How to Choose, Use, and Actually Benefit from Online Booking Systems
A guide to digital practice building
At Circe Health, we bring you modern business tools tailored to holistic healthcare practitioners who are looking for practice growth & sustainable success, so you can focus on the important work that you do.
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Welcome to a new edition of The Well! I come bearing some exciting news today, as we just launched Digital Practice Building, an online practitioner’s guide to creating confidence, clarity and consistency in building your practice in our digital world.
Today’s newsletter gives a peak into one of the main topics that we cover in this series; setting up systems and software to bring efficiency into your practice, and serve your clients well outside of the treatment room too. You’ll find more info on how to join our online series below, and we’ll dive into the world of online booking flows and software options!
The processes you set up for your practice are a brilliant opportunity to reduce the overwhelming amount of admin work, set boundaries with your time, clearly communicate your ways of working, and extend the quality of care you give to your clients in treatments and consultations to their online experience before and after. And of course as a holistic healthcare practitioner, there’s a certain sensibility to designing the right processes. You provide personalised medicine that helps people disconnect with the stresses and pressures of our modern daily lives, into connection to themselves - in whatever shape or form depending on your offering. So deciding what online booking journeys, online communications and digital customer service looks like as an extension of this treatment offering should be done carefully. My main advice is, focus on simplicity.
This topic of setting up (digital) processes and systems that support you, your clients, and your practice expansion is one of the pillars in our new online series ‘Digital Practice Building’ which launched today!
If you’re looking to get clarity on how to build the foundational business blocks needed for sustainable success, the confidence to adopt the latest marketing strategies that suit your style, and the systems to take consistent action in the right direction - this is your chance to do so with a little help from me at Circe Studio! It’s a three-part online series with pre-recorded sessions you can watch whenever and wherever you want, including a practical workbook to put your learnings into practice. It’s a great way to end the year well!
Setting up an online booking system is a great way to save you, and your clients, time and energy. And to increase client bookings by making it easier for people to self-serve. No more endless emails or text messages back and forth to find a suitable date, or that dreaded Whatsapp message “can you fit me in tomorrow?”. It will also remove any barriers for people who prefer to simply book their treatments online, instead of contacting you directly by email or phone.
Oh, and a note on having your phone number available on your website (or anywhere else online); adding your personal number online leaves an open invitation for any scammer or stranger on the internet to call or text you at any hour of the day, with whatever questions or issue they’re having...An alternative would be to set up a landline that connects to your mobile number, which you can add a voicemail to as well when you’re not available.
When designing your online booking flow, the priority is to set it up in a way supports your existing practice workflows and make things easier, for yourself and your clients. It will be a short investment to start with, researching which option to go for and setting things up. This includes synchronising your booking calendar with any other calendar you or your colleagues might use for work schedules. But the return on investment is high!
And, online booking software will have automated email options as well so you can improve the entire treatment experience for your clients - from booking, to getting reminder emails which also protects you from late cancellations and no-shows, and a reminder afterwards to book in their next session. Plus, many will have payment processing functionality too which will save you admin time checking payments are made.
So the practical part is to compare prices, and most importantly make sure it has the functionalities you need and it is compatible with your website so you can include it there. Another thing to highlight is the importance of a future vision, you might just want booking software now but perhaps in a year’s time you’d like to add email marketing - choose the software that has both functionalities so it can grow with you and you avoid the headache of having to switch systems.
And I know free options are popular in this industry, but do remember that if you opt for a free version of any booking software, you’re likely the product. Just with social media; you’ll pay with your data - and possibly your clients’ data too.
Here are the most commonly used booking software out there today:
Cliniko is actually more than just booking software as it’s also a practice management software. So beyond managing your online bookings it can also streamline your invoicing and manage treatment records. It’s a great high-end option if you’re looking for quality software, with multiple ways to streamline your practice workflows and client communications. And they have data privacy built in, so all data is protected. You’ll be able to integrate Cliniko into your website so it’s all there easy to find in one place.
Acuity Scheduling is the scheduling software that’s built into Squarespace websites. So if you have a Squarespace website and want to include an online booking system, this would be an easy thing to do. It’s a great option if you’re an individual practitioner and you manage your own calendar with either in-person or online bookings. It’s very user-friendly when setting up different treatment types for clients to book, as well as the communication flows before and after booking. Plus, you can easily add payment options as well.
Calendly’s booking tool is great for online consultations, and can be linked to your Zoom and/or Google Meet accounts. You can take payments through it as well, and you can design your own event types to match your offering. A great option if you want to add online consultations or online discovery calls to your in-person treatments, or if all your services are online.
Mindbody is made with wellness and fitness companies in mind. It’s an option if you manage a team, but it’s not necessarily designed for individual practitioners, although it can be used like that if you wish. They also have a booking app that you can be added to, as does Fresha below in the list here.
Fresha, is booking software designed for spas and beauty salons. It’s pretty straight forward when it comes to using it as an individual practitioner to set up your treatment types that clients can book, and they offer additional marketing tools like email and text reminders.
*it’s important to note I’m not affiliated with any of these companies and I don’t receive commission based on the links clicked in this newsletter.
In case you work at locations where they manage your schedule on your behalf, or you want to sync your booking calendar with another calendar that you use yourself, make sure your booking software can be integrated with any other calendar system you use. This way you avoid any double or missed bookings. All software companies will have guidelines on this available on their websites, but it’s worth checking before you commit.
If you’re curious to learn more about how to continue building your practice in today’s digital world, join me for our online series! Any questions, feel free to reply to this email and I’ll get back to you.