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common-mistakes-setting-up-booking-software

3 Common Mistakes When Setting Up Your Booking Software

Starr Campbell

Getting your staff and clients accustomed to a new scheduling software is easy with the right support. TimeTap’s endless customizations give business owners the control they need for a personalized solution. When setting up your software to fit your business, there may be a few questions you have after getting hands-on.

We’ve listed a few of the top questions our new customers have when starting their journey with TimeTap. Before you start accepting appointments, read through this list to make sure you’re ready to go.

Not customizing the scheduler flow

Being strategic about the options you give to your clients during the booking process (and the order they’re presented) can vastly improve their experience. You can customize the flow of your scheduler to fit your clients and business type. During set up, you may overlook the Scheduler Rules & Logic page or decide to come back to it later. We recommend you select your flow before customizing the rest of your settings to make setting up as smooth as possible.

scheduler-rules-and-logic

Companies with multiple offices can set their scheduler to Location > Services so clients are able to choose the location most convenient to them. Organizations that are more service based, such as physical therapy clinics, can allow clients to choose the type of appointment and staff member they need first by using the Services & Classes > Staff > Location flow.

Navigating custom booking site changes

TimeTap offers custom booking sites for companies that need separate pages for appointment scheduling. To clarify, you have the Mini Website which is the main scheduling page – this can house multiple staff and locations. Additionally, each staff, service or location can be assigned their own Custom Booking Site. This is an individual booking page that serves as a sub-page within the mini website. However, the custom booking site has its own standalone URL for direct access to a staff member’s booking page.

You can create a site for each location you have, classes, or staff members for direct scheduling. For a broader view of your business’ open appointments, clients can use your main “Mini Website” booking page. These sites are both customizable, but you will have to navigate to different pages.

Under the Settings tab, you can click on the Mini Website Design page to design your main page. Here, you can add professional branding, such as your web site logo and change the scheduler’s text. Remember to click the ‘Preview New Scheduler’ button in the box under ‘Actions’ or the URL under the Webhandle column - if you want to check out your site before publishing. Note: The “Preview Scheduler” gives you a view of the main Mini Website and not a preview of the Custom Booking Site.

custom-booking-site

Configuring your calendar

Entering the right information is the key to automated appointment scheduling, especially when it comes to your calendar. When setting up your calendar in TimeTap, navigate to Appointments. On the left side of the screen, you’ll see a list of boxes to check for filtering appointments. Make sure the appropriate boxes are checked so all your appointments, or at least the appointments you’re looking for, will show on your calendar.

Keep in mind that checking the wrong box can lead to confusion. For example, if you only want to view upcoming appointments for the week, make sure you don’t have the ‘Cancelled Appointments’ box checked or you’ll also see appointments no longer scheduled.

The page offers a lot of customization and filtering. You can customize the colors and also set various calendar views for insights into availability, class lists or open appointments.

scheduling-calendar

Under the ‘Settings’ tab on your Appointments screen, you’re able to personalize your calendar screen even more. You can show appointments’ paid status, buffers on appointment times, or adjusting all bookings to your time zone for easier readability.

If you’re new to TimeTap, one setting that may stump you is the Min Start Time and Max End Time. This is the minimum or maximum time your calendar will be scrollable. If your start time is 7:00 AM and the end time is 5:00 PM, your calendar will be condensed between those times. Be sure to set normal working hours. If you’re experiencing a blank calendar screen but have appointments, it’s probably because you have your Min Start and Max End set as the same time.

Adapting to a new tool comes with a learning curve for any business, but a great software makes it easy to get started and onboard your clients. If you have more questions about your new booking tool or want to get the most out of your trial, contact our support team for an onboarding call!

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