How it feels when your 5 o’clock doesn’t turn up and you could have gone home forty-five minutes ago.

Sometimes, customers can be really frustrating. Yep. We said it.

We’ve all experienced the ‘no-show’ customer or the ‘cancels ten minutes before the appointment’ customer. It’s not only frustrating, it’s actually a big drain on time and revenue.

But we also know that on a good day you love all your customers. They are the people that make your business possible after all. So let’s make sure that your business gets more of the good kind of customers. We’ve assembled a list of ways to eliminate the wasted time and money that comes with a no -show to ensure that your business blossoms.

1. Confirm, confirm, and confirm again

To make things easier for them and you, send them a confirmation on booking. And remind them a few days before the appointment and the day of the appointment itself.

This might seem obvious, but we know life running a business can sometimes play out like a mini-whirlwind and sending out confirmations is not always at the top of your to-do list, and they can get left behind. So set up automated reminders to your customers. This is easy to do with Appointedd’s booking system and means that you can rest safe in the knowledge that you will never forget to send out reminders again.

2. Have a clear policy on no-shows and cancellations

Perhaps your customer does not realise how damaging a late cancellation can be, so the best way is just to tell them!

Consider including a policy on your booking system to ‘please give 48 hours notice before a cancellation’ or that ‘we are very sorry but our policy is that after three no-shows we will no longer accept your bookings’ and perhaps explain why you have such a policy.

Choose whatever works for you and your style of business, but no-shows are damaging and sometimes it’s just easiest to make it clear from the start what your policy is.

3. Personal customer service

Another way to avoid those no-shows forever is to simply remind customers that even though yes, you run your own business (and are a little like a superhero), you are still a person.

So let them into your life a little, tell them what you are getting up to at the weekend, or the holidays, and ask them about themselves.

The better relationship you have with your clients the more respect they will give you.

But we know you have loads of different customers, and when you have an extremely busy life yourself, it is hard to pay attention to and remember every detail of someone else’s. Appointedd offers great CRM tools, so everytime you see a customer you can record a little detail about them, that will come up the next time they book with you!

4. Take payment upon booking

No-shows and cancellations can be very damaging to businesses, so one way to avoid losing money is to take a payment or deposit on booking. This is easy to do with Appointedd’s online booking and payment system, and ensures that if someone doesn’t show up, the only money they are wasting is their own.

Published on 2 November 2015