I
am a visual person. I also like the feel of holding a book—whether I am
going to read a novel or book clients in my calendar. Many of you may
prefer using your iPhone or another virtual terminal; this was never
something I was (or will) going to do. Call me old-fashioned.
I never like to feel rushed when I’m
working. I believe if you are running late and need to rush, your client will
definitely pick up on this. I suppose this stems from one of my first work
place environments (my 2nd job, actually) working at a spa. I was not in
charge of how my facials were booked nor about the number of facials I
would give in a day. Controlling both of these factors are some of the
pleasures of running your own business. You get to decide everything!
My
facials run around an hour and fifteen minutes, give or take. I can
clean my room and be ready for the next client in only 10 minutes or so,
but I always book my facials 2 hours apart. Then if I run over with any
particular client, I won’t be running late for my
next one. In fact, for the 21 years I’ve been in business, very few of my clients have ever
seen each other. I keep it this way because I like it that way. I
provide a very private and individual environment, and I want each one of my
clients to feel like she is my only one that day.
Knowing
how far apart I prefer to book my facials is essential when running my
book—obviously. So be sure you have this most basic piece of information
set in your mind so booking clients doesn’t become a problem.
I
always write everything in my appointment book in pencil. Even days I
will be on vacation I have in pencil because plans can change and once
something is in pen it can’t be erased. I don’t
like to look at my book and see scratched-out place and messy marks. I
am running a business, and the easier I can see what my day is going to
look like, the better it is for me. A small detail perhaps, but as you
will find it is the details—all added up—that actually constitute your
business.
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| I prefer a 2-page weekly appointment book like this. |
This
is my preferred type of appointment book. I can lay it flat and see my
whole week. The hours are divided into 15-minute increments, which I
like. The day starts early and ends late so I can get all my appointment
times in each day.
On the “Sunday” section I keep my cancellation list. If you aren’t
currently using this tool, I highly recommend you start now. The
cancellation list is just that—if I get a cancellation on any given day,
I have a literal list of clients to call to see if I can rebook that
appointment.
I write notes next to every name on the list that lets me
know more specifically what a client is looking for. For instance: Molly
Mills—anytime; Sally Smith—Tues after 5pm; Jane Jones—Sats only. You
get it—I’m writing notes so I know if I get a cancellation on a Wednesday or a Tuesday at 11am, Sally Smith won’t
be the person to call. If a person wants to come in on a specific day
and time, I will usually write that information at the bottom of that
specific day.
Without providing yourself with a cancellation list, you
are setting yourself up for having cancelled appointments you can’t rebook. Sometimes I don’t rebook a cancellation, but I like to have the option if I want to. Here are a few examples of a few days in my book:
I
put a colored highlighter mark on all appointments who have come in on
the time they came in. This year I used a blue marker. At the end of
each week I count the appointments and also add up the money I’ve
taken in then write it on the top right page for that week. Another
quick reference piece(s) of information I can easily find. The colored
mark just makes it easy to do the count.
You can’t
really see it but on Tuesday, my 4pm appointment cancelled. There is a
big “CX” (in pencil) over the appointment along with the time of
cancellation “3pm.” This is considered a last-minute cancellation,
something I do charge for. Even with last minute cancels, I will try to rebook
the appointment—if I want to. Even at that late time, I still may get a
client who wants to come in.
In Chicago, I had a 2-month wait list for
new clients to get in. So with
my handy cancellation list, a client who has been waiting to come in
may drop everything when I call with a cancellation. She may need a
little extra time, so I would be willing to take her at 4:30pm if she
can’t get in at the 4pm appointment time. Then again, I may just leave
the office early due to the cancellation and enjoy an afternoon off.
If
I can rebook a less-than-24-hour cancellation, I do not charge the
person who cancelled. I mark my book so I know this particular client
not only cancelled but didn’t give me much notice.
If she has been in before, I will write the date and an explanation on
her chart. It would look something like:
- 10/16/15—4pm facial CX’d @ 3pm. Didn’t charge because X, or charged $X amount for cancelling
If I spoke with the client I will include the
reason she gave me for the last minute cancellation on her chart. I only
make notes of last-minute cancels—and always no-shows—on the client
charts. A cancellation with more than 24-hours notice isn’t anything to note.
Most
clients are conscientious and respectful of my schedule and do give
ample time when they cancel. Even so, if I have them written in for a
facial, even though I will completely erase all the info written for
that slot, I will make a note on the top of that day’s column, just for my reference. It would look something like this:
- CX’d—Sally Smith—will call back [to rebook]
It doesn’t
happen often, but occasionally a whole day will cancel and I like to
have a reference of how the day originally looked, all booked up. This
small notation also give me a record of who may be a frequently
cancelling client. That doesn’t mean anything
initially, but if someone keeps cancelling and cancelling every
appointment, it might mean I am not in such a hurry to offer her a next
appointment. Again, I take this—my business—seriously and I want my
clients to as well.
On
the left hand side—“Monday”—is where I write down the messages that are
on my machine. This is my Chicago appointment book, and I had a land
line phone with an answering machine there. Now in Boulder, I just use
my cell phone as my business phone. Still I use my day off column
(Mondays) to write client messages. At this point in time in Chicago, I
was working 4-day weeks, Wednesdays through Saturdays. That leaves
another empty column, Tuesdays, for note writing.
Because
I had a long wait list to get in to my Chicago office, most of my
regular, monthly clients either booked their next treatment before they
left or many had standing appointments.
The book in this article is what I used for most of my career. See My Appointment Book—2 for more information and the book I currently use. Also see:
- The Importance of a Cancellation List
- Website ideas: My Cancellation Policy
- More on My Cancellation Policy
- Standing Facial Appointments
