Client Booking Experience
This guide covers what your clients experience when they book through your Timeblu booking page.
The Booking Wizard
Clients follow a 5-step wizard to complete their booking. A service that requires a deposit adds a payment step, and a service with an intake form adds the form.
Step 1: Service Selection
What clients see:
- Your business name
- List of available services
- Service descriptions
- Duration for each service
- Prices (if set)
- Deposit requirements (if applicable)
What they do:
- Browse available services
- Read descriptions
- Click Book to book one service, or Add to booking to book two or three services in one go
Two or three services booked together become a single booking - back to back on one day, or spread over several days - with one email and one link. See Multi-Service Bookings.
Step 2: Date & Time Selection
What clients see:
- A specialist selector above the calendar, when more than one specialist offers the service: a specific person or “Any available”
- Calendar month view
- Available dates (clickable)
- Unavailable dates (grayed out)
- Available time slots for selected date
- Your timezone
What they do:
- Choose a specialist, or leave “Any available” to get the specialist with the earliest opening
- Navigate through months
- Select a date
- Choose an available time slot
The specialist selector is hidden when only one specialist offers the selected service, or when the service has auto-assign enabled (pool mode), in which case the system automatically selects the best available specialist.
When a client picks “Any available”, the system finds the specialist with the soonest open slot. If multiple specialists tie, the least busy one is selected. Learn more about how the algorithm works.
Slot availability based on:
- Your working hours
- Existing bookings
- Events/blocked time
- Holidays
- Buffer time settings
- Advance booking limits
- Minimum notice requirements
Step 3: Client Details
What clients see:
- Form fields:
- Name and Surname (required)
- Email (required)
- Phone (with country code selector)
- Notes (optional)
What they do:
- Enter their contact information
- Add any notes about the appointment
- Click Continue
Step 4: Review & Confirm
What clients see:
- Summary of all selections:
- Service name
- Specialist/calendar
- Date and time
- Their contact info
- Price and deposit info
- Confirm button
What they do:
- Review all details
- Make corrections if needed (back button)
- Click Confirm to complete booking
Step 5: Confirmation
What clients see:
- Success message
- Booking confirmation details
- Next steps information
- Option to book another appointment
Next steps shown:
- “You’ll receive a confirmation email shortly”
- “We’ll send you a reminder 24 hours before”
- “Use the link in email to reschedule or cancel”
After Booking
Confirmation Email
Clients immediately receive an email with:
- Booking confirmation
- Appointment details (date, time, service)
- Your contact information
- Cancellation link (if enabled)
- Reschedule link (if enabled)
- Calendar file (.ics attachment) to add the appointment to their calendar
- Any customer notes you’ve added
Calendar Reminder
Depending on your settings, clients receive:
- 24 hours before - Email reminder
- 2 hours before - Email reminder (Pro+)
- SMS - Additional reminders (Pro+)
Booking Expiration
If the client doesn’t confirm their booking within the allowed time (default 24 hours), the booking is automatically cancelled. The client receives an email letting them know, with a link to rebook if they wish.
You can disable this email in Settings > Notifications > Client Notifications.
Managing Their Booking
Clients can:
Cancel (if enabled):
- Click cancel link in confirmation email
- Confirm cancellation
- Receive the cancellation confirmation by email. If a deposit was paid, the email states how much comes back (and the percentage) or that it is kept, per the terms they accepted; refunds usually take 5-10 business days to show on the card
Reschedule (if enabled):
- Click reschedule link in confirmation email
- Select a new date and time from available slots
- Confirm the new appointment
- Receive an updated confirmation email
Both cancellation and rescheduling can be enabled or disabled independently in Booking Settings.
Deposit Flow (Max)
💎Max If a service requires a deposit:
At Booking
After the review step:
- Client sees the deposit amount and the deposit terms: how much comes back if they cancel online (your refund percentage), that rescheduling keeps the deposit, and that a no-show lets you keep it
- Ticks “I have read and accept the deposit terms” - the card form only appears after that
- Pays via Stripe
- Booking completes after successful payment
The terms the client accepted are frozen on that booking. If you change your refund percentage or switch deposit cancellation on or off later, only new bookings see the change - a client who accepted 90% gets 90%, whatever the setting says today.
Payment Processing
- Secure payment via Stripe
- Credit/debit cards, Apple Pay, and Google Pay accepted
- Payment confirmation in booking email
Refunds
What a client gets back when they cancel online follows the terms they accepted when paying:
| Setting at booking time | Client Experience |
|---|---|
| Deposit cancellation on, X% | Can cancel online; X% of the deposit goes back to the same card |
| Deposit cancellation off | Cannot cancel online; the page asks them to contact you |
| Deposit cancellation on, 0% | Can cancel online; the deposit is not refunded (kept by you, marked forfeited) |
| Any | Rescheduling keeps the deposit; a no-show lets you keep it (from the dashboard) |
The confirmation email restates the accepted terms, and the cancellation page says “You paid 30.00. 27.00 (90%) will be refunded, as per the terms you accepted on …” before the client confirms. There is no cancellation deadline setting: a client can cancel online up to the appointment time.
Mobile Experience
The booking page is fully responsive:
Mobile Features
- Touch-optimized interface
- Swipe through dates
- Easy time slot selection
- Auto-filled country code
- Mobile keyboard optimization
Mobile Considerations
- Test your page on mobile
- Most clients book from phones
- Ensure descriptions are readable
- Check load times
Accessibility
The booking wizard is built with accessibility in mind:
- Keyboard navigation
- Screen reader friendly
- Clear labels
- Sufficient color contrast
- Form validation messages
Customizing the Experience (Max)
💎MaxMax users can customize what clients see:
Branding Elements
- Your logo
- Custom colors
- Remove Timeblu branding
Information Display
- Business description
- Contact information
- Social media links
Example: Default vs Branded
Default (Pro):
- Timeblu styling
- Your name and services
- “Powered by Timeblu” footer
Branded (Max):
- Your logo
- Your colors
- Your social links
- No Timeblu branding
Common Client Issues
”No available times”
Client sees no slots because:
- Fully booked
- Outside working hours
- Too short notice
- Too far in advance
- Holiday
”Service unavailable”
Check:
- Service is marked public
- Service is linked to calendars
- Calendar has availability
”Booking failed”
May occur if:
- Slot was taken while booking
- Payment failed (deposits)
- Network issue
- Disposable or temporary email address used (these are blocked for security)
- Too many pending bookings from the same email or IP address
Timezone Confusion
- Times display in your timezone
- Clients should note their timezone
- Add timezone info to service descriptions if clients are remote
Booking Assistant (Pro+)
⭐Pro On Pro and Max plans, clients can interact with a booking assistant widget on your booking page. The assistant displays your Q&A entries as quick action buttons, so clients can get instant answers to common questions without leaving the page.
Improving Client Experience
Write Clear Descriptions
Help clients choose the right service:
- What’s included
- Who it’s for
- What to prepare
Set Appropriate Availability
- Offer enough slots
- Don’t over-restrict
- Consider different time zones
Use Customer Notes
Add helpful information:
- Meeting links (for virtual)
- Location details (for in-person)
- Preparation instructions
Test Regularly
Book yourself periodically:
- Check the experience
- Verify notifications work
- Ensure availability is correct