Arranging a time that works for both the customer and the business can be difficult and time-consuming when customers are busy and the business only has a few available times. This is why ServiceM8 provides the ability to send your customers a special link via SMS (text) which allows them to select an available booking time for an existing job.
To send a booking link, first open a job card on the Dispatch Board and click the “New Booking” button. This presents a window which allows you to find available booking times:
You can narrow down the search options by specifying a particular staff member, date, duration or start time, or you can leave these unspecified to increase the range of booking times that will be offered.
Click the “Booking Link” button to open the the New SMS Message window, which is pre-filled with a message including a special single-use link for the customer to select an available time. You can tweak the message and choose the recipient, then click Send to send the message:
When the customer clicks the link, they will be presented with a list of available booking times:
After the customer selects one of the available times, they will have an opportunity to provide you with their updated contact details before confirming the booking.
Once the customer confirms the booking, the Job will be scheduled to a staff member automatically.
Important Notes on SMS Booking Links
There are a few important things to know when using the Booking Link feature:
- The booking link is only valid for a single booking. The customer won’t be able to create multiple bookings in the future using the same link.
For jobs which are associated with a Service with scheduling options configured:
- The list of times offered will be based on the available times for staff who are selected in the Service’s scheduling settings, unless a particular Staff member was selected in the New Booking window.
- The earliest booking time that will be offered is based on the Service’s scheduling settings.
- Even if the Service has pre-payment or deposit options set up, the Booking Link will not show pricing information or collect payment from the customer. For details on how to collect deposits or pre-payments, refer to Self-serve customer scheduling & deposits with Services article.
For all other jobs:
- The list of times offered will be based on available times for any staff who are displayed on the Dispatch Board Staff Schedule. If you selected a staff member in the New Booking window, only available times for that staff will be offered.
- The earliest booking time that will be offered is the opening time of the business on the following business day. The booking link will not offer times during the current day.