Online appointment booking system, the questions venues ask first
The questions below are the ones that come up before a venue signs up, answered plainly. If yours is not here, write to [email protected] and a person answers.
Setup and migration
Does this replace the platform we use now, and what happens to the bookings already in it
It replaces it. Bookings and guest records import by CSV, your current booking page address keeps pointing at the new page, and you can run both systems for a service or two while the team settles into the board. Cut over on your quietest day.
How long does setup take
An afternoon for a single venue that knows its own tables and service hours. The work is entering tables, rooms or chairs, service windows, turn times and buffers, then pasting one snippet into your site.
Do we need a developer to install the widget
No. The snippet is one line and it goes into your site the same way an analytics tag does. For a Google profile, an Instagram bio or a QR code on the table there is a plain booking link that needs no code at all.
Can we import our guest list
Yes, by CSV: names, contact details, visit history and notes. The records belong to you, and they export the same way whenever you ask.
The book and the floor
Will it double book us
No. A table, room or chair holds one booking at a time, and the fit engine applies the turn time, the buffer and the service window before it accepts anything. Dragging a booking on the board re-runs the fit, so even tidying up cannot create a clash.
What happens when the time a guest wants is gone
The engine returns the three nearest times that genuinely fit. A venue loses the booking when the answer is a flat no, so the answer is never a flat no while there is a real alternative.
Do guests need an account to book
No. The widget takes a name, a phone number and an email, and that is the booking. Nobody is asked to sign up to eat at your place or sit in your chair.
Can we take bookings over the phone as well
Yes, and they land on the same board. The point of the board is that the phone, the widget, Google, Instagram and the walk-in queue stop being five separate books.
Does it work on a phone
Yes, on both sides. Guests book in four taps, and the board is built to be read at a host stand on a tablet or a phone.
Cost and billing
What does it cost when we are busy
The same as when you are quiet. The fee is per venue per month and it does not move with covers, so a sold out weekend does not raise the bill.
Do you charge a commission on bookings
No. A booking that comes through the widget, through Google, through Instagram or over the phone costs nothing beyond the monthly fee. Your regulars are yours and you do not pay for them twice.
Do we need a card reader to take deposits
No. Deposits and card holds are taken on the booking page when the guest books, and your rules decide which bookings are asked for one.
Can we change or cancel the plan
Yes, from inside the account and at any time. A change up takes effect right away, a change down or a cancellation takes effect at the end of the period you have already paid for. Pricing has the four plans in full.
Your data and your brand
Can we use our own domain and our own look
Yes. The widget inherits your site styling and the booking page runs on your own domain, so guests stay inside your brand from the first click to the confirmation email.
Who owns the guest data
You do. Guest records, booking history and notes belong to the venue. Export or deletion happens on request, and security says where the data lives and who can reach it.
What happens to our data if we leave
You export everything first, in CSV, and we delete what is left on request. Nothing about leaving is designed to be difficult.
Groups and Enterprise
Can one account cover several venues
Yes. Multi-Venue puts up to five venues on one account with roles and permissions per venue, shared guest profiles and one export across the group. Enterprise removes the venue limit.
What about SSO, invoicing and a security review
Those sit on Enterprise: SAML single sign-on, SCIM provisioning, an audit log, annual invoicing against a purchase order, and a security review with a DPA before you sign.
Can a venue manager be stopped from seeing other venues
Yes. Roles are set per venue, so a manager sees their own venue and the group sees everything.
Still deciding
Run the demo on the home page first. It is the real engine on a demo venue, and it needs no card and no account.