Beauty business technology provider Booksy introduced a tool to help service providers reduce the angst and occurrences of no-shows and reduce the impact of client cancellations easily. 

Through the company’s no-show protection feature, service providers can charge clients a percentage of a service upfront or apply a cancellation fee in case of a no-show or last-minute cancellation. Booksy’s research shows that clients are more likely to commit to an appointment after a payment has been made upfront, or if they know that last minute cancellations will result in a fee. Prepayments and cancellation fees are two ways that business owners can keep their revenue stream and reduce the frequency of cancellations.

How to Prevent No-Shows

1. When a service provider sets up prepayments on the Booksy app, a client will be prompted to make a payment upfront. That payment can be the partial price of the service the client is receiving, or it can be the full amount — it’s up to the provider. When the appointment is completed and the client is checked out, the prepayment will be deducted from their total. If the client does not show, business owners keep the prepayment.

2. When cancellation fees are activated on the Booksy app, a clients will be prompted to put their credit card on file when they begin to schedule an appointment through Booksy. If a client cancels at the last minute or does not show up to their appointment, service providers have the option of either automatically or manually processing the fee or waiving the charge. When setting up cancellation fees, a service provider can choose how many days or hours in advance a client must cancel to avoid being charged a fee. Additionally, providers can write a customized message about their cancellation policy, which will be clearly published on their Booksy profile.