Recently, at a weekend CE course, I was talking with some other massage therapists about our businesses. Many of them had found recent success with online appointment scheduling and integrating it with their Facebook page. Schedulicity.com seemed to be the most popular choice for online massage scheduling in the group.
When I got home, I went to Schedulicity’s website. Currently, they offer a 30 day free trial(no credit card required). They also had an information page specifically for massage professionals. I signed up that night.
Where was this service 10 years ago?
As I set the service up on my website I thought back to my days starting out in the massage field. I would hear my phone softly ring during a massage. Every massage therapist has been there.
Rule 1: You cannot stop a massage to answer a phone during a massage session.
Back then, I was just happy to have an answering machine. Some people left messages, many did not. One thing I know now is missed calls = missed income. There was no way, financially, I could have hired a receptionist; so in turn, I have also played a lot of phone tag in my career. Schedulicity would have been a time saver and practice builder.
Today, I am going to show you show you how to set Schedulicity up on your own website, and a couple of my favorite things about the massage scheduling software.
Setting Up Services and Office Hours
If you don’t currently have a website for your massage business, it is something you should considering adding. E-commerce currently accounts for 4.6% of all US retail sales, and has continued to grow year after year. The increasing use of mobile further reinforces your need for an online pressence.
According to Schedulicity, 41% of appointments are booked during non-business hours. Rather than waiting for your business to open, or for you to answer the phone (remember your giving a massage when your phone rings), get them now. Schedulicity is there when they want to make an appointment, not just when you are available.
(Click to Watch Setting Up Services and Office Hours on YouTube)
Schedulicity is very massage business friendly. You can easily build in processing or clean up time. This is the time you leave between clients for changing sheets, writing client notes, or travel time if your are mobile.
Place a “Schedule Now” button on your website
Sine we already discussed how important a website is for your business, it is time to place a “Schedule Now” button on your website after you sign up for your 30 day free trial. Set up is very easy.
(Click to Watch Adding a ‘Schedule Now’ Button on YouTube)
Social Friendly
Whenever you’re trying to build new relationships, business related or other, you need to go where the people are. This is what makes social media so powerful. Building a Business Page on Facebook is an excellent way to get yourself and your brand infront of a large audience of potential clients.
With Schedulicity, you can place a “Schedule Now” tab on your Facebook Page to accept appointments directly from Facebook. Rather than directing clients away from Facebook, to your website to book an appointment, you can close the sale immediately. Schedulicty’s Facebook integration also allows you to inform current and potential clients when you have an opening or run promotions.
(Click to Watch Accepting Appointments Through Facebook on YouTube)
Closing the Sale ~ Let Schedulicity do it for you
One of my favorite things about this service is that Schedulicity can help reduce no-shows. Although you cannot require clients to hold the appointment with credit card, Schedulicity takes care of automatic reminders for your client.
Clients can also cancel or reschedule appointments very easily. This leaves you with less time looking at the clock wondering where the your next client (who is not coming) is right now. The massage scheduling software also allows you to customize your cancellation policy.
Scheduling a massage online is very easy for your clients. Let’s take a look from a client’s perspective:
(Click to Watch Using Schedulicity from A Client’s Perspective on YouTube)
Schedulicity’s service is affordable ($19 for and individual, $39 for a group practice). The cost can easily be recouped each month with the booking of just one massage client. One!
Online Massage Scheduling is a great tool (and tax deduction) for massage therapists looking build their business or save time and energy. I wish I had discovered it earlier. Give online appointment schedulinga try, and tell me what you think!
**Please note, after experiencing Schedulicity’s trial period, I enjoyed the product enough that I decided to become an affiliate. I was truly impressed with the ease and functionality of the software, and I feel very comfortable recommending this product to other massage therapists. Should you chose to purchase Schedulicty’s scheduling service, I will earn a commission from that sale; let me say Thank You.
I feel very comfortable recommending this product to other massage therapists I think it is good for all.