Online booking
Online booking mostly replaces the phone call nobody had time to answer, which is why its biggest effect is on the people who work there.
Online booking is letting a visitor reserve a place themselves through a web page, with or without payment at that moment. It suits anything where the number of places is limited and the date is fixed: a workshop, a tour, a treatment, a course evening or a visit to an attraction.
What it changes for a small organisation
Most bookings are made outside working hours. People decide in the evening, on a sofa, and a business that can only be booked by telephone between nine and five is closed at the moment its customers are deciding.
Workshop booking shows the effect clearly. Fifteen places used to mean fifteen phone calls, fifteen notes and one person holding the real list in their head. The same fifteen places taken online take no time at all and leave a list anybody can read.
Payment now or payment later
Taking the money at the moment of booking dramatically reduces no-shows, because people who have paid turn up. Asking for payment on the day keeps the booking easy but leaves you exposed to the ones who do not.
Wellness booking often splits the difference with a deposit: enough to make the appointment real, small enough not to deter anyone. The right answer depends on how much an empty place costs you.
Booking with Passavo
Visitors can book a place online without creating an account, paying at once or booking free where you have set it that way. The confirmation carries the date, the time and everything they need to find you.
You can book a visit online at any hour, and the free plan means a free online booking system is a real option for an organisation running a handful of sessions a month rather than a full programme.
Also searched for as
- book a place
- reserve online
- self-service booking
- book a visit online
Common questions
Can people book without paying?
Yes. You decide per sale whether payment is taken at the time, so a free session can be booked without any payment step at all.
Can visitors see which times are still free?
Yes. The calendar in the shop shows the slots per day. Full ones are marked as full and cannot be chosen, so nobody books a time that no longer exists.