Core Features:
- Text Messaging for Appointments
- Text Message History
- Text Message Pre-Appt Instructions
- Two Way Texting for Customer Check In / Arrival
Test Messaging for Appointments
Text messages are sent automatically to customers that have requested them in order to confirm their appointments. Text messages can be sent manually to a customer from the Customer Display screen. Text Advertising can be used to send text messages to all of your customers that have opted in to receive them.
Text Message History
- Turn on using Maintenance -> Internet / Marketing -> Show Text Message History
Text History collects all of the text messages you’re sending out to customers. By going to the Text Messages button on the Customer Display screen you can then see a list of all the text messages you’ve sent to that customer with the dates, times, and full contents of the messages.
Text Message Pre-Appt Instructions
- Turn on using Maintenance -> Internet / Marketing -> Send Pre-Appt Instructions
Text Message Instructions can be sent automatically by the computer one hour before their scheduled appointments. The message is user defined.
When you arrive in the parking lot text – “I’m Here”. We will text you when we are ready for you. Please have your mask on.
Two-Way Text Messaging
- Please contact IBCS Tech Support for setup.
Text Messages are shown in the Text History screen. We’ve added a button to the Appointment Book right above Intercom in the top-left to see all of the new Text Messages. The button turns yellow to let you know when there are new messages.
Clicking Text Messages lists of all your recent text messages, both incoming and outgoing.
From this screen you can…
- Send New Message
- See Full Conversation
- Check In
- Appointments Scheduled – Enabling you to move or cancel appointments
- Customer Display – Enabling you to access phone numbers, technical cards etc.
This screen automatically updates every minute so you’ll know as soon as you get a new message from a customer and can respond right away.
This feature aids in the Check In process while observing social distancing. A pictorial helps explains the feature.
Computer sends normal text reminder of their appointment
One hour before computer send instructions to the client for their appointment.
Customer informs salon they are at the salon
Receptionist lets the customer know when the designer is ready so the customer can enter the salon.
We’ve also added access to the customer’s Text History to the Appointment Detail screen (the screen that comes up when you click someone’s appointment in the book). You can get to it by clicking the appointment or by right-clicking the appointment and selecting Text Messages from the list of options.
Hopefully these new features help ease the stress for salons that are reopening under stricter social distancing guidelines. We look forward to helping everyone get with this great new way to quickly communicate with your customers!
Starting in August 2020, salons using two-way texting can also have their customers opt-in to receive text advertisements by replying to any text message with the word JOIN. In addition, the system will respond to the word HELP with information about the text messaging and will unsubscribe customers who text the word STOP. You can add the information about the JOIN option to your outgoing text messages under Maintenance -> Internet Marketing -> Text Confirmation Contents.