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Best Online Calendar and Scheduling Apps

By John Rampton | Scheduling | No Comments

As a leader, you most likely keep a schedule. Your schedule keeps you on track and tells you what you need to accomplish each day. There may be meetings, appointments, and events listed that you don’t want to forget.

Leaders have always found that work and personal life intertwine and calendaring is the best weapon against missing the essentials in either world. With scheduling and calendaring, besides work requirements, your schedule also includes gym appointments, concerts, and your kids’ games or recitals.

Best Online Calendar and Scheduling Apps

Here are some of the top schedule apps for business owners that will help you juggle everything in your business and life. You’ll work smarter — and never again will you forget an appointment or task.

Calendar for smart scheduling, unifying all of your calendars, and time analytics.
Google Calendar for basic online calendar functions for Google users.
Apple Calendar for basic online calendar functions for Apple users.
Microsoft Calendar for basic online calendar functions for Windows users.
Deputy for scheduling employees at various locations as well as the capability to publish schedules through email or SMS, and create shifts.
Hot Schedules for business owners with a team of employees to oversee in industries like restaurants, hospitality businesses, retail, and recreation and entertainment.
When I Work for its compatibility with payroll platforms like Quickbooks and ADP and its mobile accessibility, online scheduler, messaging, and customer support features.
Timely for its dashboard view, scheduling feature, and cloud functionality.
Planday for its simple scheduling by job role, push notifications and email alerts, payroll reporting, labor cost and overtime tracking, and customer support.
Fleetmatics Work for field service management businesses that have this type of team, cloud-based system, and integration with accounting software like Quickbooks.
Shiftboard for employee and workforce management scheduling, communications tools, employee self-serve options, and time and attendance processes.
FreeBusy for its artificial intelligence, compatibility with Outlook desktop and web app, embed feature, and integration with major digital calendars.
Meekan for its ability to work Slack and HipChat, flight search, RSVPs, double booking alerts, and meeting reminders.
Meetin.gs for its functionality, live communication tools like Skype, Microsoft Lync, Google Hangouts, and teleconferencing.
NeedToMeet for its collaborative meeting scheduling and management, custom URL to invite attendees, notifications and comments, and a dashboard view.
X.ai for its personal virtual assistant capability and artificial intelligence.
Fantastical for Apple users wanting to try a different option with a critically acclaimed design and user-friendly features.
Yahoo Calendar for recreation event integration, solid to-do lists, and long-term planning.

Best Online Calendar and Scheduling Apps — the Details

Calendar

Calendar is a calendar, scheduling, and appointment app. The web portal and mobile app provide a machine learning-enabled platform that learns about your contacts and typical schedule. The more Calendar works with that information, the better it becomes at understanding your schedule and those you interact with regularly.

Not only does the schedule app see how it can help with scheduling, but it also does a lot of the heavy lifting for you. That means you can enjoy automated reminders and real-time updates that get you where you need to go. It integrates with other apps and tracks information about routes, weather, and traffic to make sure you stick to your schedule.

Google Calendar

Google Calendar is one of the most accessible online calendars out there. You can download it on virtually any device and can dive in even deeper on a desktop computer. If you love the other products included in the Google Suite, you can easily integrate them into this calendar for easy use. Schedule meetings with Google Hangout links and attach Google Documents, Sheets, and Presentations as needed.

Google Calendar is also one of the most versatile of calendar apps, able to sync with most other apps to easily move from platform to platform or collaborate with users of other online calendars.

Apple Calendar

Apple Calendar is the default calendar for iPhone, iPad, and Macbook users. For those who live and die by the Apple brand, this calendar is great because it syncs across all your Apple devices, allowing you to switch seamlessly from one to the other. Don’t have access to one of your many devices? Your calendar information will be stored in Apple’s exclusive cloud, and you can access this from anything with a web browser and internet connection.

The Apple Calendar also doesn’t discriminate, allowing you to add additional online calendars from other sources for easier and all-inclusive time management.

Microsoft Calendar

Microsoft Calendar, also known as Outlook or Office 365 Calendar, is comparable to Google Calendar in that it works seamlessly with the other applications in its suite. It’s an optimal calendar for businesses that already rely on Microsoft products for their daily operations. This is an easy calendar for Windows users as Microsoft integrates well into virtually any PC.

While being able to create multiple calendars isn’t a unique feature, Outlook takes it a step further by allowing you to easily view separate calendars in a side-by-side view, as well as the ability to stack them. This way you can more easily balance your work and personal calendars, along with any others you have created.

Deputy

Deputy helps you stay on top of your schedule and anyone else on your team. It’s made for business owners to take care of staff management duties and lead more effectively. The complete scheduling solution includes a way to schedule employees at various locations, publish schedules through email or SMS, and create shifts. You can also get shift costs and compare wages to sales forecasts. It’s easy to add new employees to this scheduling system.

Other features include timesheet management, communication channels, and tasking tools. The cloud-based scheduling system also lets you oversee schedules from anywhere because it works with Android, iPad, iPhone and Apple Watch.

Hot Schedules

Hot Schedules is another scheduling app that is ideal for business owners with a team of employees to oversee. It’s especially ideal for certain industries like restaurants, hospitality businesses, retail, and recreation and entertainment. The scheduling app provides a cloud-based platform so that schedules can be produced quickly and optimize the available labor force. Features include time and attendance record-keeping, shift communication, labor compliance, and employee engagement.

In addition to the scheduling functionality, it provides a full-scale back-office solution for businesses like restaurants, including inventory management, talent development, forecasting and budgeting, and more.

When I Work

When I Work is another scheduling app that works for those leaders that have a team. This scheduling app is for numerous types of businesses across industries like hospitality, customer service, retail, healthcare, nonprofits and more. It specifically benefits those business owners with hourly employees because it makes scheduling so easy. It also works for all types of employee meetings, and task scheduling.

The scheduling app also works with payroll platforms like Quickbooks and ADP so the work schedule can transfer over easily. The app works with Android or iPhone so it makes employee requests for shift trades or time off even simpler. It’s free for up to 75 users, including mobile accessibility, online scheduler, messaging, and customer support features.

Timely

Timely is a scheduling app for individuals, freelancers, and business owners that also works as a team management platform, overseeing hours, projects, and tasks. The dashboard view provides a business owner with an overview of all projects to see what everyone is doing. Plus, you’ll see how much time it actually takes them. Over time, this can help you reduce overhead costs and optimize productivity while also balancing the team’s workload.

The scheduling feature helps you schedule work according to available capacity while also tracking who has recorded their hours. All it takes is a few clicks to create the schedule as well as put together detailed results that can be used along with invoices to bill clients. The scheduling app can be used from anywhere, including iOS and Android devices.

Planday

Planday is a powerful, yet affordable, scheduling platform that grows with you as you add users. There are starter and pro levels of the scheduling app set at different price points. Even the starter level is packed with features. For example, it includes simple scheduling by job role, an app for iOS and Android, push notifications and email alerts, payroll reporting, labor cost and overtime tracking, customer support and more.

The pro-level includes these features and adds even more. Some features that come with the upgrade are HRM tools, vacation management, scheduling statistics and reporting, electronic signatures, and employee file management.

Fleetmatics Work

Fleetmatics Work is a field service management platform for businesses that have this type of team. The scheduling tools are easy to read and only require a few clicks so you can assign jobs in a way that lets you maximize the number of customer appointments you can book each day. The format also makes it easy to change or cancel appointments, including alerting each employee to a change in their schedule.

Since you have a mobile workforce, it offers a cloud-based system that can be accessed anywhere, most importantly your field service technicians. Additionally, the platform allows you to efficiently manage dispatch, invoices and quotes, and reports. Also, it integrates with accounting software, such as Quickbooks.

Shiftboard

Shiftboard is an employee and workforce management scheduling solution. This cloud-based system provides a way to automate much of the scheduling and time tracking process. It can forecast resources and build schedules based on that data. Additionally, the scheduling app can assign the right people to each job and make real-time scheduling adjustments should anything change.

Other features include a set of communications tools, employee self-serve options, and time and attendance processes. Also, the scheduling app offers reproving and analytics on shifts, workforces, teams, and financials. When you have new hires, you can use Shiftboard for applicant tracking and onboarding. Lastly, it integrates with hundreds of other apps and software for payroll, time management, and other business processes.

FreeBusy

FreeBusy is powered by artificial intelligence and serves as your scheduling assistant for teams and enterprises. You can use this scheduling app within the Outlook desktop and web app. The Outlook add-in features provide a way to identify the best time to meet for those who will be attending from inside your company as well as those from the outside. It also does the same with Google Calendar when you add the FreeBusy Chrome Extension.

Additionally, the scheduling app gives you a personalized webpage. Here, your contacts can see your availability and book meetings. You can also embed your availability on your website, blog, or LinkedIn. Integrating with major calendars will cost you a monthly fee. Otherwise, the basic version is free.

Meekan

Meekan is another scheduling app that uses the power of artificial intelligence to optimize your scheduling processes. it works with Slack and HipChat. The free app is very simple to use. Just request a new meeting in a simple language and then invite who you want. The AI machine goes to work to match everyone’s time and preferences, selecting an optimal time.

Once it has been established the meeting is synced for everyone on their Google, Office 365, or iCloud calendar. Other features include flight search, RSVPs, double booking alerts, meeting reminders, and more.

Meetin.gs

Meetin.gs is an app that helps you create, schedule, and manage meetings as a business owner or manager. It simplifies the meeting scheduling process by allowing you to integrate your calendar with its functionality and easily share that personal scheduling page as par at of an email tagline or website. You can access meeting information from your mobile device, respond to meeting requests, or get or make meeting updates.

The schedule supports Google apps, Google Calendar, Google Drive, Google Contacts, Outlook, Live People, and Office365. Additionally, it offers live communication tools like Skype, Microsoft Lync, Google Hangouts, and teleconferencing. It’s available as a monthly or yearly subscription.

NeedToMeet

NeedToMeet is a scheduling tool for collaborative meeting scheduling and management. This is a simple, yet highly effective, app for business owners and their teams. Features include simple scheduling, a custom URL to invite attendees, notifications and comments, and a dashboard view of all meetings. It works on multiple platforms, including iOS, Android, and the Web as well as with their Microsoft Outlook plug-in.

Even the standard free version of the schedule app is ad-free so there are no distractions. Two other versions of the schedule app come with more features and offer various pricing plans.

X.ai

x.ai is your personal virtual assistant for scheduling that leverages artificial intelligence to lighten your workload. It’s easy to use. It’s just a matter of CCing [email protected] on any email. Then, she does the rest to make sure a meeting time is coordinated and scheduled. She learns pretty much everything about you. This includes appointments, phone number, Skype username, and any information that a colleague or client might need to schedule time on your calendar.

The artificial intelligence component to this virtual assistant studies people’s natural speech patterns to reply in the most human ways possible. It’s free for up to five meetings per month. A fee-based version adds more features, a customizable signature, and unlimited meetings each month.

Fantastical

Fantastical is exclusive to Apple users and is another option for those who aren’t the biggest fans of the default Apple Calendar. The app can be used for free but is greatly restricted without an account subscription, but $4.99 a month isn’t a steep price to pay for calendar efficiency. Critics and users alike rave about Fantastical’s layout, giving it high ratings on its clean and user-friendly design.

One of its unique features is calendar sets, allowing you not only the ability to organize your daily schedule but a myriad of calendars of different types. For example, a business owner can create different calendars for their sales, customer service, and IT teams and add them to a calendar set focused on work. Another set can contain a specific calendar for each one of your kids including their individual events and commitments.

Yahoo Calendar

Yahoo Calendar is a blast from the past. While it has been outpaced by many other calendars as far as updates are concerned, it’s still a very serviceable program in the right hands. Being able to sync with Apple and Outlook calendars is a huge plus, helping you begin integrating right away. Something that sets it apart is the ability to work flawlessly with event sites such as Evite and Eventful, which allows you to more easily book events to attend and have them added automatically to your personal calendar.

Yahoo also excels with its to-do list feature, helping you plan out all the details of your day to accomplish all of your short-term goals. Additionally, for what it’s worth, a 100-year calendar allows you to plan as far in advance as you would ever need to.

The Right Appointment Reminders Will Get Your Customers Through the Door

By Gunjan Saini | Appointment | No Comments

Any business that works with appointment bookings should be sending reminders to all of its customers. Even the simplest reminder can slash no-show rates and late appearances by customers who have a hard time keeping track of their schedule. Online appointment reminders can also be automated, so there’s no additional work for your team.

However, the best appointment reminders require a little more thought and effort. Carefully crafting your appointment reminders will improve their effectiveness in bringing customers through your doors. Here are a few tips to bear in mind when developing your own appointment reminders:

Provide Multiple Options

Not all forms of appointment reminders will be effective for all your customers. Some will prefer email reminders, while others are more likely to respond to a text message or automated phone call. Having a variety of options lets customers select the method that fits them best; multiple options will help ensure they never forget an appointment.

Also consider allowing customers to select the time of the reminder. Some individuals only need an hour’s notice to get ready for an appointment, while others will want a nudge 24 hours in advance. For clients who book appointments very far out, multiple reminders over a month or two will prevent you from falling off their radar.

In some cases, businesses are prohibited from sending direct messages to customers without their approval. Follow any opt-in requirements that may apply to your business to make sure your reminders don’t run afoul of the FCC.

Include Appointment Information

You could have the loveliest copy and cleanest design, but your appointment reminder won’t be worth much if it doesn’t contain key information. Before you add bells and whistles to your reminders, start with the basic structure.

Be sure that the time, date, and location of the appointment are front and center. The purpose of a reminder, after all, is to call attention to the commitment a customer has made with your business. Your company name and logo should be immediately visible so customers know where the reminder is coming from.

Get (Reasonably) Personal

You probably can’t send a calligraphed note for each individual appointment reminder, but there are ways you can add a personal touch to each one. A little personalization helps customers feel important and valued, not just another face in the crowd.

Automation allows you to easily give your appointment reminders some personal flair. It can add the customer’s name as well as other relevant information that makes the reminder theirs and theirs alone. Adding time, location, and — if possible — the name of the service provider will prevent appointment reminders from sounding too generic.

Be wary of messages that are too personal, though. For instance, appointment reminders for a doctor’s office shouldn’t include sensitive patient information. Such information should be stored securely and accessed via an online patient portal with messaging that requires a username and password.

Keep It Concise

Don’t let a lot of copy defeat the purpose of your appointment reminder. A wall of text will swallow up the important information your customer will need in order to fulfill their appointment commitment.

So keep it super simple. Address the customer by name, and notify them of their upcoming appointment. If you want to make more use of the reminder, you can include contact information. This way, should customers need to cancel an appointment or adjust their booking, they’ll know how to get in touch.

Use the Right Tone

The tone of your writing should reflect your brand imaging in a way that resonates with customers. A high-profile lawyer wouldn’t use the same tone of voice as, say, a hair stylist. One is more serious, while the other allows for more flexibility and fun.

Think about your target audience and what sort of message would appeal to them. Customers of a more light-hearted business might appreciate a fun tagline with their appointment reminders or a quote fit for an Instagram post. Others, like our lawyer friend, will want to use official-sounding language that exemplifies their expertise in the legal field.

Include a Call to Action

Use appointment reminders as a way to increase engagement by adding a call to action. This will prompt customers to act on your reminder instead of dismissing the notification and forgetting about it immediately.

A simple click-to-confirm button will solidify bookings in your business calendar and get customers to take control of their appointments. Other calls to action can include taking advantage of deals or setting up a future booking from their device.

Send Reminders From a Consistent Source

When sending out your appointment reminders, stick to the same phone number or email address. Customers will recognize the validity of your messages when they come from a consistent source. Otherwise, they might dismiss reminder messages as spam.

To remove all doubt, make it easy for customers to verify where you send messages from. Add this information to an easily accessible location on your website, such as a frequently asked questions page. You can also add your contact info to confirmation messages that come with the initial booking.

The right appointment reminders will help customers keep their commitments and businesses maximize their time and revenue. Review your appointment reminders now — and often — so that they’re always optimized for the best results.

How Freelancers Can Keep Manageable Schedules Without Losing Work

By John Rampton | Scheduling | No Comments

Freelancers love the flexibility their no-boss lifestyles provide, but some clients don’t know how to take a hint. They email at all hours of the night and get upset when the project isn’t finished by midmorning. No freelance worker enjoys turning down a good job, but when clients make unreasonable demands, contractors must make a choice. The contractor must adopt a policy for themselves, between taking a stand and sacrificing the schedule their lifestyle provides.

According to research from Upwork, more than half of freelancers wouldn’t take a traditional job for any amount of money. To make the most of the self-employed lifestyle, freelancers need to know how to maintain control of their schedules without sacrificing income in the process.

This five-step strategy can help freelancers take control of both their calendars and their earnings:

1. Put clear schedule expectations in contracts.

Every regular freelancer should get contracts signed by their clients. Formal agreements protect both sides in the event of a disagreement and provide context for ongoing partnerships.

Some freelancers mistakenly limit their contracts to deliverables only. Guillaume Leverdier says that’s a bad idea. Instead, freelancers need to include scheduling agreements in writing — including hours of contact and expected times for a response. This gives clear “no mistake” guidelines for the clients, that they deserve the same respect as any traditional vendor.

2. Don’t let actions betray words.

It’s one thing to talk tough. It’s another thing to follow through. Freelancers who set strict hours in their contracts and then let clients walk all-over their schedules might as well not require contracts at all. Be aware, this lapse in your contract usually happens more with friends who are also clients. We won’t mention the “F” word here: family.

The ideal strategy, as recommended by Freelance to Freedom, is to set regular hours and respond to client communications only within those hours. Of course, sometimes that isn’t possible. For occasions when clients need rush jobs, contract workers should include contract clauses on expedited rates. That way, if clients want something done outside of normal hours, they understand the price of asking.

3. Set upfront expectations for project deadlines.

Clients outsource work for a lot of reasons, primarily to control costs, but also to gain access to skills not found within their organizations. Freelancers know how to do something their employees don’t. That makes the freelancer valuable, but it also means that their clients often don’t understand how long projects should take.

Rather than let trial-and-error wreck promising beginnings, contract workers should take the time to talk with their clients about the scope their project will demand — to establish reasonable deadlines. For larger projects, deadlines should include both the end date and intermediate benchmarks. By setting this schedule at the outset, freelancers can prevent scope creep.

4. Learn to say “no” without being rude.

Sometimes, no amount of money is enough to make a job worthwhile. A freelancer on a family vacation probably doesn’t want to tackle a big project no matter how much the client wants to pay.

Brent Galloway, a freelance designer, wrote extensively on Digital Freelancer about three times he had to turn down work from clients. Some responded with understanding, while others got personal. Freelance workers face it all eventually, and the best ones learn how to let down clients firmly, but kindly.

5. Track working hours and make changes where needed.

In the struggle to succeed, plenty of people don’t realize how many hours they actually work. Freelancers are especially notorious for tracking only the time they spend working on projects. In the confusion of the hustle, they forget to track all the hours spent emailing, researching and thinking. Those hours are just as valid, and when freelancers consistently work outside their scheduled times, they undersell the amount of effort their projects require.

Smart freelancers use scheduling tools to make their lives easier. To discover bad habits, freelancers should keep a journal of hours worked and review that journal at regular intervals. Answering emails at night is fine, but when work bleeds into life too frequently, it can lead to burnout.

As challenging as self-employment can be, freelancing remains one of the most rewarding life paths for an increasing number of people. Setting and keeping a schedule helps contract workers maximize their earnings and make the most of their flexible calendars. Marking lines in the sand is never easy, but with work-life balance on the line, the rewards are worth the hard conversations.

8 Industries That Need to Start Using Online Appointment Software

By Jon Bradshaw | Appointment | No Comments

There are some industries that have the appointment process down to a science. Healthcare providers and hairdressers are incredibly efficient at getting customers in and out. Others, however, have yet to tap into the benefits of appointment software.

Just about every industry conducts customer service. Even product companies need to set up troubleshooting and feedback sessions with users. Here are a few others that should embrace appointment software:

1. Education

Great teachers maintain office hours in case students, parents, or colleagues stop by with a question. The trouble is, these hours tend toward one of two extremes: either nobody shows up, or there’s a crowd waiting their turn.

Appointment software can solve both issues. Teachers can even out the flow by encouraging people to book appointments. And if nobody has booked a slot, they can spend their office hours preparing for their next lesson.

2. Car Dealers and Mechanics

Many car dealers continue to do it the old fashioned way: waiting for potential buyers to walk onto the lot. Appointment software can help them make more sales with less stress. Car shoppers expect their salesperson’s full and undivided attention.

Garages and mechanics can also use online appointment software to help their customers, whether they work for a dealership or out of their home. Customers need their cars to get around; asking them to book an appointment ensures they are without their wheels for only as long as is necessary.

3. Fitness Trainers

With the new year still fresh, fitness trainers have their hands full. Organizing workouts for multiple clients can be a balancing act, especially now with COVID-19 restricting building occupancy. Online appointment software can help trainers focus on the gym instead of their calendar.

Despite their best intentions, customers skip workouts. Online appointment software lets customers cancel or change their appointments at will. When that happens, trainers using booking software can readjust their schedule to squeeze in more clients.

4. Entertainers

No one is as excited for the COVID-19 pandemic to end as entertainers. Musicians, DJs, comedians, and more are anxious for public gatherings to resume. Until then, many are booking housecalls. Appointment software ensures they don’t double-book themselves or leave too little time between sessions.

Once the pandemic recedes, entertainers will use booking software to communicate with event planners. Entertainers need to stay in touch with venues before and up to each event.

5. Mobile Services

Mobile services are increasingly popular, meaning they need tools like appointment software. The more organized they are, the more timely and productive they’ll be.

Handymen, lawn care professionals, house cleaners, and more can use online software to organize their schedules and share their availability to customers. Every time they finish a job, they can check to see if gaps in their schedule have been filled with last-minute appointments. More availability means more appointments, which means more revenue.

6. Child Care

Babysitters and nannies have to work around the schedules of their client families. Online appointment software makes it easy to accommodate changing routines. If a family needs to change their plans, it can be done in just a few clicks.

Many sitters are teenagers and students who have busy schedules. They can use online appointment software to juggle school commitments alongside their sitting work. Now if only they’d treat their homework with the same seriousness they do their clients.

7. Recreation Centers

Only so many people can use the racquetball court or fit in a lap pool at once. To make sure everyone gets their fair share, recreation centers can use online appointment software. Making bookings public knowledge can help gym goers know when courts are in use and when they’re available for reservation.

This software will be particularly valuable as fitness facilities navigate COVID-19. Appointment software can help ensure that occupancy doesn’t exceed safe limits, allowing centers to stay open while keeping everyone safe. Facilities can even reserve a time slot designated specifically for cleaning.

8. Real Estate

Some real estate agents work full time, while to others, it’s a side gig. Either way, most of their success comes from showing homes on the market to prospective buyers.

Most showings are by appointment only. Agents can use software to book tours, schedule open houses, and give a heads up to occupants who may need to vacate the area for the showing. Not only does it make managing their own schedule easier, but it gives a positive impression to clients and potential buyers.

Is your industry in need of an appointment overhaul? Don’t shy away from software. There’s a reason your doctor and dentist insist you book online.

7 Things Customers Want in Their Online Booking Experience

By Jason Barnes | Scheduling | No Comments

Online Appointment Software Says a Lot About Your Business

Online booking and appointment software makes life easier for you and for your customers. But investing in software is just the start. How are you going to give them a great booking experience?

Customers have high expectations for online scheduling software. They want a personalized experience, just as they’d receive from your receptionist. But they also want certain things humans simply can’t offer, like always-on account access.

Are you meeting their expectations? Here’s what they’re looking for:

1. 24/7 Access to Online Booking

Many people manage their personal appointments before or after regular business hours. Appointment software can and should be available 24/7. That way, customers can add, adjust, and cancel appointments at their leisure.

If you’re worried about customers with unanswered questions hesitating to book after hours, set up a frequently asked questions page or, better yet, a customer service chatbot. These automated scripts can address most, if not all, of the questions customers might ask in the booking process.

Just as important to customers as being able to access your appointment software at all times is being able to access it from any device. Make sure the program you use is accessible on mobile. Try it from a few different devices to be sure it loads well on screens of different sizes.

2. Online Booking Speed and Efficiency

Booking an appointment online should be a lot faster than it would be over the phone or in person. After all, no one wants to wait on hold for 15 minutes, just to be told that the time slot they desire has already been booked.

The less time it takes for customers to book an appointment online, the better. If there are still kinks in your system, take the time to straighten them out. Broken links or long loading time will not reflect well on your business.

3. Prepay Options

Most online appointment software gives customers the option to prepay. Not forcing customers to pay on site makes their appointment experience run faster and more smoothly.

Consumers also appreciate companies that accept a variety of payment options. You’ll have customers who will want to use debit cards, credit cards, mobile wallets, gift cards, and perhaps even cryptocurrency. The more forms of payment you accept through your online appointment software, the better.

4. Online Booking Reminder Settings

Life gets busy. Forgetting an appointment is all too easy to do. Make sure your appointment scheduling system sends reminders to make sure customers know what’s coming up.

With that said, not everyone enjoys getting reminder messages from companies. Make it possible for them to change their reminder settings. Some might prefer an extra reminder or two, while others may want to turn them off entirely.

Make settings adjustable for other notifications as well. Some customers would love to know when you unveil a new promotion or close for the holidays.

5. Instant Verification

Just as important as those reminder messages are verification statements confirming that an appointment has been made. After going through the online booking process, customers need confirmation that their appointment has been set. Wondering if their request has gone through may prompt them to make a second appointment, which can result in double bookings and general confusion.

Be sure your online appointment software sends confirmation emails. The copy doesn’t need to be out of this world; you just need a simple message to let customers know that their appointment slot has been secured.

6. Appointment Viewable Availability

Don’t make your customers go through the entire booking process just for them to find out the slot they want is unavailable. From the second they open up your interface, they should have access to all available appointment slots for the next several weeks or even months. This way, there’s no question as to what times are available to them in the near future.

This shouldn’t be difficult to accomplish, as your online appointment software should automatically update your appointment calendar every time someone books. Make it an option for customers to receive updates when last-minute appointments open up, giving them a chance to walk in on a day they would have preferred originally.

7. Simplified Check-In

Online appointment software shouldn’t just simplify the booking process; it should make check-in a breeze. Most systems do this by maintaining a profile on each customer, which is then made available to the customer service staff.

Some online appointment software can transfer booking details directly to your CRM system. This integration makes it easy to start each customer’s appointment as soon as they walk in the door.

Knowing what customers want is one thing; delivering it is another. If your booking software makes signing up for a slot easy, customers are all the more likely to do it again.

Break Your Binge-Watching Habit With These 8 Scheduling Tips

By Abby Miller | Appointment | No Comments

Have you always been a binge-watcher? You’re not alone. Has the pandemic brought your binge-watching tendencies? You’re not alone. Americans are watching a record eight hours of streaming content per day during the lockdowns.

While there is no doubt streaming services are convenient, don’t let them become a crutch. Watching hours of video content every day cuts your productivity off at the knees.

What if you’re struggling to break the habit? Pull up your calendar, and schedule something else to do.

Beat Binge-Watching by Managing Your Time

Binge-watching is simply a symptom of poor time management. To beat it:

Implement a Reward System

A reward system can help you both manage your binge-watching and commit to other productive tasks. Start with a to-do list for the day. Assign each task with a number of minutes you’ll allow yourself to binge-watch for completing the task. By the time you’ve accumulated enough time to watch your show, you’ll have completed a good amount of tasks.

This method is a common parenting technique, encouraging you or your kids to complete tasks before turning to electronics. It can make binge-watching feel more rewarding by reminding you how much you were able to accomplish before sitting down to watch.

Try Timeboxing

It’s all too easy to flip on your favorite show when you have a free hour. To make time for your other responsibilities before resorting to TV time, give timeboxing a try.

Timeboxing isn’t tough to implement. Simply split your day into 30-minute chunks, and assign a specific task to each block. Focus only on the task at hand until the block has ended, and then move on.

Online calendars are the perfect tools for timeboxing. You can block off time for everything you need to do during the day, perhaps saving the last block to unwind with an episode of your favorite show. Use this method to let yourself have a TV treat without overdoing it.

Organize a Watch Party

Got a new show you can’t stop watching? Set up a watch party to share it with friends. They won’t want you to watch it without them, holding your binge-watching crave at bay until the next get-together. And in any case, it’s more fun to watch shows with your friends.

Plan these events with your online calendar. You can coordinate schedules, note who’s in charge of snacks, and share the events you create with all invitees. After that, all you have to do is look forward to your next party.

Plan More Activities

They say the idle mind is the devil’s workshop. When your schedule is empty, it’s easy to justify extra binge-watching. To overcome this, fill your online calendar with things you want to accomplish but struggle to make yourself do.

The busier you are, the less time you’ll have for binge-watching. Use your time to develop talents, explore hobbies, or simply get some fresh air. If you still can’t seem to commit, get an accountability partner, such as a walking companion.

Find Ways to Multitask

Instead of replacing your binge-watching with activities, you can also try combining them. Some of your daily tasks might allow you to watch while you work. This way, you’re still getting stuff done while enjoying your favorite show.

As you plan out your day in your online calendar, look for multitasking opportunities. Who says you can’t enjoy your go-to show while doing laundry, cooking, and even exercising? If you find a combination you love, use your online calendar to make it a habit.

Schedule a Day Off

Every once in a while, take an entire day off from watching television. Giving your brain a chance to reset helps you keep the habit from embedding itself too deeply. What’s more, you’ll enjoy each episode more when it’s not an everyday occurrence.

Schedule your day off from television in your online calendar. Fill this day with anything you want other than shows and movies. For a real challenge, make it a social media detox as well.

Create a Nightly Routine

Most binge-watching occurs at night after you’ve finished school or work. If you get too carried away, you may find it gets in the way of those next-day activities. The solution is a healthy nighttime routine.

Evening routines are easy to set up in an online calendar. Develop one that helps you wind down while still getting enough rest for the next day. You can include some TV time, but you should probably skip that second or third episode.

Keep Tabs on Other Tech Use

The amount of time you spend on smart devices likely rivals your binge-watching hours. And if you let yourself spend six hours per day on your smartphone, it’s a lot easier to justify three hours sitting in front of the TV.

To truly take control, you need to be on top of all your electronic usage. Replacing binge-watching with playing video games isn’t much of an improvement.

Fight your tech addiction on all fronts. Put together a morning routine to stop yourself from checking your phone first thing when you wake up. Schedule time to look at emails so you’re not distracted by notifications throughout the day. Set reminders to help you stay on task.

No one expects you to stop watching TV altogether. In fact, a little entertainment time is healthy. What’s not healthy is letting your binge-watching get the best of you. Use your calendar to take control.

7 Ways to Optimize Your 2021 Appointment Schedule

By Jason Barnes | Scheduling | No Comments

The new year can’t come fast enough. Entrepreneurs and business leaders everywhere will be grateful for the opportunity to leave 2020 behind and look toward 2021. Part and parcel of that is setting up your appointment schedule for next year.

Don’t know where to start? This guide will get your wheels turning and your schedule set:

Learn From 2020

You can learn a lot from last year’s appointment schedule. Look at what techniques brought customers in the door and helped you serve them efficiently. Lean into those that worked and jettison the rest.

For example, what kept appointments coming COVID-19? Was it a social media promotion? Digital marketing or SEO? Chances are, those tactics will continue to perform in 2021.

Get Customers on the Calendar

Don’t wait until January 1 to start booking appointments for 2021. You’ll enter the new year with a bare schedule that will be stressful to fill up. Throughout the final weeks of 2020, you should be trying to book as many appointments in early 2021 as possible.

What about appointments for mid-2021 and beyond? Appointments planned too far in advance are more prone to cancellations. Decide with your team how far in advance you want to book while weighing the pros and cons.

Hold a New Year’s Promotion

If you expect January to be a lean month, you can open up the year with a New Year’s promotion. As is true of all promotions, a good deal can incentivize a lot of appointments quickly.

Use customer’s New Year’s resolutions as a way to lure them to your business. For example, a dentist’s office can cater to customers who want to transform their look in 2021. Personal trainers will greatly benefit from a New Year’s deal, as getting in shape is one of the most common New Year’s resolutions.

Set Up Work Schedules

Once you’ve gotten your appointment schedule squared away, be sure to spend some time organizing your employee schedules. Making sure busy days have enough employees scheduled is key to keeping appointments flowing.

Plan out employees’ work schedules as far in advance as possible. Ask your team members to submit PTO requests as early as they can. Ironing out these details makes scheduling less stressful.

Aside from your team’s work schedule, don’t forget about your general business hours. With COVID-19 still affecting businesses everywhere, your regular hours might have changed. Make sure these are updated on your website, front door, and anywhere else you post them.

Decide Days Off

When setting up your appointment schedule for the end of the year, you should have the days marked off where you’re not taking appointments. Christmas and New Year’s are times for family, but don’t stop there.

Say you’ve decided to open up all of 2021 for appointments. If a customer books a visit on the day before Thanksgiving — a day you’d planned to take off — they’ll be frustrated by your request that they rebook. As soon as you know what your schedule will look like, make it known online.

Days off won’t just include holidays. Think about all-staff retreats and maintenance needs that might limit your availability. Even if it’s not a full day off, you may need to reduce the number of available slots on those days to accommodate your other responsibilities.

Reach Out to Your Regulars

As you fill up your appointment slots for 2021, give your regular customers a ring. They’ll appreciate being given the opportunity to claim their preferred appointment times, encouraging loyalty while netting you recurring revenue.

This strategy is commonplace in the sports world. Season ticket holders get the first call to renew their membership before seats are opened up to the public. Sports franchises understand that their long-term fans are their most important asset; the same is true for your business.

Recalibrate Your Reminders

While setting up your appointment schedule, take time to go through the other settings of your appointment software. Updating your automated reminders is a great way to reduce your no-show rate and improve customer compliance.

Say you’re a doctor’s office that added colonoscopy services. Those customers can’t eat for a day or more before the procedure — something automated notifications can remind them off. Be sure they’re set appropriately.

Get started now on making 2021 a great year for your business. The more prepared you are, the fewer things can shake you. And after 2020, you know just how important that is.

How to Use Appointment Software in Your Personal Life

By Jon Bradshaw | Scheduling | No Comments

Businesses use appointment software for all sorts of reasons. Making it easier for customers to book appointments is one. Another is helping the team manage its workload.

Believe it or not, however, the benefits of appointment software extend beyond businesses. Some people use it in their personal lives as well.

Why? Let’s take a look:

Staying Connected

Even though social distancing has taken over your social life, you can use online appointment software to stay in touch with friends. The software makes it simple to coordinate schedules, whether you’re meeting in person or virtually.

You can use online appointment software to show your availability to friends. Then, they can select a time that works best for a phone call, video chat, or meetup. This will help you stay connected even when conflicting schedules keep you apart.

Want to keep your friends on the hook? Each member of your group can rotate through being in charge of scheduling the next activity. With online appointment software, you can send a payment to them if they foot the bill.

Networking

Connecting with business professionals is a great way to get ahead in your field. Networking events can be difficult to put together, given how busy industry veterans can be. Online appointment software makes it easier to coordinate with them.

Opening up appointments to mentors and people you’re trying to network with makes it easier to fit them into your schedule. It also eliminates the back-and-forth communication involved in pinpointing a time, helping you meet more people in less time.

Hobbies and Side Gigs

Do you use online platforms to peddle some of your old trinkets? Hosting an online yard sale can be tricky. When you’re trying to find the right buyer, you may need to set up a time to chat.

Instead of playing phone tag with half a dozen people, let your online appointment software get the job done. Post your item of choice on the internet with an appointment link that allows a buyer to schedule a time to pick it up. Once a time is selected, you can close the software off to stop anyone else from booking after the sale is made.

Your other ventures also benefit from online appointment software. Side gigs don’t get much love and care under normal circumstances, but online appointment software can help you book meetings with buyers and better organize your efforts.

Event Hosting

While COVID-19 is putting most events on hold for the time being, the day will return when you’re able to put together fun family events once more. Be ready for it with appointment software.

Online appointment software can help you gather RSVPs to get a head count for seating, refreshments, and venue size. The software can also enable you to share the event easily, reaching everyone you wish to invite in a matter of seconds.

Recreational Activities

Got a tennis buddy waiting for a rematch? Don’t keep them waiting! Use online appointment software to squeeze in some time on the court.

Online appointment software can help you organize all sorts of recreational activities. From planning a workout with your gym buddy to a family holiday event, appointment software makes schedule coordination simple.

Tutoring and Coaching

Want to make 2021 your year? You can start by looking for ways to improve yourself. Schedule tutoring and coaching sessions that help you achieve personal development and fulfillment.

Coordinate with your tutors and coaches using online appointment software. Tell them what you hope to achieve. Ask them to help you lay out the steps to get there. Book frequent appointments with them to measure your progress and to hold yourself accountable.

Meeting Deadlines

Deadlines can be easy to miss. To make sure you don’t let any slip through the cracks, block them off in your appointment software.

Balancing class assignments, work initiatives, and personal projects can be difficult. Use your online appointment software to block off time prior to each. The rest is just a matter of buckling down.

Juggling Schedules

Even the most level-headed of people forget things. You don’t want to miss your daughter’s piano recital because you were too focused on scheduling out your work deadlines. Online appointment software will help you strike the perfect balance in your daily schedule.

Online appointment software is as flexible and useful as you make it. Download one, and you’ll see why it’s such a staple of the business world.

Why Online Appointment Software Should Be on Your Christmas List

By Jason Barnes | Appointment | No Comments

Most businesses probably have extensive Christmas lists after this tumultuous year: requests for more customers, better equipment, or even building renovations are likely stuffing Santa’s mailbox right now. Something that needs to be on every company’s list, though, is online appointment software.

The benefits of online appointment software are plain to see and can make an instant impact on your business in 2021. Ready to learn more? Read through this article and then forward it on to Santa when you’re through:

Increases Appointment Volume

Want to get more appointment bookings? Look no further. Online appointment software makes it exponentially easier for customers to find and book appointment slots with your business. The increased convenience will draw in new customers and improve retention.

You can also insert your appointment software on your website and social media pages. This eliminates hurdles for clients looking to get in contact with your business, making it easy for customers to book an appointment with just the click of a button.

Something important to consider with any business implementation is return on investment, or ROI. With everything you do, you should strive for a positive ROI, meaning you make more money than you spent. Because online appointment software is relatively inexpensive and increases lead volume, the ROI is almost universally high.

Balances Daily Schedules

An important aspect of setting appointments for your business is managing its daily schedule. Ensuring there are no overlaps and that enough staff will be available to handle the volume ensures every day is a smooth one for both business and customer.

Online appointment software uses artificial intelligence to keep schedules balanced without supervision. It will monitor bookings to ensure there’s no overlap or that appointments aren’t attempted to be booked when there’s no availability.

Prevents Appointment Mishaps

One late customer can throw off the entire flow of your business. With busy schedules, sometimes an honest mistake will cause a customer to run late or miss an appointment entirely. Online appointment software will automatically send out reminders to customers to prevent this from happening as often.

On the other end, businesses can sometimes misplace customer appointment times or fail to confirm them, leaving them off the schedule entirely. Online appointment software will automatically update your bookings, so you won’t have to worry about mistakes being made at the expense of your customers.

Provides Valuable Insight

Data metrics, when implemented correctly, can give your business a huge leg up. If you use online appointment technology to record all of your appointments, you’ll automatically be collecting relevant data that you can use.

For example, your software can tell you which one of your appointment packages is the most popular and which services might need some adjusting in order to sell better. You can also track customer data so you can see who your most loyal individuals are, as well as pinpoint key demographics for your marketing campaigns.

Keep an eye on no-show rates, average duration of appointment, and any other metric you might find useful. This information can be of great use to the evolution of your company with proper access and implementation.

Increases Time Efficiency

Time is a valuable resource for both business and consumer. Online appointment software helps both sides to save time. For customers, appointment booking couldn’t be easier, taking no more than a few minutes to go through the process each time.

For businesses, online software opens up time for employees who don’t have to man the phones and respond to emails throughout the day. They can spend more time focusing on customers, improving their appointment experience to encourage them to return again and again.

For both sides, payments can be made quickly and directly. Customers can see the change in their balance right away for budgeting and balancing. Businesses don’t have to worry about late payments or customers not covering their tab.

Improves Accessibility

Few customers want to call in and spend the time trying to relay the appointment information they hope to get into the system. In today’s world, people are simply more comfortable filling out a quick form online, and prefer to do it that way.

Online appointment software is available 24/7, meaning that your customers can book appointments at their convenience, regardless of their personal schedules. They can also make changes to their appointments without having to go through a hotline or a representative.

Adds Online Value

If you’re trying to market your business online, as you very well should, then online appointment software is just the thing for you. Search results are becoming increasingly effective, with “near me” business searches growing at a rapid pace.

Online appointment software will improve your standing in online searches, making you visible to more customers searching for the services you provide. Once your name flashes by, the ability to book an appointment right away will lure in a lot of new clients.

Helps Your Team

The benefits of online appointment software are not exclusive to helping your customers. The program will also be of great use for your team. You can use this tool to organize work schedules and time sheets so your employees know exactly when their shifts are in advance.

Online software also enables employees to more easily have shifts covered and swapped for greater flexibility of schedule. Changes can be approved right away, and the layout prevents too many employees from trying to ask off on the same day, leaving the company high and dry.

You better start writing to Mr. Claus so that your online appointment software will get here in time for the holidays. Transform your 2021 with programs like these, and your business will be thriving in no time.

What to Do When People Show Up Late to Their Appointment

By Gunjan Saini | Appointment | No Comments

Try as you might to get customers to arrive on time to their appointments, you’ll always end up with a few stragglers. How you handle these inconveniences says a lot about your culture and customer service.

Do you let people show up late repeatedly? Do you tear into them for it? Neither are the right approach. Here’s how to handle delays effectively but tactfully:

Ask About the Cause

Confront late customers about what caused them to be late. Was there more traffic than anticipated? Did they simply forget?

Questions are a soft way to get your message across. Plus, they help you discover trends that cause customers to be late. That way, you can address them across your customer base.

For example, if you have several customers forget their appointment times in a given month, start sending out more or improved reminder messages. If customers are late because they can’t find your business, add clearer directions to your website and check your location on Google.

Take Care of Timely Customers

Interspersed with your late arrivals will be customers who show up on time. Reward those who adhere to the schedule by serving them promptly. Otherwise, they may feel punished for another customer’s tardiness — and think the tardy customer has been rewarded for their lateness.

Don’t be afraid to swap appointment times. This benefits the customer who showed up on time while still giving the late customer a spot in line. That way, you’re not missing out on revenue or letting bad behavior go uncorrected.

Give a Fair Warning

No business can afford to deal with chronic tardiness. When you have a customer arrive late, give them an honest warning. This will inform them that repeated tardiness won’t be tolerated.

Before you do this, make sure you have a late policy in place. An existing policy will hold weight; an in-the-moment approach won’t. Go through the details of your policy together so there’s no question as to whether a late customer understands it.

The bottom line is, you can’t enforce a rule that doesn’t exist. Establish a policy that’s firm enough to be convincing, but not so strict that it scares customers away.

Issue a Penalty

For late customers to take your policy seriously, it needs to be tied to consequences. You could charge late fees, but a better approach might be to force late arrivals to reschedule. That way, they don’t disrupt your schedule and can’t refuse to pay the price.

Be firm but fair when issuing a penalty. People who are only late once every couple of months deserve some leniency, but customers who inconvenience your business every time do not.

Remember that you also have a right to refuse service to problem customers. If it’s costing you money to maintain a relationship with a customer who is always late, it may be time to cut ties with them.

Keep Things Moving

A rule of thumb for appointment-based businesses is that customers will respect your time if you respect theirs. If your wait times are long and showing up on time for an appointment does no good, you can’t expect customers to adhere to a strict schedule.

Even when customers show up late, do your best to keep things moving. Show customers that you value their time by being prompt and apologizing for any delays. Look for ways to reduce wait times and improve efficiency so you can hold customers to a higher standard.

Help Them Find a Time That Works

If a customer can’t seem to make a certain time slot work, offer ones that might. They may, in fact, suggest this themselves.

Rescheduling on site ensures that a return appointment is made. Not only does doing so net you recurring revenue, but it’s good customer service. Walking them through available times and inputting information yourself comes across like a favor.

Cut Appointments Short

If a customer is five minutes late, consider ending their appointment five minutes early. Not only is it fair, but it keeps late arrivals from pushing back other appointments.

Let’s say you’re a dentist and a patient arrives a half hour late. You have a full waiting room but still want to take care of your customer. You might do a quick clean and then book them another checkup sooner than you otherwise would.

Send Them Off With a Reminder

Not every late customer is at fault. Neither you nor they can control traffic patterns or stop family emergencies. But you can send customers off with a reminder to leave home a little earlier for their next appointment.

If your late policy uses a “strikes” system, do this in writing. That way, you can enforce a consequence next time without worrying about the customer claiming they were never warned.

The reality is, you’ll never completely eliminate late arrivals. But don’t let “good” be the enemy of “perfect.” Help your customers be on time, and many of them will discover that being late doesn’t benefit anyone.