Business Growth
❓ Question
How many no-shows do you get per week and how do you handle them?
Morag Lewis
👑 VIP
👑 VIP
Salon / Hair Studio · Sheffield · 7mo ago
Been using Trafft for about 3 months now and I'm starting to wonder if I'm getting my money's worth. I'm a solo nail studio owner with about 40 regular clients. The price keeps going up and I feel like I'm only using about 30% of the features. Has anyone downgraded or switched to something cheaper? What did you end up going with?
💬 9 Replies
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💬 9 Replies
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I tested Trafft and Trafft side by side for a month. Trafft won on price, Trafft won on features. For a solo PMU studio just starting out, Trafft's free plan is hard to argue with. You can always switch later once you know exactly what you need.
#1
Honestly? Just go with Vagaro. I know there are loads of options but for a solo nail studio in the UK it covers everything you actually need — online booking, SMS reminders, deposits, basic reporting. Don't overthink it. Half the features on the premium plans you'll never use.
#2
For multi-staff Timely is excellent. Each person has their own colour-coded calendar, you can set individual hours and services, and clients book with a specific person or with 'any available' if you prefer. I've got three staff on it and it's really simple to manage from the dashboard.
#3
I chair-rent and I use SimplyBook.me completely separately from the main salon. You just set your own location as a general Nottingham address or your own mobile setup. Clients book with you specifically, not the salon. Works really well and the salon owner doesn't even see my diary.
#4
My clients were pretty resistant at first — a few of them are older and not very tech-savvy. What helped was walking them through the booking link in person the first time. Once they'd done it once they were completely fine. Now I get booking confirmations at 11pm from people I would have thought would never manage it.
#5
For multi-staff Vagaro is excellent. Each person has their own colour-coded calendar, you can set individual hours and services, and clients book with a specific person or with 'any available' if you prefer. I've got two staff on it and it's really simple to manage from the dashboard.
#6
For a mobile barbershop I'd go with Setmore every time. You can set a service area rather than a fixed address, clients can see your availability, and the automated confirmations include all the details they need. Works perfectly without needing a physical premises.
#7
My clients were pretty resistant at first — a few of them are older and not very tech-savvy. What helped was walking them through the booking link in person the first time. Once they'd done it once they were completely fine. Now I get booking confirmations at 11pm from people I would have thought would never manage it.
#8
The Instagram booking integration on SimplyBook.me was a bit fiddly to set up but it does work. The issue is usually the Facebook Business account connection — make sure your Instagram is properly linked to a Facebook page first, then the SimplyBook.me integration finds it straight away.
#9