How to take online bookings for your small business (UK guide)

Before you compare tools, write down what a good week looks like. Do you want customers to book any free slot, or approve each request yourself? Do you need clients to choose a specific member of staff? Do you want to take a deposit or full payment up front, or let people pay when they arrive? Do you need reminders by email only, or by text message too?

Answering these questions first stops you paying for features you don't need, and makes sure the system you pick handles the ones you do. It also gives you a checklist to test each option against during a free trial.

There are two broad ways to take bookings online. Marketplaces list your business alongside others and can send you new customers, but they often take a cut of each booking and show competitors on the same screen. Your own booking page keeps the focus on your business and usually costs a flat monthly fee, but you bring the customers yourself.

Many small businesses already get most bookings from regulars, Instagram and Google, so their own booking page is often the better fit. Whichever you choose, read the fee table carefully, check what happens when you stop paying, and make sure your customers can still reach you if you ever move.

Your service list is the menu customers book from, so keep it clear. Use the names customers search for, give each service an accurate duration including any clean-down time, and show the price. If some services vary, give a starting price and explain it in the description.

• Order your services so the most popular are first and the list is easy to scan.
• Split services that take very different lengths of time, such as an initial consultation and a follow-up.
• Add a short buffer after appointments if you need time between customers.
• Keep descriptions short: what's included, how long it takes, and anything the customer needs to do beforehand.

A booking system should only offer times you can actually work. Set your weekly opening hours, block out dates for holidays and training days, and if you have a team, give each person their own hours. Customers then only see real availability, which removes double bookings and the awkward phone call to rearrange.

Think about how far ahead people can book and how much notice you need. Leaving a few gaps for walk-ins or phone bookings is fine too, as long as you add those bookings to the same diary so it stays accurate.

You don't have to take payments online to take bookings online. Paying in person is fine to start with. If no-shows are a problem, or you sell longer appointments, consider taking a deposit or full payment by card when customers book.

Look for a system that shows fees clearly before you sign up. With Book4, for example, Platform access is £19.99 a month and card payments taken online carry a combined 3.5% + 20p per transaction, while payments you take in person, outside Book4, carry no Book4 fee.

Tell customers how much notice you need to cancel or move an appointment and what happens to any deposit if they don't give it. Keep it short, show it at the point of booking, and apply it consistently. A clear policy protects your time without putting people off.

A common pattern is a full refund of any deposit with 48 hours' notice, a partial refund with 24 hours' notice, and no refund for later cancellations or no-shows. Whatever you choose, make sure your booking system can apply it automatically so you aren't negotiating every case by hand.

Every booking should trigger an instant confirmation with the date, time, service and address. A reminder before the appointment cuts down on forgotten bookings and gives people a chance to rearrange instead of not turning up. Email reminders are a good default; text message reminders reach people faster and are worth considering for busy days or customers who don't check email often.

The best booking page does nothing if nobody finds it. Add your link wherever customers already look for you:

• Your Instagram bio and story link stickers, plus your Facebook and TikTok profiles.
• Your Google Business Profile, as the booking link.
• Your website, as a clear "Book now" button on every page.
• WhatsApp replies and your email signature.

Book an appointment yourself on your phone while logged out. Is it obvious what to tap? Are the prices and durations right? Did the confirmation email arrive? Ask a couple of regulars to try it too. After a few weeks, look at which services and times are booked most and adjust your hours and menu to match demand.

Book4 is online booking software for UK service businesses. You get your own booking page with your business name and logo, one dashboard for your calendar, services, staff and customers, optional Stripe card payments and deposits, email reminders and optional SMS reminders paid for with credits. Setup takes about 15 minutes, and you can try everything free for 14 days with no card needed.