Optimized scheduling is the name of the game when it comes to running an efficient and profitable salon or spa. Achieving great appointment scheduling can take some practice, especially for a newer small business. But even long-established businesses find that they occasionally need to revisit their scheduling process as they grow to balance the changing needs of staff, customers, managers, and owners like yourself. With the advancement of salon software technology, new tools can emerge even after you’ve adopted and implemented your software that you’ll need to utilize to get the most out of your investment.
Using appointment software for spas and salons to optimize your scheduling process will have numerous benefits for your business. After putting it to the test, salon owners have found that optimized scheduling using the software brought them:
- Higher productivity
- Increased revenue
- Happier employees
- Satisfied customers
It’s a win-win situation for everybody, and your spa or salon business will find it effortless with a great all-in-one salon management software.
8 Ways That Salon Management Software Can Optimize Your Scheduling Process
Salon scheduling software will help you optimize your scheduling process with a suite of tools designed to maximize booking opportunities for the best revenue outcomes. Online booking features, resource booking, parallel services, marketing and communication tools, and online payments are among the tools you can use to best optimize your salon or spa scheduling.
Salon management software like STX is designed specifically for service-providing businesses in the beauty, wellness, and fitness industries. So the unique needs of these industries are at the forefront of the software development and designing the tools that are included. If you own a hair salon, barber shop, nail salon, day spa, yoga studio, fitness gym, or other beauty and wellness business, salon and spa software gives you the tools you need to maintain a well-run business and also meets the needs of your busy clientele.
Enable Online Appointment Scheduling
Online booking is your salon’s best friend in today’s digital world. Empowering your customers to take control of their own appointment booking will save you time and resources. Your customers will enjoy the freedom and flexibility they’ll have to manage appointments on their own time, without having to make phone calls to book, reschedule, or add on services.
When setting up your salon booking software, you can create your business’s booking slots and customize the duration time needed for each service. The software will then automatically use that information to inform booking opportunities presented to your customers. You’ll add a booking widget to your business web page for customers to click on to be taken directly to your booking app.
Use Appointment Reminders And Confirmations
While you’re setting up your online booking, you want to make sure that you enable appointment reminders and confirmations. When your clients make an appointment with your salon or spa, the salon booking system will automatically send them an appointment confirmation notification. And then they will receive a reminder closer to their appointment time.
You can customize these communications to include the information you want such as time and date, the service and provider booked, and any other relevant information. And you can choose when to deliver the reminder in relation to the scheduled appointment. Best of all? These notifications significantly reduce no-shows and cancellations, and your staff doesn’t have to waste valuable time on the phone to make that happen.
Create A Waiting List
Create a waiting list in your appointment software for salons and spas to fill cancellation slots. Your clients can place themselves on the waiting list for an appointment time that they would prefer but that is already filled. If that slot becomes available, you can contact the clients on the waiting list in the appointment software to see if there is somebody who would like to take it.
Waiting lists are a great way to keep your calendar full and not waste resources (especially during the busy seasons). Your service providers will be able to recoup that “lost” income from the cancellation, your salon will avoid losing revenue, and the client who scored the new appointment time will be thrilled.
Utilize Resource Booking
Resource booking is the assignment of equipment, spaces, or tools in your business that are needed for specific services or classes. The resource booking tool in your spa software ensures that you never have a situation where a service or class has been booked but the space or equipment needed for it is not available. This can create an embarrassing scheduling situation when clients arrive and you either have to cancel or reschedule the service or class they have booked.
Here’s an example of how the tool works. If your client wants to book a massage appointment, your scheduling software will use the resource information you gave it during set-up to determine when the massage room space will be available and when that coincides with the clients preferred (or selected) provider. It will then present only those appointment times to the client to choose from. This is a key step in optimizing your scheduling process!
Take Advantage Of Parallel Services
Parallel services (or intentional double booking) is an excellent way to maximize your salon’s booking opportunities. You can optimize your appointment software to allow this kind of scheduling. Parallel services can boost your stylists’ income and the overall salon revenue.
If you have a client getting a chemical hair treatment, your stylist can perform short services such as a beard trim or a brow wax while they’re waiting for the processing to be complete.
Upsell Add-On Services
Boost your online bookings by upselling add-on services during the online appointment scheduling process. Customers may be less likely to try new services if they’re first hearing about them during an appointment. But if your online scheduling app suggests services to accompany a booking request in progress, your customer may feel less pressured. And they’ll have more time to consider the benefits and weigh the costs before deciding.
Deep conditioning treatments are a great suggested add-on to chemical hair coloring services. Or, upsell foot and leg massages or manicures to a pedicure appointment. Is the client booking a facial? Suggest a waxing service, dermaplaning, or a hydration treatment as an add-on.
Keep A Payment Method On File
When you keep a payment method on file for each customer, your booking and check-out processes will be smoother. The best salon scheduling software will come with a powerful online POS system that can take payment for services, retail items, classes, memberships, and more. This will keep your front desk from getting bogged down, which will also help keep your providers’ schedules from getting backed up.
Additionally, keeping a payment method on file can also significantly reduce no-shows and cancellations. Have a clear policy about charges for no-shows and cancellations. If the client does not show up or does not cancel their appointment within the window, you can charge the payment method on file for the appointment.
Use Marketing Tools To Fill The Books
Your salon or spa management system will have marketing tools to help you keep your books full – even during the slow seasons. Using these tools, you can create customized email campaigns to drive business at specific times. So, if you know that your schedule is going to have a lot of available appointments after the holidays, for example, you can market special opportunities to the customers on your email lists.
With STX Software, you can easily share your campaigns on your social media accounts. This will help you to reach a wider audience, making it a great way to find new customers as well.
What Are The Benefits Of Optimizing Salon And Spa Scheduling?
Optimizing your salon and spa scheduling with appointment software brings opportunity to your business. It also improves the experience for both the people who work there and the people who come for services.
With the help of software automation to reliably manage appointments and resource scheduling, your employees will spend less time on tasks. They’ll have more time to provide services and tend to in-store customers, building strong client relationships. This translates into more productive employees who are happier at their job, because they can focus on doing what they love and will be able to bring in more income. And it also means happier, more satisfied customers who enjoy convenient booking and attentive staff when they’re in your place of business.
For salon and spa owners, optimized scheduling maximizes booking opportunities to increase revenue. It also makes your salon look great. Offering easy online booking will attract new customers. Then you can wow them with great communication about their upcoming appointment, awesome services, and an impressively organized and efficient in-store experience. They’ll be singing your praises to friends, family, neighbors, and coworkers to earn you even more new clients.
Want To Learn More About How Salon And Spa Software Can Improve Your Scheduling Process?
If you want to learn even more about how appointment software for salons and spas can improve your scheduling process, generate a better workflow at your business, and even drive growth, reach out to us at STX Software. With excellent business management support designed for the beauty and wellness industry, our award-winning software for salons, spas, and fitness centers has helped small business owners like you achieve their goals.
You can give us a call at (800) 766-4778 or visit our website to book a live demo with our team. Contact us today to learn more about STX!