Did you know that 62% of no-shows occur simply because clients forget when they’re booked in for? Send a quick email and/or SMS appointment reminder or communicate through your salon booking app and you radically reduce that number. Now, you’re probably already doing that, which is awesome. What we want to shed light on is an opportunity to add value that not all salons and spas avail of.
Not sure where we’re going with this?
Frankly, before hearing about the idea from some of our clients first, we hadn’t thought about it either!
Listen to the audio version of this blog, and subscribe to the Phorest Blog Podcast here:
Tweaking Your SMS Appointment Reminders
With GDPR in Europe and other data protection laws elsewhere in the world, make sure you don’t fall into marketing, but instead, add value to their visit. Think, too about the type of clients you’re trying to target, and match your tone to suit them within the marketing from your SMS or beauty salon app/hair salon app marketing campaigns.
The Structure
The first part of the SMS appointment reminder does exactly that; it reminds the client of the booking. So, something like:
Hi , looking forward to seeing you on
The second part of the message contains the magic; what makes clients feel extra special. This is where you can get creative:
- Get 25 additional TreatCard points by showing this message at reception when checking out
- Get 2x TreatCard points for rebooking on the day & showing this message when checking out!
or even, - Show this SMS upon arrival and get an extra entry in our monthly prize draw!
Transactional Texts: Be Careful Not To Cross The Line
Whether you’re in the US or the EU, transactional SMS are defined by any text that has for goal facilitating a transaction that a customer has already agreed to. Just like booking confirmations and review requests, appointment reminders fall into that category.
When you tweak your messages, be careful not to fall into the “marketing” category. What works best here is really to discourage no-shows by encouraging loyalty.
For more on loyalty, listen to Phorest FM Episode 116, on which Jay Williams discusses the difference between satisfied and loyal clients, and why it matters:
Got feedback? Let us know either in the comments below or tweet us @ThePhorestWord! (Pssst! We’re on Instagram too!)
Thanks for reading! #LetsGrow
