Taking bookings in Messenger and Viber feels personal, and it costs nothing to start. The cost arrives later, in the replies typed between clients, the slots held for people who never confirm, and the clients who ask three places at once and book with whoever answers first.
This guide covers what to move onto a booking page, what to keep in chat, and how to make the switch without your regulars feeling turned away.
Count what one chat booking takes
Follow a single booking through your inbox. Here is an example of an ordinary one:
- The client asks how much a gel manicure is.
- You reply with the price.
- They ask if 3 PM tomorrow is free.
- You check the planner and offer 4 PM instead.
- They say yes.
- You confirm and send your GCash number.
- They send a screenshot, and you write the booking in the planner.
That is seven messages for one booking, and every one waits for somebody to reply. Three costs hide in it.
- Time: each reply is typed by you or your front desk, often while a client is in the chair.
- Lost bookings: a client who asks at 11 PM can book somewhere else before you answer in the morning.
- Mistakes: a time agreed in chat is copied into a planner by hand. Two people promising the same slot is how double bookings start.
Decide what moves and what stays in chat
Not everything should be booked by a stranger at midnight. A booking belongs on the page when the price and the time are fixed. It belongs in chat when you need to see, ask, or quote first.
| Book on the page | Talk in chat first |
|---|---|
| A men's cut, a manicure, a 60-minute massage | A bridal trial, or a color correction you need to see first |
| A class, a court hour, an open play session | A private event or a whole-venue booking |
| A regular rebooking their usual service | A request for something you don't list |
In Onsuki, a service you want to discuss first can stay off your booking page and still be bookable by your team: turn off Available to book online on the service.
Build a page that answers before anyone asks
The questions in your chat are the outline of your booking page. A client wants to know what you offer, what it costs, how long it takes, who does it, and when they can come, in that order.
- List your services, classes, or courts with prices and how long each takes.
- Add your team, so clients can pick a person or take whoever is free.
- Set your opening hours and booking rules, so clients see only times you can really take.
- Turn on the ways you take payment, such as GCash, QR Ph, or Pay in person.
Every Onsuki business gets a booking site at an address such as yourbusiness.onsuki.com. Clients book on their phone without making an account or downloading an app, and they see only times that fit your hours, your team's hours, and your booking rules. Each booking lands on your calendar straight away, so the page and your team work from the same schedule. See Online booking.
Take payment on the page, not in the thread
In the example above, two of the seven messages were about payment. Putting payment on the page removes them, and a client who has paid has a reason to turn up.
In Onsuki, clients pay with your own GCash, QR Ph, or bank account when they book, or choose Pay in person if you allow it. For a booking you still take in chat, book it on your calendar, then copy the client's pay link from Unpaid and send it in the thread. Their receipt comes back to you to check. See How to take GCash and QR Ph payments.
Answer chat with the link
You will keep getting messages, and you should answer them. The change is in how. Instead of typing out open times, which can be wrong by the time the client reads them, send the link, and let the page show what is free right now.
Save a quick reply in Messenger, Viber, or WhatsApp, for example: "You can see our prices and open times and book here: yourbusiness.onsuki.com. Message us if you have any questions." Keep chat for what it does well: a question about a service, a request you need to look at, or a regular checking in. Clients can still reach you from contact buttons for Messenger, Viber, and WhatsApp on your booking page.
Put the link everywhere clients find you
Clients won't look for a new page. Put it where they already are.
- Facebook: in your page's website field and on its Book now button.
- Instagram: in your profile's website field, with a line in your bio such as "Book online".
- Google: in your Google Business Profile, as your website and booking link.
- At the counter: a printed QR code, so a client books their next visit before they leave. A happy client at checkout is the easiest booking you will ever take.
In Onsuki, Copy link and Download QR are in Settings, Business, Website. With Staff Page on, each team member also gets a link that opens with them already chosen, for a stylist's or trainer's own Instagram bio. See Team.
Let clients change their own bookings
The last reason clients message is to move or cancel. When they can do it themselves within your rules, the slot reopens the moment they change their plans, instead of sitting empty until you read the message.
Onsuki emails each client a confirmation with a calendar entry. Under My bookings, clients can change the time while it is still free to cancel, and cancel within your cancellation policy, and the time opens for others right away. To set that policy, see How to reduce no-shows.
