointments, every no-show customer feels like a slap in the face. Not only have you lost out on their custom, but because they didn’t give you fair warning you’ve also missed out on the chance to give their slot to someone else. It’s just not what you need, particularly if your business is in its infancy and every penny counts.

But you’re not as helpless as you think…

There are ways to avoid the major pain in the neck that is the no-show client. Here are three steps to make disappearing customers a distant memory.

1. Confirm

If you’ve been relying solely on the recollection abilities of your customers up to now, it’s time for a new tactic. We’re none of us perfect, and we all have leaky minds on occasion, so help your customers out. When they make an appointment, send them a confirmation email or text that gives them all the details. An appointment card is fine, but paper has a habit of getting lost or used to scrape chewing gum off your shoe and then into the bin it goes, never to be seen again. Digital messages are far easier to keep hold of and find again when you need them.

When you use Appointedd to manage your bookings, confirmations are sent out automatically either when someone books with you online or when you enter the appointment directly into your calendar. So easy, you can cut down on no-shows without even thinking about it.

2. Remind

Your customer remembered the details of their booking three weeks ago when they made it, but life has happened between then and now. So remind them! Send them an email or, better yet, a text telling them again when their appointment is. Texts have a 97% read rate compared to a much lower read rate for emails, so texts are ideal for this. The likelihood is they’ll be happy to receive it as it saves them going back and searching for their confirmation message. Plus, if this reminder makes them realise they can’t make the appointment, they now have no excuse for not cancelling and giving you a chance to refill their slot.

Reminders can also be sent automatically with Appointedd, plus you can send out mass notifications to help you fill cancelled appointments. Appointedd customers Escape Spa made an extra £300 in the first month of using Appointedd just by using this function to fill last minute slots!

3. Insurance

For pricey services that would be a major loss if the customer didn’t show, you should consider taking a deposit, or even full payment, at the time of the booking. The advantage of this is twofold – first, it dramatically reduces the chance that the customer will just pull a vanishing act, and second, even if they do, your time will still be compensated.

By using Appointedd’s integration with Stripe to take deposits along with bookings, you can turn a no-show client into a paid tea break!

So there you have it, three steps that are sure to give your customers a helping hand remembering their appointments, and help you stop worrying about no-shows once and for all. You’re welcome.