How online booking transformed my barbershop in Brighton
Scott Iqbal
🏪 VIP Seller
🥇 Gold Seller
Salon / Hair Studio · Plymouth · 4mo ago
Something nobody warns you about when you switch to a proper booking system: you'll realise how much time you were wasting before and you'll be quietly furious about it.
I've been using Phorest for 18 months now. Before that I was on a cobbled-together system of WhatsApp, a free calendar app and a lot of post-it notes. I thought I had it under control. I didn't.
The Phorest analytics tab showed me things I didn't know about my own business. I could see which services had the highest cancellation rate. I could see which time slots were consistently unfilled. I could see that three of my regulars accounted for most of my income. None of this was secret information — it was right there in my bookings all along — but I'd never been able to see it clearly until I had a system that organised it for me.
The other thing: client retention. Phorest lets you see who hasn't been back in a while and I use that to send a gentle check-in. Not spammy, just a 'haven't seen you in a bit, your usual slot is free if you want to book in' kind of message. I've re-engaged four clients this way who I thought I'd lost permanently.
If you're on the fence about switching, I'd say just do the free trial for two weeks and actually use the analytics. You'll convince yourself.
I've been using Phorest for 18 months now. Before that I was on a cobbled-together system of WhatsApp, a free calendar app and a lot of post-it notes. I thought I had it under control. I didn't.
The Phorest analytics tab showed me things I didn't know about my own business. I could see which services had the highest cancellation rate. I could see which time slots were consistently unfilled. I could see that three of my regulars accounted for most of my income. None of this was secret information — it was right there in my bookings all along — but I'd never been able to see it clearly until I had a system that organised it for me.
The other thing: client retention. Phorest lets you see who hasn't been back in a while and I use that to send a gentle check-in. Not spammy, just a 'haven't seen you in a bit, your usual slot is free if you want to book in' kind of message. I've re-engaged four clients this way who I thought I'd lost permanently.
If you're on the fence about switching, I'd say just do the free trial for two weeks and actually use the analytics. You'll convince yourself.
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The deposit psychology point is spot on. I've said this for years — a £10 deposit doesn't stop genuine clients, it stops time-wasters. Anyone who values the appointment enough to actually show up doesn't think twice about a deposit.
#1
The point about analytics is underrated. I had no idea which of my services was actually the most profitable until Phorest showed me the data. It completely changed how I structured my pricing and my service menu.
#2
Been using Timely for 6 months and I'd echo everything in this post. The one thing I'd add: set up the automated follow-up message asking for a review. I get four new Google reviews a week without doing anything. Massive for local SEO.
#3