Deposits for appointments booked by phone
💎MaxWhen a client calls and you book the appointment in your calendar, a service that asks for a deposit no longer has to go through your booking page. You decide on the spot whether to take the deposit, the client receives a payment link, and the appointment is confirmed the moment they pay.
How it works
Book the appointment as usual
In New appointment, pick the client and the service. If the service asks for a deposit and your Stripe account is connected, the summary shows Ask for the deposit with the amount.
Decide whether to ask for it
The box is ticked by default. Untick it for someone you do not want to charge (a regular, a friend): the appointment is then created as confirmed, like before.
Choose how the link goes out
Under the box, tick Email, SMS or WhatsApp. Email needs the client’s email; SMS and WhatsApp need their mobile number and use one credit each, like reminders. If the client has neither, create the appointment and copy the link from it to send it however you like.
The client pays from the link
The link opens a page with the appointment, your deposit terms and the card form. Once paid, the appointment is confirmed, the client receives the confirmation email with the cancel and reschedule links, and you get your usual notification.
While the deposit is unpaid
The appointment shows as pending in your calendar, with “Deposit pending” in its details. From there you can:
- Resend the payment link by the same channels.
- Copy the payment link to paste it in your own WhatsApp or a message.
- Confirm without deposit: the appointment is confirmed as if you had never asked for one, and the link stops working. You can tick a box to send the client the confirmation email.
An unpaid link expires with your booking confirmation window (24 hours by default, under Settings > Booking). After that the appointment is cancelled automatically and the time is free again; the client gets the usual cancellation notice.
Only new clients pay
If you would rather not charge a deposit to people you already know, turn on Ask for the deposit only from new clients under Booking setup > Payments. New means no completed appointment at your business. With the setting on:
- On your booking page and on WhatsApp, a client with a completed appointment books a deposit service without paying it: the appointment stays pending and is confirmed through the email link, like a service without a deposit. An email you do not know pays the deposit as usual. Your page says “Deposit required for new clients” on the services that ask for one.
- In New appointment, the Ask for the deposit box starts unticked for a client with completed appointments, with a note under it. You can still tick it: the decision stays yours for every appointment.
The client’s identity is their email. If someone books online with a regular client’s email, they pay no deposit, but the appointment is not confirmed until that email clicks the link; if nobody does, it expires on its own.
Several services at once
A booking of two or three services asks for one deposit: the sum of the services’ deposits, paid in one go. Paying it confirms every appointment of the booking.
Requirements
- The Max plan and a connected Stripe account (see Stripe Connect).
- A service with a deposit amount set.
- SMS and WhatsApp need credits; WhatsApp also needs your own WhatsApp line or Timeblu’s shared number.