Just like every other business, groomers have to run a tight schedule in order to fit in their day’s appointments. They also need to make their business profitable in order to keep up with their expenses. Some very busy groomers breathe a sigh of relief if they have a no show because they are always very stressed from overwork, others again, are still trying to establish their business and need every client in their appointment book to turn up. Groomers, in general, have reported an increase in no shows and many in the pet grooming business are pondering how to alleviate the problem.
Can the problem be alleviated?
Since the impact on you and your business can be stressful and damaging, there are ways that these no shows can be minimized to a point, since to eliminate them entirely can be difficult.
Other professionals, like doctors, dentist, and hairdressers, do penalize clients for missed appointments and perhaps it is time that groomers start considering such a measure.
At first, you have to decide what your policies will be for no shows and late cancellations. Both of these can affect your business and nerves adversely. Once you have decided, it is best to prominently display your appointment policy on your website and in your salon or van.
Dealing with no show clients or latecomers
- When people phone to book their appointments, make a point of making them aware of it and do so again when you call, send an SMS or email message as a reminder. Since you have warned your clients at every communication, you have no reason not to implement your decided policy of charging for the appointment.
- Some pet stylists knowingly overbook; in this way, they ensure that they are always busy and will not be affected by no shows. They try and distribute the appointments in such a way so as to have difficult pets interspersed with easier ones so that they do not run too late.
- If a client has not turned up for the appointment give them a call 10 minutes into it. If they are just running late, allow them to come in otherwise reschedule the appointment for another time. Be friendly, while keeping the tone of the conversation professional and avoid conflicts. Point out the reasons why it is important for both of you that appointment times are kept.
- Stick to your policy rules and only be lenient if a client has a solid reason for missing an appointment.
- Some clients need to learn the hard way, so if they do miss an appointment don’t be kind and squeeze them in within the next few days, make them wait for their next scheduled appointment.
- The fee for a no show can be added to the next grooming fee, and for those clients who consistently not show up, you can include an inconvenience fee into their base price. There is also the solution of making them pay upfront for their scheduled appointment.
Solving all types of problems, including no shows, with grooming business software
Pet grooming software is designed to help your grooming business reach new levels of efficiency, while ironing out many of the problems without you needing to do much. The pet grooming business has become highly competitive and keeping up with busy appointment schedules while trying to deal with no shows can affect business in this demanding and complex industry. By choosing the right pet grooming software you will be able to manage the running of your business in such a way that you will immediately see an increase in clients, escalated efficiency in the running of the business and a rise in revenues.
This is what the best grooming business software should be offering you:
Appointment Calendar for ensuring efficient management
The most important side of the pet grooming business is the setting of appointment times and ensuring that these are kept by your clients. Good pet grooming software also cuts the time you spend on administration in half. You will be able to seamlessly:
- Make unlimited appointments for more than one groomer
- Schedule recurring appointments
- Not allow appointment conflicts
- Let you view appointments on a daily, weekly and monthly setting
- Manage appointment checkouts
- Give you cash rounding
- Create a waiting list
Text Messaging – helping resolve issues with no shows
Solving no show issues can be time-consuming for you, costly for clients and embarrassing for both. With the right pet grooming software, these can be reduced substantially. Since the pet grooming business is so competitive, you do not have the time to personally make calls and send messages to clients. Grooming business software is designed to do all this, and so much more for you by:
- Sending text message appointment reminders which help eliminate no shows.
- They can be programmed to send two reminders at different times.
- Clients can confirm with a text message and you can communicate with each other through text messages.
- Bulk text messages can be sent to clients to notify them about a change of address, specials and so much more.
Get mobile
The best pet grooming software will help you get away from your desk and into the actual running of your grooming business. If you run a mobile grooming service then you will literally be able to get mobile as the software will:
- Offer route optimization for your appointments.
- Will automatically track your mileage.
- Will make your appointments and keep your calendar full.
- Will show you via a satellite map where to park.
- Remind customers that their pet has not had a groom for a while.
Know your clients by organizing their data
Keeping all your customer records on hand at all times is not always viable and papers can get mislaid. Pet grooming software is designed to help you:
- Keep an unlimited amount of picture uploads.
- Keep track of grooming issues, vaccinations, and other alerts.
- Keep notes and histories on all pets.
- Keep track of pet tagging.
Marketing correctly
Like all the other enterprises in the service sector, your pet grooming business clients need constant reminders of your services and you also want to let them know about your special offers.
These cannot be done randomly and they need to be timed and personalized in an alluring way. In order to do this, you need to keep track of all the correct data and have all your customer information in one place. Grooming business software is designed to do just that making your campaigns more effective through email marketing campaigns.
Tracking your performance
Pet grooming software will help you grow as it reports the entire progress of your business. You will be able to see:
- How many pets were groomed in a particular month
- The grooming frequency for each client
- Product sales
Showing how much you care
Let your clients know how much you care for them and their beloved pets by offering them a seamless and stress- free experience. The grooming business software is the technology that has come to replace stress, for both you and your customers. You can offer them consistent service in a friendly and efficient way showing them that you have their best interest in mind and that they should also do so. They will also not have any more excuses for no shows or being late anymore.
Pet grooming software allows you to even send out pet loss sympathy gifts with just the click of a button.
Take advantage of the best pet grooming software to help your business reach new levels
Discover how Groomsoft Pet Grooming Software can offer you all of the above solutions while helping your business expand. Save yourself time in the day-to-day management of your business and spend it elsewhere while you also minimize cancellations and no shows. Get mobile and forget about keeping a desk loaded with paperwork, your grooming business software will remind you of appointments and provide you with the data to plan ahead.
Find us here and learn about all the other ways Groomsoft Pet Grooming Software can improve your pet grooming business.