Set Up Online Booking
Getting your booking page live: what clients see, what you require from them, and the settings that decide how many of them finish.
What has to be true first
Online booking reads from things you have already set up. Before you share the link:
- Services have a price and an honest duration.
- Stylists have hours, and are marked public on the booking website.
- Business hours are correct, with exceptions for anything unusual coming up.
- Payments are connected, if you intend to take deposits.
Get the link
Booking Links in the left navigation. There is a link for the business, and links that pre-select a stylist or a service — those are what you put in a stylist's Instagram bio.
Your Perceny website carries the booking flow too. Turn it on under Features Configuration → Website Settings → Enable Website, and leave Disable Booking from Website off.
Shape the flow
Features Configuration → Appointment Settings.
The order of the steps. By default: service, then stylist, then time. Choose Stylist Before Service swaps the first two. Hide Book Now Step removes the opening screen so clients land straight in the flow.
Whether clients pick a stylist at all. Hide Stylists in Booking routes everything through Any Available Stylist. Book Appointments to the Business goes further: the booking belongs to the business, availability comes from the business schedule, and a stylist is assigned before checkout.
How stylists are ordered. Randomize Booking Stylists stops the same person always being first. Show Least-Booked Stylists First actively spreads the work. Spread Any-Stylist Bookings Evenly balances Any-Stylist bookings rather than picking at random.
How much you show. Collapsible Service Categories keeps a long menu readable. Hide Booking Estimated Time and Hide Price if Price Variable hide detail some shops would rather discuss in person. Show Business Address on Booking and Display Booking Time Zone add context for anyone travelling to you.
What you ask for
Required Client Fields (Booking) — insist on as little as you can live with. Every extra required field costs conversions.
Collect Client Address — for mobile or on-location work. Pickup and Drop-Off Services collects two addresses, for transport-style services.
Disable "How Did You Hear About Us?" Question — turn attribution off if you do not use it. If you do use it, leave it on; it is the only honest marketing data most shops ever collect.
Memberships Required to Book — restrict booking to members of specific plans.
Booking PIN — a PIN clients must enter. Useful for a private list.
Availability rules that matter
- Booking Time Slot Increments (Minutes) — the grid.
- Use Service Duration as Booking Interval — slots follow the actual service length instead.
- Appointment Minimum Notice (Minutes) — how close to now people may book. Too low and you get a booking while the stylist is mid-cut.
- Appointment Booking Days Limit — how far ahead.
- Appointment Daily Limit — a cap per stylist per day.
- Appointment Buffer Time (Minutes) — padding after each appointment.
- Fill Schedule Gaps and Prefer Aligned Gap Slots — how aggressively short gaps are offered.
Money at booking
Deposits, prepayment rules and the cancellation and no-show fees live on Payment Settings. See Require deposits and prepayment.
Allow Tips During Booking lets clients tip while booking even when paying in person; Hide Tips From Booking removes tipping from the online flow.
Disable Pay with Card from Booking removes the card option; Default Appointment Payment Type decides what is pre-selected.
Your policy
Custom policy text on the Appointment Settings tab is shown on the booking policy screen and included in appointment reminders. Write it plainly, and write it before you start charging fees — a policy nobody was shown is hard to defend on a chargeback.
Enable Google Book Online Button (Google Reserve) puts a Book Now button on your Google Business Profile. Google can take 24 hours to switch it on. It is usually the highest-volume booking source a local shop has.
Test it as a client
Book yourself, on a phone, in a private window:
- Are the services and prices right?
- Is the first available time plausible?
- Did it ask for what you meant, and nothing more?
- Did the deposit behave as you expected?
- Did the confirmation arrive?
- Does the appointment look right on the calendar?