The decisions that come before the button
The "book now" button is the last step, not the first. Four things come before it: which services can be booked online, how long they really take, whether the client may choose her stylist, and whether requests are confirmed instantly or go through approval.
These look like technical decisions and are in fact commercial ones. Making a bleach bookable online without ever having seen the base means finding a four-hour job in the diary booked as if it were two. Making only cut and blow-dry bookable means leaving out the services that pay the rent.
The middle ground that almost always works: repetitive services book themselves, important technical services go through a first visit or a request the salon approves. The diary fills up without anyone promising times they can't keep.
Where the effect shows most
The chart is qualitative and shows how much each part of the day changes once online booking is open.
What to make bookable and what not
The table separates services you can open straight away from those worth filtering.
| Service | Bookable online | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Cut and blow-dry | Straight away | Predictable duration, little variation |
| Colour retouch on a known client | Straight away | The base is already on record |
| Bleach or major change | On request | Duration depends on the real base |
| First visit with consultation | Straight away, as its own service | It's where everything else gets decided |
How to open booking
Pick the bookable services
Repetitive ones now, important technical ones on request.
Measure real durations
Two weeks with a stopwatch beat the price list.
Decide confirm or approve
And how long a pending request stays valid.
Publish page and widget
On the site, on social and on the local listing.
Before you open
- Decide which services are bookable and which go through approval.
- Measure real durations, not the ones on the price list.
- Settle what happens to a request nobody approves.
Price-list durations and real durations almost never match. Before publishing the diary it's worth timing the most frequent services for two weeks: it's the fastest way to discover that the blow-dry takes twenty minutes longer than you thought, and that this is why Saturday runs late.
The other question to settle first is what happens to a pending request. If it holds the slot and nobody approves it, it blocks the diary; if it doesn't hold the slot, two people can book the same time. The right answer is that it holds the slot and expires by itself after a limit the salon sets.
Booking and consultation in one place
Saloria gives the salon a calendar with professionals and availability, a public booking page and a widget for its own website. The client books without creating an account and gets confirmation and reminder by email; at the visit, the consultation starts from a record already open and closes with the look plan and the technical protocol. Till and stock stay outside.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to make everything bookable?
No. Repetitive services open straight away; long technical ones are better going through a request you approve, or through a first visit.
What happens if someone books at night?
The appointment enters the diary under the rules you set: minimum notice, how far ahead people can book and a daily cap.
Does the client need an account?
With Saloria, no. She books with her name and services, gets a confirmation and a link to change or cancel within the limit you set.