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Emotionally Motivated

I’m a healer and thinker of the audacious, practical, and emotional sort.
Visit here for body, mind, life, and biz help.

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Online Appointment Booking for Massage Therapists - A Review of 18 Sites

4/7/2021

53 Comments

 
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This review will no longer be kept up-to-date, although there is still some value to it if one is interested. Post-pandemic, it is very possible that this therapist will return to old-fashioned, hands-on booking. Some things, like small, intimate businesses, maybe ought not to be automated.
Therapists and clients have finally discovered the time- and stress-saving convenience of online booking. So much so, that there has been an explosion in the number of online booking apps. Online booking allows you to devote a lot more time to practice building instead of scheduling, but which booking system to choose? Some apps are definitely easier to work with than others, so it isn't always about subscription price, but identifying which app best suits the way you - and your clients - work.

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I’m a retired computer geek who used to handle every aspect of large system design and installation and I was pretty good at it from the viewpoint of writing systems that were error-free, and so intuitive that no instruction manual was needed. The theory is that I will have insights on booking systems that no other massage therapist will. And, I’m a stickler for wanting to know certain stuff about software that no marketer is ever going to tell you: The good and the bad. There's no such thing as perfection, so if there are problems, we want to at least be okay with them because we are going to have to live with them, and what each person can live with varies from person to person. You'll certainly discover what I view as problematic!

Booking software companies continue to emerge, merge, change owners, fold, and be renamed, so that actual number of "sites reviewed" here will change as time goes by. Between that and competition driving them all to be more-or-less equal in functionality, my reviews will change accordingly over time, likely focusing on the nuances instead of the basics. Competition really does  make for better products!

General Advice

Today, most booking apps can handle the loner freelancer all the way up to large enterprises with single or multiple locations. You will, however, need to know if you must be HIPAA compliant and, if so, choose only HIPAA compliant software. Being a bodyworker doesn't necessarily mean you must be HIPAA compliant for online booking, especially if you are only using a booking app to book appointments and make payments - so do your homework on this, before you start evaluating apps.

​Every therapist will have their own priorities when it comes to which bells and whistles of a software package suit their business, so I recommend you start with a list of "must haves" versus "nice to have" to ease your way. Due to the immense competition out there, almost everything you need is going to be available, at least for a price.

​As no single review blog can possibly keep up with the changing online booking apps, I offer you this link to Capterra for your own investigations. 

Perhaps you would prefer Datanyze's rankings of top booking systems - a dynamic list that should show current no matter when you click, and is based on market share, position, and websites. For example, Genbook and Vagaro are relatively equal in standing, despite how drastically different they are to use.
 
For the best customization of your massage business, look for systems that are designed to work with your industry because they will know, for example, why "cleanup time" is important and you'll likely be able to automate your calendar to include it. If customization is not what you need or care about, an all-industry option may be the easier choice. 
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​Another thing to consider is how aggressively your booking company will advertise to or email your clients. I'm a Golden Rule gal and prefer to avoid aggressive or manipulative marketing tactics.
 

Booking App Pricing Summary

If you are already computer and business savvy, feel free to jump ahead to the individual software reviews. Otherwise, do yourself a favor and read, General Software Evaluation Advice, too. ​
Short cut navigation instructions:
  • Click on the app name to jump to its review, if it has one.
  • Click on the price range to open a new window and visit the site's pricing page, if it has one.
Reviewed apps in order of monthly costs:​
  • SquareAppointments: Free for solos, $50 - $90 - Referral link in case you want to thank me: https://squareup.com/i/PAULASBOD2
  • Clickbook: Free, $19.95 - $84.95
  • MassageBook: Free, $19.99 - $24.99 ($14 - $19 if ABMP member)
  • Appointedd: $12
  • GetTimely: $19 - $64
  • Schedulista: $19 - $39
  • Schedulicity: $20 - $50
  • Vagaro: $25 and up (Beauty industry, full service)
  • FullSlate: $29.95 - $79.95 ($17.95 if ABMP member)
Not reviewed, in order of lowest to highest pricing:

  • 10to8: Free and full service (forever) with caveat, $25, $50, $150
  • Bookafy: $7 -$11 plus enterprise​
  • AcuityScheduling: $10 - $34 (partially evaluated, but quit as not for me)
  • SnapAppointments: $14.99 - $54.99 (directory)
  • TherapistManager: $18.95
  • vCita: $19.90 - $59.90 (all industries, integrates w/Weebly, Google, Facebook, etc.)
  • BookSteam: $19.95 - $69.95
  • BodyworkBuddy: $24.99
  • BookedIn: $29 - $89
  • Click4Time:  $29.95 - $39.95 and up
  • ClinicSense: $29 - $99
  • StyleSeat: $35 (beauty industry with directory and referral system with fee)
  • DaySmart: $49 - $199 (was Appointments-Plus)
  • MyTime: $74 and up
  • MindBodyOnline: $75 - $290​
 

General Software Evaluation Advice

Before checking software for your particular bell and whistle preferences, I advise that the following be heavily considered for long-term happiness:

Well-written software should be, and in this order: Functionally intuitive, Error-free, and Esthetic.
Functionally intuitive means the customer need not endure online tutorials, camp out in the help section, or memorize where functions are just to use the software. I happen to know that there is no excuse for errors when it comes to computer systems, but I’ll leave wiggle room (very little) for new or beta systems and newly installed upgrades. Esthetics may be last in importance, but I don’t devalue the importance of esthetics. Esthetics are not just visual, ease of use is an important part and will be a vital part for clients.

Software companies should be responsive and receptive to customer queries and criticisms.
I am going to be using my new software for many years to come, hopefully. If I have a question, criticism, or problem to report, I want to know that it will be handled graciously and professionally. I also like working with companies and people of integrity and sound character. Business owners tend to hire people like themselves, and that trickles all the way down to the people providing customer service. Therefore, customer service is an excellent indicator of the integrity and character of the guys or gals at the top.
A Few Hidden Customer Service Red flags to look out for:
  • Excessively sweet customer service reps that distract you from ongoing software bugs. You know, the folks that make you feel all warm inside, while they toss your complaint into the round recycle bin. Of course, this assumes that you were rational and factual when you reported those bugs.
  • Dumping what should be their-tech-problem-to-solve right back into your lap. A tech needs to accept responsibility even if they are unable or unwilling to recreate a problem, not dump the problem back onto the user. It's okay to say, as long as it is an honest statement, "We cannot recreate this problem, so we would like it if you report it each time it happens, so that we can try again, next time."
  • Caring only about testing on Apple products or conversely, PC products. Make sure your software company is devoted to putting equal weight on both sides of the Mac/PC aisle, so that you don't end up alienating half of your potential customers. This is less of a problem than it used to be, but still something to look out for.
​
Your Job As Software Evaluator
  • Set up a test account on the online booking apps that you want to trial. Notice how easy or difficult it is for you to do this. If you cannot do it without enlisting the help of a technical person, you may want to forego using that particular booking app for two reasons: It should be easy enough for you to figure out on your own, even if you have to rely on the app's help or community pages, because you really don't want to pay out extra money for something you should be able to do easily yourself, right?
  • Once you have set up your test account, do enough testing of the app as if you were the client wanting to book an appointment with you. You can do this easily by opening an "incognito" window/tab in your browser. Book an appointment. Act like a client and change your mind and then try to change the appointment to another day or another time or both. Test if it's easy for a client to cancel their own appointment. Does the app show the client your cancellation policy? Does it provide no-show protection if you want that?
  • If you embed an app's online booking code on your own business site, please play the customer, again, and test that embed code from different browsers and on desktops and mobile devices. It should work from whatever device your client is likely using, not just from the device you always use.
  • Ultimately, ease of use according to your clients matters more than ease of your administrative use of the booking system. When it's easy and intuitive for the client, more clients are likely to book with you vs. changing their minds to go somewhere else.

​Free Software does not have to mean accepting less.
Cost is very important to independent massage therapists that may have no other income and therefore really need to reign in the expenses. There are free online appointment booking systems, however, it is advised to find out why the software is free and how the company is benefitting by giving it away. In many cases, the company likely needs your presence to look valuable and make money. For example, Facebook is free, but it isn’t valuable if it only has a few thousand members. With a million or so members, it is quite valuable. Knowing this means potential leverage should you choose a free online appointment system and discover you want something changed or fixed. Some free systems charge you for using them by putting advertisements on your page or collecting fees for ancillary services. Other almost-free systems lure you in, but don’t let you use the system as is. Free could also mean a higher risk of the company not being around for long and the potential loss of your data. If you need to keep risk low, then choose a company that has set themselves up to guarantee their financial longevity, or limit your use of them so that the only thing you lose is appointment data, which you can't lose, because you keep paper records, too, and your client data is always backed up somewhere and always current, right?

Putting all of your eggs in one basket:
Full-service sites that do more than the basics of appointment booking, client emails, payments, and notifications are potentially like having an AOL address: Once you are in, you cannot get out without bleeding half to death; and while you are in, you miss out on all the great advances in technology going on around you. My apologies to those who still use AOL, but that’s how most of us techies feel about them, so they are great for illustrating this point. 

Let’s say the full-service company you are with goes out of business or gets too expensive or you just want to change software: Most sites have calendar and address book sync, so you can automatically transfer future bookings and client contact data to almost any other site, but no historical booking data will likely be available. If, however, you are also storing medical data (aka SOAP notes), financial data, or any other customized data in your appointment booking system, then that information is never going to translate to somewhere else unless you do it manually. I’m not saying there is anything wrong with going with a full-service site, I am saying “buyer beware.” If you use a site’s online SOAP notes, then you may want to also print them off after each session and keep a manual file. I have no advice for the financial recording and reporting because I seem to have a very different way of tracking the comings and goings of money, which is why I have my own, simple system and will continue to use it, no matter whose appointment software I have.

Directories and SEO
Another aspect of full-service is Search Engine Optimization (SEO), which means many things, but the simplest meaning is “that which drives clients to you” and that usually means the sites have a) respect from the search engines, and if you're lucky, b) a respectable online directory of practitioners for consumers to search on.

Your website with its unique name, and not under the umbrella of any other company’s name, is your number one tool for SEO, and it takes regular (but reasonable) attention to keep your site at the top of the search engine lists for your keywords in your location. Having said that, being in a good directory helps, too.

As you check out the appointment booking companies, here and elsewhere, that claim to offer SEO via their own directory, find out how your clients will find their site and find you within their directory. Test it. If you enter "massage therapy" with your zip code and you get a bunch of ads with blatantly sexy-looking therapists, you may want to think twice before being part of that directory.

We are health and wellness professionals, right? So, let's stay in clean, professional, health and wellness directories. In fact, let's hold these directories to a higher standard and call and write to them, respectfully, when we see ethical problems.

​Wouldn't it be nice if we had one directory for all bodyworkers? Clients don't care whether we are AMTA, ABMP, sole proprietors, spas, or green frogs, they just want to find the best therapist for their issues, wherever they live, work, or travel. It will take all of us to make this happen, though, so please participate - no matter who does your online booking.
Back to Pricing Summary

 

Let The Reviews Begin

Reviewed sites commence in order of lowest cost-per-month/other-costs to highest, but costs are summarized up-top because rates keep changing and it's easier to keep this review current by separating the rates from the reviews. The sites I did not test drive or for whom I've pulled their detailed review, follow at the end. If you are a reviewee and you find falsehoods, please contact me with corrections and I will be more than happy to update, to a point. Please don’t contact me just because you disagree with my perception of my experiences, only if I got a fact wrong.
 
Square Appointments
Square Appointments works with Square Payments. Who hasn't heard of Square, right? Well, their appointment app is a bit newer and it's a bit basic, but Square Appointments is here and it's free for solos, so you know I had to switch and give them a whirl. I get fewer questions from my clients, primarily because they are already used to using Square at many other businesses, so I'm pretty pleased thus far, despite a few hiccups.
The Hiccups
I'm a work-at-home freelancer in private practice so I use my desktop computer for almost everything. Square made the assumption that most folks in the gig economy do most of their booking and payments on mobile, so the desktop appointment app does not have the same or as much functionality as the mobile app. I've brought this issue to the attention of the developers and support reps. I've been told that desktop functionality will eventually improve, but a year later it is obvious that the desktop application is low priority.
  The biggest pain is needing to exit the calendar and use their "Virtual Terminal" to checkout a customer. Recently, they added a "Take Payment" option to the calendar, but it doesn't allow you to swipe a card! It only allows manual entry or card-on-file payment - and that costs more than swiping. In fact, Square seems to want to push people into the higher cost payment options which also includes invoices. Don't fall for it.
    With Virtual Terminal or Take Payment, there is no cash or check or coupon payment option. If you do your own bookkeeping, that's not a problem. I know we are moving toward a cashless society, but it's rather inconsiderate of Square to not allow a basic checkout of all payment methods. 
  Not super easy to set up your account due to disjointed nature of setup and no intuitive guidance, so expect to spend a little more time to get converted. 
  They rely primarily on help pages and community for handling support issues and the appointments app doesn't get the priority of other Square services. (Although I did report that as an issue.) However, their help pages are remarkably impossible to use. It's not that the help isn't there, necessarily, it's that you'll likely not ever find the right keywords to get you the help you need.
  There are currently only 5 customer service reps for the appointments app. That means really slow service if you need it.
The Blessings
Credit card rates for solos when you tap, dip, or swipe are lower than elsewhere at 2.75%, likely due to the large membership of Square for payments. Invoicing is slick - you can set up auto-reminders - but costs a little more in credit card fees, but at about the same rate other apps. 
  I get my money deposited in my bank account faster than any other app I've used.
  It's a modern, professional looking and acting app and they appear to put priority on remaining so. That's what I'm gambling on, anyway.
  Square bought Weebly and Weebly is where my biz site is hosted. Neato.
The Caveats
There are automatic email and sms reminders and bring-em-back automation, but no automatic birthday emails.
  Marketing campaigns will cost extra and there's no truly affordable option for solos short of trying to get away with doing a one-month free trial once or twice a year, assuming you can trial it more than once. For the few times a year I send marketing emails which are not really marketing emails, I ended up buying some credits from Direct Mail app, which is so much easier than Mail Chimp - if I may say so.
  Square Appointments is small-business friendly, but not tailored to the massage industry, so massage practice customization doesn't exist. As I am primarily interested in appointment booking and payments and not running the rest of my practice through it, I've adjusted fine. 
Back to Pricing Summary
 
Clickbook
Clickbook (.net) is not flashy or pretty or sophisticated or modern looking. You’re stuck with ads with the free version, or they charge you to be ad-free. However, freebies get the same functionality as those who are paying.

As semi-hokey as Clickbook is, it works. It is functional and flexible and customizable.

Emails are not customizable, but most of your account and customer setup is. This makes control freaks like me happy.  They give you a choice of being contacted by email or text message. You can even create your own intake forms. They have PayPal for processing credit cards and you can even require payment for new clients. You might not like the calendar display, but it works. Don’t expect them to drive traffic to you, but you can link to them from your own site, which if you have one, it better be driving the traffic for you.

Clickbook gets angel status for three things: They allowed me to delete my account, they store the data for 30 days ‘just in case’, and then they delete after 30 days. If a company can be thoughtful toward you when you leave, then they are likely a thoughtful company.
Back to Pricing Summary
 
MassageBook
Full disclosure: In 2013 I switched from FullSlate to MassageBook for my private practice; I lasted for three years before returning to FullSlate, who then drastically changed their system, forcing me to discover Vagaro who just weren't consistent enough in ease of client bookings, forcing me in less than a year to discover the gem that is Appointedd. Having used both MB and FS systems for an extended period of time, you will likely get more detailed information because I tried out more of their stuff.

Massagebook left beta mode long ago, but they are constantly rewriting, updating, and tweaking every two weeks, at least. Consequently, they are, functionally speaking, always in beta mode. Every agile software company does this, but MB does it to the point of distraction and this can start eating into your spare time. This can be maddening, or you can start to feel like you're part of a family, albeit a mildly dysfunctional one. I can at least attest that they prioritize bugs: If it affects your ability to do business, they make it a top priority to fix. Otherwise, it may take some time, like years, and maybe never.

MassageBook is full-service and then some, including a community center, free gift certificates, a separate directory for clients to find you, built-in marketing campaigns to your clients without having to export or import to external services, client referral tracking, and even a store for you to buy your supplies. You can earn credits toward store purchases, just by using MB's online booking: Every time you checkout a client, you earn store credit.

If you are skittish about online booking or just not into it, you can still put yourself in their directory (so that people can find you, and because a directory is no good if you are not in it) and turn online booking off. Instead, you set a switch that allows potential clients to email you if they want an appointment, and you can schedule them manually.

You can optionally accept new client referrals from them for a very low fee. Note: The fee only kicks in if the client came in through MassageBook's directory. Once the client is yours, no fee. In three years, I think I had three referrals and only one of them actually found me through this directory. That's not a good track record.

Reviews matter for bringing in new clients. Fortunately, MB installed a separate review process whereby they will, if you turn it on, automatically email your clients shortly after seeing you and give them an opportunity to rate your business and you. I was nervous about this feature at first, but I activated it, and got good reviews, fast, so it's all good. Except for the ambiance. I got rated down in ambiance and that motivated me to change the lighting in my office, which motivated me to paint and change the curtains. So, it looks much nicer in here now, and I have the automated review process to thank for that. However, they pester your clients by sending a review request after every appointment. Not cool. Who wants to be pestered?

Speaking of pestering, they also require that your clients have an account with them with a separate sign in and password and profile pics. Worse, their client database is keyed by email address, so problems abound when you have, for example, older clients who don't have email, younger clients who have multiple email addresses, or families that share an email address.

They process credit cards for you directly through Stripe and charge you only 2.75% and no fee. For comparison, Paypal charges 2.9% + 30 cents per transaction. You can also decide if you want to require credit card payment for all or just first-time clients or none. Perhaps the best part of MassageBook is their checkout process. It's a little clunky, but you get to feel like a real business and it allows the client to pay a little by check and a little by cash and the balance on the credit card and maybe buy a tidbit or two while you're there. It's a nice feature.

Email templates for marketing campaigns are simple and fabulous, which allows you to look like a pro, without having to learn how to be a marketing designer. I did a campaign. It went well in the beginning, but the open rates went down, significantly, after a while. My educated guess is that the problem is spam related. For example, in order to avoid being marked down by the powers-that-be as a spammer, you need to avoid sending emails to addresses that don't exist. To do that, you need to know when an email address is invalid so that you can exclude it from any email sending, especially an email campaign. You won't get that information through this campaign feature, so if you don't figure out how to do this, yourself, each campaign you run is going to degrade in deliverability. Another issue: As cool as their in-house campaign tool is, it's also extremely dependent on client database accuracy and date information. Their client database has issues that caused problems for me, like not being able to properly merge or delete records, for one and inconsistent historical preservation of appointment data.

The email templates for regular business are simple and beautiful and some can even be customized, now, with your own content. You’ll know why this is valuable when you read the FullSlate review. 

A uniquely valuable max-sessions-per-day and a max-hours-per-day feature have been added. Until you see these in action, you don’t know what you’re missing. It was a deal breaker for me the last time I went shopping for online appointment booking. Why? Because it is the one feature that makes online scheduling truly hands-free for me so that I can plan my life, accordingly.

I avoid putting all my eggs in one basket, but their SOAP notes section? It’s too cool. Click on a body part and up pops the names of those muscles you forgot about ten minutes after you finished your licensing exams. You can print the SOAP notes and/or upload your own into their system as PDFs. HIPAA rules are followed, of course, so be careful with the SOAP notes, because you can't delete. PS. you pay extra for this and some of the other features.

MB says they are aware that many solo massage therapists also have sidelines, so they’ve set their site up so that you can have multiple businesses on MassageBook and keep them separate, yet together. Never tested this.

To the hard-working crew at MassageBook ... You will be missed! But I won't miss finding workarounds for the aspects of your product that didn't work. Unfortunately, the workarounds took up more time than if I had gone back to manual booking. I'm sorry, but it exhausted me, so I'm out. Nothing personal.
Back to Pricing Summary
 
Appointedd
This hidden gem escaped me in the early years and I lived with them for a little over a year, before I left. I liked Appointedd for their ability to put a lot of functionality in a small, quiet space. To me, Appointedd looks a bit like the TARDIS from Dr. Who fame: Bigger on the inside even while it looks minimal on the outside. Is it a little bit peculiar because of its UK leanings? Yup. Does it matter? You decide. I decided I wanted something easier for my clients to use and less date-formatting hassle, so I ended up switching to Square Appointments. 

For one of the lowest, most comprehensible rates in the market, you get:
  • Professional-looking online booking for your clients with options to let them book themselves, select an available time slot and request approval via email, or call you to book, and these selections are available by session; 
  • Customizable email content and customizable email header and footer for your own business logo, albeit slightly old-school; 
  • Online payment, deposit or in full, optional or required, via Stripe (USA) or Braintree (UK) and you have the ability to one-click at a later time and send client an email requesting payment that they can do right from the email without your intervention with no increase in fees;
  • Embedding on your own site that works without having to exit your site;
  • A simple microsite that won't try to steal the show from your own website that can be used for alternative booking, changes, and for clients to leave you a review; 
  • Ability to convert your schedule into linear tasks;
  • A multi-function Calendar sync that even allows you to let your external calendar update your Appointedd calendar;
  • Affordable SMS messaging via pay-as-you go, in chunks of your choosing;
  • A CRM that you can customize with your own fields;
  • Timezone, currency, date format options for here or overseas, which is great for traveling therapists and educators - although some of you will have to adjust to using the 24-hour international clock;
  • Resource allocation and customization; 
  • Simplified and group-able services w/built in, instant "offer" options, pre-and-post padding, flexible durations, and ample description space that takes up no space on your booking page;
  • Decent support staff; although if you are in USA, they may be sleeping while you're awake, but they are attentive but only senior staff are truly useful;
  • Built-in, included in the price, CAMPAIGNS! Want to send a birthday email a day, a week, a month ahead? Yes you can. Also can choose by gender, last visit, first visit, amount of visits, and last staff to service customer, and these are all built-in options, so you don't have to figure out how to do it! Those are all called, notifications, which means it runs, daily, to see if anything needs to be mailed out, like a birthday offer. For regular campaigns you get similar options and can send immediately or schedule for a future date. The whole thing is done more simply and straightforward than I have seen, anywhere, albeit without fancy design templates;
  • Although images for custom emails and campaigns are not part of the system, you may upload your own, and basic Headings and formatting is included, without giving you too much rope to hang yourself by as they say;
  • I avoid vetting so-called "reports" in most systems, but I suspect the reports at Appointedd will make sense and be necessarily accurate as most of their system is. I took a peak: Yup, their stats are accurate and reflected even the tests I ran: 1 booking internal, 0 bookings external, 3 cancellations, 0 revenue, and 16 emails sent. I didn't have to go looking for any of that data, either - I might nickname Appointed the One-Click-Wonder app;
  • For those geekier than I, there's a section for webhooks and APIs, too;
  • Finally, it's easy to add breaks in the schedule, because we all need to take time out to take care of ourselves, right? But it's done mostly from the resource section vs directly on the calendar.

What's not there? Only gift certificates and automated packages come to mind.

I didn't have many complaints during my one-year trial. But over time, I did begin to notice that I had to spend more time solving problems, and that's what led me to investigate other options again. New changes to the app (every two weeks about) began to come in with new bugs, and you know by now that that bugs me.
Back to Pricing Summary
 
GetTimely
GetTimely gets a new review, effective 9/28/2014, because they asked me to. Wise decision.

GT revamped their site and found a way to boil things down to the simplest basics without losing customization and did it with style and accuracy. The details in this review are a direct result of not being slowed down by problems, so if you are intolerant of buggy sites, GT may be the best option for you.

Good news for the struggling therapist: GT claims that they will tailor your rate if you let them know that their price isn’t right for you; don’t abuse this because we wouldn’t want GT to take this kindness away.


GetTimely is full service for most any service industry, selectable by service, but no directory listing and no gift certificates. However, it appears gift vouchers are on the horizon, but definitely behind schedule. Initial account setup is the easiest yet, but you’ll want to immediately zip back in and customize those booking and email settings. They did an excellent job of including the meaningful customizations and they organized it about the best it can be. That’s another major compliment from one who does not compliment easily.

You can drag and drop appointments on the calendar and choose what time to start the calendar display and whether appointments are penciled in or auto-confirmed. I also like that you can decide appointment spacing on two levels: At the calendar level, you can decide how much time to put between all appointments and at the service level you can add setup/cleanup time for services that require more than the default time. What I don’t like is that the setup/cleanup time isn’t on the calendar with the service. That’s one of my two biggest dislikes at GT. The other one is that I cannot tell them to limit how many hours I work each day. I like to be open for 8 hours but only work 4-6 hours, for example. This allows maximum freedom to the public for booking the time they want, while not overworking this semi-retired body. Still, pre-retirement, I’d be open ten to twelve hours a day, but still wanted to limit my bookings to no more than six. Get the picture? Very handy feature and very disappointing that it isn’t in GT. A useless peculiarity is the display of my name on every booking on the calendar. For solos or multis, it really needs the client’s first name and last initial (not last name) for our quick reference. 

There are lots of reports available that I did not review, but if clients cancel, you can record specific reasons along with various appointment status levels. It would seem that you could get reports on this, but I didn’t see them. To record payments, there is an illogical but workable method: You must “raise” an invoice, then save it, then enter your payment options, none of which are “check”. It can handle partial payments, part cash, part credit card. I don’t understand the use of invoice language in the service industry and I don’t see why payment options can’t be the first thing you see, considering that that is the most common transaction. What I do know is that you must use the invoice system if you also want to use the business reports.

I’m impressed with the organization and options of the new GetTimely. From being able to list some services as free (I offer free trials) to being able to ask a required or not-required, specific question for certain bookings. Like if a client books my 30-minute Quick Fix, I can make them tell me what they want fixed in that time, and be prepared. Really love that I can choose what reminders to send and when to send them, whether email or SMS/TXT. Whatever your cancellation policy is, it can be required for the public user to okay it when they book; cuts down on no-shows, as do reminders.

Something I learned from MassageBook: Sending automatic review emails to clients really works, especially when it is via a third party and not yourself. GT does not have this option. Too bad. I noted that you can customize the reminder and notification emails, but I don’t see where any other types of emails, including birthday greetings, can be set up. I suppose they expect you to rely on Mail Chimp, but Mail Chimp isn’t really handy for anything more than a basic newsletter. I didn’t say it couldn’t do other things, I said it wasn’t handy for them. You can, however, export a list of birthdays from GT to MC and generate birthday greetings that way. Prefer MassageBook’s automatic birthday greeting: Set it and forget it.

Uservoice is GetTimely's chat-like, onscreen help. Not a chat, but they will respond by email.

What’s included in GT’s price: customizable booking, calendar, client database, customizable notification and reminder emails, invoicing/payments/receipts with the ability to sell products, business performance tracking, customizable book now buttons and widgets, social integration, and mini website.

What’s not included, but easily integrated for standard/small fees: choice of payment integration with either Paypal, Authorize.net, eWay, Payment Express, Pin Payments, or Stripe; campaigns via Mail Chimp, and a few others for ambitious companies.

You can still easily cancel your account with GetTimely, but they don’t delete your data. That bugs me. They should at least give us the option to delete. We are talking about client data, after all.
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Schedulista
Forgettable is not what a software company wants to be, but I honestly can’t remember Schedulista and they were reviewed in the same time frame as the others. So, going straight from the notes: professional looking; no bugs; site very easy to use; quick setup. Hm. Maybe they weren’t memorable because they didn’t give me any trouble. That could be a good thing.

They have a blog that keeps you informed of new services and updates, and the blog seemed active, so they must be flexible and ever-changing, which is important for all technology companies. Their blog says they have recurring appointment options, payments, etc., but my test appointment did not show those options.

You can import and export client records and sync to MailChimp; no extra cost if you qualify for MailChimp’s free version. I only found one automatic email reminder, but it was customizable and professional looking. 

I could not find anyplace that allows you to enter setup/cleanup times or equivalent for appointments. That’s a deal-breaker for me and should be for you, too.

I emailed them on a Saturday about my questions and got a response 48-hours later. Huge pet peeve coming up: They didn’t answer a single question, but let me know that they are available if I have any questions. Translation: They either don’t read your emails or only hear what they want to hear, so don’t expect to have much of a voice.

The web page they give you is a single page with Services, Contact, and Notes. Clicking a service gets you right to booking just like the other sites. Don’t let that web page fool you … it isn’t going to drive clients to you unless I missed something. They do sync with iCal and allow you to force credit card payment on newbies. Those are good things. They do credit cards via Stripe. 

In trying to delete my account, I discovered that the help feature is not on all pages. I also cannot delete my account and there is no information as to what will happen to it once the trial expires. I’m always wary of companies that make it hard or confusing for you to leave. ​
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Schedulicity
Schedulicity is a slick, powerful, marketing machine. They have decided what is best for you and they do it without an ounce of guilt. Control freaks should exit this paragraph now because you’ll hate Schedulicity. But for the trendsetting and laid back, it’s for you.

Very clean, fast, simple setup. Mostly error free. Once in, you get lost because it is the opposite of intuitive when it comes to getting around, so I hope you have a good memory; I don’t.

They book for many industries, so once your client books, they get pressured to find all other services through Schedulicity, too, including a different massage therapist. At first, I thought this translated to good SEO, but when I did a keyword search to see what directories showed up, Schedulicity wasn’t there. I believe their niche is heavy marketing, not SEO. To be fair, a number of supposedly good directories have lost their SEO. 

They have super slick email templates for campaigns, and their automatic confirmation and reminder emails are not only slick, but also heavy on the marketing, not for you, but for themselves. I suspect that this means people flag them as spam a lot. See the last paragraph in this review for proof of that.

The calendar was weird: Just shows client name and total time, instead of service and appointment time, so you have to click on each session to see what’s in it, unlike FullSlate (see next review) which shows you at a glance; no extra clicking needed unless the client left you a note. What little control Schedulicity gives you, is pretty superficial, so if you’re into that, this is the software for you. I’m not judging, just reporting the facts. The point I am making here is that you have little to no voice with Schedulicity.

When I tried to delete my account, I could find no way to do so and no help on the topic, so had to message them for help. Most of their emails ended up in my spam folder; not good. Support is available M-F, 8-5 Mountain time. Got a response: If you get a trial account, it deletes automatically at the end if you don’t sign up
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Vagaro
VAGARO, a leader in the beauty industry, took me by pleasant surprise once I got over their beauty-first platform and the fact that giving them a trial run was not going to be nearly as quick and easy as some apps. Plus, I am a science- and health-minded, au naturale clinician that goes out of my way to avoid the beauty industry, because, well, because I'm a snob about certain things, one of which is the belief that massage is a necessary health service both for prevention and remediation. However, Vagaro handles themselves like professionals, and clients do tend to find their way to us from the beauty side of the aisle. So, because Vagaro is professional and priced right, I chose them. Unfortunately, less than a year later, I had to un-choose them. The reason was simple: My #1 priority is not having to waste my time booking clients, and despite my practice being very low volume, too many of my clients were unable to book themselves, through no fault of their own. Vagaro is powerful, but they seem to have shifted priority away from the end consumer and toward the business owner. Not a good idea, considering we, the business owner, want to make our clients' lives easier, not more difficult. Yet, there are good reasons for using Vagaro ...

Vagaro is functionally flexible, professionally mature, and yet conscientious enough to make it fast and easy to find and get support. You'll find their phone number and email in the footer, and every page within has direct, short tutorials for that page, eliminating the need to leave the page to search for answers. They welcome suggestions and are always improving, and they do a decent job of implementing changes seamlessly, leaving me free (mostly) to work with clients instead of hunting down bugs. The early bugs I found turned out to mostly be a result of differences between the initial set-up and ongoing set-up, and were quickly cleared up. Later bugs, were not so quickly resolved due to that annoyance that seems to be everywhere today: No matter how detailed you are in reporting a problem, some techs just don't "see" the problem and they dump it back in your lap. I suspect that much of the blindness I encountered may be Apple/Chrome/Safari related. So if you're a PC, you should have fewer blips, but I cannot attest to that.

If you require HIPAA compliance, as long as you are only using Vagaro for booking and bookkeeping purposes, you should be fine. Vagaro is not the place for SOAP notes or any other confidential client data, and I happen to prefer keeping clinical data separate from booking, anyway. 


I am financially challenged, but their financial reports appear accurate and I can actually understand most of them. And I got a free swiper for my desktop, which is necessary, as banks are now charging higher interest for manually entered credit card numbers (I assume this is to combat digital theft), so swiping gets you a lower interest rate. The biggest plus: I always hated charging my clients at booking time, instead of on the day of service like my old app forced me to do; it just seemed so wrong. Now, everybody pays at time of service, and I still have no-show protection. One fantastic feature that simplifies my own bookkeeping and reconciliation is credit card charges and fees: Fees are taken, separately, once a month, and you get an itemized statement in the mail with fees auto-deducted. Wonderful! Also, those credit card charges process much faster through Vagaro: same day or next business day, plus one more day for the bank. And my total fees are a tiny bit less than they were at Massagebook, overall. 

Gift certificates have somehow been a headache over the years. At first, Vagaro included them in their subscription price, which was wonderful and part of why I loved them over other apps. No more, sadly. You have to upgrade to the next tier which adds $10 a month to your subscription price. So, sole proprietors may get priced out of gift certificates. No amount of suitably complaining to Vagaro got my point across as to how unkind this was, either. Why not just take a tiny fee for GC's for basic subscribers?

Vagaro's checkout process is pretty detailed and complete and works, and you don’t even need to use it if you don’t want to unless you are planning on using their point system or membership benefits. I’m quite interested in the membership plan for my clients but haven’t set it up just yet. But back to checkout: It’s so complete that there are no less than 13 short tutorials to cover the options: Add customers to IOU, Checkout for Services, for Products and Walk-ins, Signature feature, Group checkout, balancing the cash drawer, membership, putting a card on file (rather automatic if you require a card number to hold an appointment when they book), product refunds, service refunds, and redeeming packages. All of which gives you an idea of the many options available. All of which can be a bit overwhelming to keep up with, too.

Built-in, customizable marketing lets you send up to 1,000 emails for free each year. Packages for medium, large, extra large, and xx-large email volume businesses are also available, ranging from $10-$60 per month. More than a bargain, it’s completely fair. Huge benefit I missed before: They give you an itemized status of how your email campaign went so that you can be a professional and keep your client records clean and accurate. Great looking, automated and customizable emails for birthdays, thank you notes, and lost customers are part of that built-in marketing package, as well as Daily Deals you can use on Vagaro’s website and directory. I’ve set up the automations and found they deliver what they promise. But like MB before Vagaro, deliverability rates go down rather drastically after the first launch.

All calendars within booking systems are pretty much the same, but few are as customizable as Vagaro’s. I can tell them whether to show 15-minute intervals or not, current timeline or not, decide what day my week starts, use theirs or my own color coding, colors change depending on appointment status, etc. 

A unique feature that I am beginning to appreciate is the one where one of the two email reminders after booking contains an are-you-gonna-show-up-or-not message to reduce no-shows (in addition to being able to hold an appointment with a credit card, which also reduces no-shows.) The client clicks yes, I’ll be there, and now the color for that appointment changes on the calendar to red which means: Client has confirmed by action, not assumption. One client commented on it, none have complained about it, and all but two used it. Ironically, seeing red in your calendar is anxiety reducing in this context. I’m all for reducing anxieties for both client and therapist.

I admit to spending little time on this review, but that means I feel like there is nothing I have to warn my fellow practitioners about with this particular online booking system. It’s not quite as intuitive as I would like and it isn’t perfect, but as big and encompassing as it is, the design was functional enough to keep me there, up until a client screamed at me that she HATED booking through Vagaro, and that client just happened to be the final straw. In my absence, I hope they step in and fix those public user experience problems. Otherwise, Vagaro is fair, functional, and for grown-ups.

And you know by now that Vagaro must be polite if you decide to leave, or else I wouldn't have ever signed up. However, the free credit card swiper they gave me is only free if you stick with them for a year, otherwise, it's a $75 charge. I'll leave my subscription live for another 45 days to offset that charge, for then my year will be up.
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FullSlate
FullSlate was once the perfect system for me until I became partially disabled and belatedly admitted that I had to reduce my full-time client load to part time and my expenses along with it. I left them in 2013, but not through any fault of their own. Thanks to the power of time and healing, I returned to FullSlate three years later, more than glad to not have to be a beta tester for MassageBook anymore. Not only is FullSlate the only booking system I used where clients said to me, "I really like your booking system!", but when I returned to FullSlate, one client emailed me, confused, because the booking and payment went so quickly compared to MassageBook, that she thought maybe there was something wrong. Nope. Nothing wrong, just flawless, fast, intuitive execution. Until ...

April 2017 Update: FullSlate has changed ownership, again, and their first major upgrade (HIPAA related and changes affecting every aspect of their app) was and still is a shining example of what not to do. No amount of "nice" can fix the number of bad decisions that went into that upgrade. At this time, until FullSlate's new ownership can prove themselves - enter with caution. However, if they do get back to the business of being a no-muss, no-fuss, accurate system ....


FullSlate prefers to get the functional and flexible right, letting the sleek slide. Having said that, they aren’t ugly, just not sleek or super modern like Schedulicity. And let's face it: online booking is a utility and should be unobtrusive and flawless in order to save both client and therapist time for other things.

FullSlate satisfies the control freak in me and does it in a fairly straightforward way. Translation: Lots of useful customization. Most apps have tons of bells and whistles, but it's a smoke screen for what matters. FullSlate has never fallen into that trap, thankfully. For the times when it isn’t so straightforward, their help area actually helps, and on the rare occasions that it wasn’t enough, they had great customer service. 

They don't need to make many changes, because their product just works, but when they do add new functionality, they announce it quietly and without wasting your time: Like, clients being able to tack on a tip when paying by credit card ahead of time; or their connection to Quickbooks for a more professional checkout procedure, although it's an unneeded add-on for most in. FullSlate gets extra kudos for making sure their new features have been fully tested before implementing. This is unusual for most web-based applications today and sorely needed.

You can choose from a handful of payment processors (no extra charge), so I was able to stick with my Stripe account at my Stripe processing rate, and you can customize how and whether credit cards are required at booking or not, or if payment is made in full or just a deposit and what percentage, etc.

FullSlate has Gift Certificates and Package sales, now, for a flat, low monthly fee, but you can also try it for free for a month, and then cancel. No harm, no foul - especially if one chooses November 25 through December 25 to trial it each year. And if you have outstanding vouchers from other systems, you can upload them into FullSlate and clients can still easily redeem, without you needing to subscribe to the gift certificate program. Neat, huh?


There are two, simple but fabulous things FullSlate does that few are doing - yet: They gave me customizable email templates that told me what the hell to say and when to say it. Client communication is NOT my forte and I would normally sit like a deer in headlights instead of sending: Email confirmations, reminders, cancellation notices, declined notices, thank you notices, and the ever scary “You’re Due for a Visit” notice, all of which are vital to making a living. They put the professional-sounding, efficient words in the emails for me, and as I got comfortable communicating like a proper business woman, I slowly started putting my own voice into these emails. It is a joy to select a template and hit send. That’s it! No cut and paste, either! Some of those emails are automated, too, to your specifications: Confirmations, Reminders, Review Requests, and Followups for both appointments and classes; Connecting with past clients; and Birthday emails that can go out up to two weeks before the client's birthday, so that you can automatically send them, say, a Birthday discount. Nothing fancy in any of these emails or automation processes, either; but they work and the process is intuitive, which means you save tons of time getting things done instead of figuring out how to get things done. Did I mention that you can send an email to up to 500 people at a time in the blink of an eye? And you can import reviews from elsewhere!

The second fave item is, for me, a lifesaver, and will be for you, too: Max hours per day. I am limited in the number of hours I can work per day and that number goes up and down with my health and other projects, yet I don’t want to limit the choices for appointment times for my clients or make them learn my crazy schedule. I may be open 8 hours a day, four days a week, but I will only want to do bodywork a maximum of 6 hours on a good day and maybe even 4 hours, otherwise. With FullSlate’s automatic max-per-day feature, I don’t have to worry about getting overbooked on any day, nor do I have to spend the time and energy avoiding it. My clients can still book whenever they want and I am free to do what I need to do outside those booking hours. With a single digit change, I limit the hours I work without worrying about getting overbooked. Awesome.

They have the other usual stuff, too, from calendar syncing to Facebook and website integration. All that stuff just works, too. And for clients who aren't fans of having yet another sign-on on and password, FS gives your clients the option. 

While this reviewer prefers a sound structure over overwrought esthetics, it would be nice if FullSlate threw us a few beauty bones, like being able to drag-and-drop images into emails.


FullSlate gets archangel status for being supremely gracious about my leaving them back in 2013. Like wow, multiple people said goodbye and wished me well. *smooch* They were so gracious, I don’t even know if they deleted my data or not. Three years later I returned to them to discover that they had not deleted my data, which turned out to be pretty cool, even if I ended up overwriting the client database, anyway. Why? Because all my email templates and other settings were still there, so I got back up and running in just a day! And that client import? They just smoothly and seamlessly applied the new information over the old - Perfect.
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This review was originally written 8/19/2013 and has been updated somewhat regularly. The latest revision date is at the top of the review.
53 Comments
Rueben Skipper link
8/23/2014 02:39:42 pm

Hi Paula,

I really liked your blog post, it was clear and concise. I work at Timely (www.gettimely.com) and since 2013 we have made some big improvements. So much so that we have been named preferred software provider for the National Massage Therapy Associations in Australia and New Zealand.

We would love it if you took another look at Timely and reviewed us again. I think you will be surprised at how we perform.

If you contact me on rueben@gettimely.com I can organise a new and extended trial period so that you can really get into it.

Kind regards
Rueben Skipper

Timely Limited
www.gettimely.com

Reply
Paula
9/24/2014 08:58:31 am

Hi Rueben,

Challenge accepted. I'm re-reviewing a few sites; yours will be one of them. Thanks for the heads-up.

Reply
Rueben link
9/24/2014 09:22:53 am

Awesome Paula, I look forward to seeing your review. If you need any help don't hesitate to contact me.

Paula
9/28/2014 10:35:01 am

Hi Rueben,

You asked for it, you got it. Effective today. Still in my usual seat-of-the-pants style, but do let me know if any inaccuracies. Nice site.

Reply
Melissa link
2/25/2017 12:46:32 am

Thankyou for sharing your blog! I enjoyed reading it! Always great to find great information for massage therapists :)

Reply
Zack link
8/25/2014 03:45:41 am

Thanks for the kind words Paula! We're thrilled you're using MB and liking it.

Reply
Paula
9/24/2014 09:02:55 am

Hi Zack,

Nice to see you here, and my sincere apologies for not seeing your post until recently. Thorough I am, but behind I get!

I understand the MB team is going through some growing pains. Par for the course, I suppose. My thanks and a *smooch* back to all of you.

Reply
Heather
10/15/2014 07:45:05 am

Wow! Paula, this article is very comprehensive and thorough. Thanks for posting. The benefits of using an online system are endless. BookMyCity would make a great addition to this list. It's got a bit of a different spin, as they try to bring the online booking community together in a convenient one-stop shop. If you have a few minutes to check it out, I'd love to hear what you think! https://www.bookmycity.com/

Reply
Paula Moerland
10/27/2014 11:15:48 am

Thank you for the complement, Heather, and for mentioning BookMyCity. I'll add it to my list. Likely the next update to the review will contain shorter reviews, but still comprehensive. Might take longer, but I think it will be worth it in terms of helping therapists find their online niche.

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Scott Mathison link
11/13/2014 09:49:12 pm

Thanks for doing my homework for me. Great information. I'm going to start with a free trial of Full Slate due to my ABMP membership. I've done my own booking for nearly 22 years. This will be different. : )

Reply
Gloria Leininger link
11/15/2014 10:28:14 am

Paula,
Thanks so much for your footwork on these sites. I stumbled upon MB and was seriously considering them but wondering if they were the right fit for my practice. There are so many choices out there it's mind boggling!! You have helped me make my decision. I too like Linda, have an acct. with iContact and rarely use it. Maybe this will springboard me into a new chapter of promotion and marketing. Word of mouth has been my biggest business builder and now it's time to go beyond that with my expansion of therapists. I've been nervous too about online booking but I'm trying it. Thanks again for the nudge forward.
You ROCK!

Reply
David
2/23/2015 03:36:45 pm

I have used several of these systems, so far, and hate that I had to go thru such a long journey of switching around. So, in short, here is my feedback:

Vagaro: 1st one I tried. It did a lot, and was good, however their booking site doesn't look very attractive. That's just a small issue, but also I didn't like the way they cancelled my account without allowing me to get full use of the last 30 days I paid for. I lost 28 days, so I used 2 days before I cancelled. I was waiting to get my other site up and running, so I figured the last 30-day period would allow for that. So, if you want to cancel, don't cancel until the last day before they charge you, again. Their response to my several emails and phone calls for a refund was ........ *crickets*

SpaBooker: Ah, a bigger system. That's what I had hopes of for a while. I figured that if a system was big, then the customer support should be great. Yeah, no. Not when I was with them 2 years ago. Also, i kept getting hit for some additional fees for their processing. I think it was $40-60 a quarter for compliance fees. They failed to inform me before I signed up. So, I called Mindbody. (Unfortunately, they had a good system, but somehow I let myself get taken away by the initial good customer support at Mindbody, and SpaBooker could care less to lose my business.)

Mindbody Online (MBO): similar to SpaBooker; a big system. Oooh, lots of features, and their support already seemed much better. They welcomed me with open arms, got my clients imported quickly, and even had an app up and coming(that app took a long time to come). So, here are my gripes with their system: Spafinder cards can be processed within their checkout screen, but they can't keep your services on special/discount from being paid for by these cards through their online store. That allows for a double discount, which is not good business. Their app for clients allows a client to book within your business, but it only shows their name. It doesn't give an email address or phone number, so you don't have anything to really tie them into their service requested, which, again, is bad business. Their customer support was great, but it gets worse when the issue becomes more technical. I can't win with their system, so I will be moving on very soon. I have also determined that they are built more for yoga studios than any other industry. And, their equipment fees are outrageous. I bought a receipt printer for $140 (Epson TM-T20II, works flawlessly), a Magtek usb card reader for $50 (fully compatble and meets their standards), and a usb barcode scanner for $40 (Taotroniks TT-BS005). A small savings from their overpriced equipment at $725.00 (save $495.00). Seriously, you don't need tech support for this equipment. And, lastly, their fees are getting higher. To simply control your emails from their system by fully customizing the times they are sent, like a simple "we have'net seen you in a while," you are charged an additional $60/month, which includes a couple additional features I would never use. They will nickle and dime you....

I have tried the following by 30-day test-drive:
Timely (gettimely.com): I tried this recently because it looked great. Well, it does look great, and has some great features. They don't have everything that I need, but they are working on implementing them soon (Series, and gift cards). This system has the most 3rd party integrations I have seen so far. Xero, Mail Chimp (cheaper than Constant Contact, and just as good or better), PayPal, and several others. Their customer support looks the most friendly, and they are very pleasant all the time. Their system doesn't have all the bells and whistles as SpaBooker and MBO, but who needs to be fully confused all the time. Easy to setup, and easy to integrate into your website. They even allow booking buttons per service, which others fail to do. The Notes is so nice, it can be used for SOAP notes, or session/formula notes, because the way it shows it's history (awesome, and MBO wanted $25/month for SOAP add-ons thru a 3rd party.) No app, but a fully responsive design that an app is really overkill for any booking system.

So, I will be switching soon to GetTimely. I wanted to wait for the additions to their system before I make the leap.

It's a pain to keep jumping around, so I hope this is my last jump. I'm still hesitant...

Reply
Paula
5/29/2015 12:22:50 pm

Once you've been on GetTimely for a while, come back and let me know what you think. I really liked them the second time around. I'm still watching MB, though, as they still have some interesting plans.

Reply
Tiara
8/12/2015 12:35:25 pm

Hi. I appreciated your reviews. I specifically was interested in reading your review of MassageBook.

Here's my grip - the $6 per client referral fee. My concern is that I may be paying them for a client clicking on their scheduling button when it was my own marketing efforts and advertising dollars to attract a client to my website in the first place from say a GoogleAd or a facebook ad, essentially paying advertising dollars twice for this customer. And $6 per client seems outrageously expensive to me. Another example, I hand out a card to a lady in the grocery line. She clicks on the appointment button, and because she isn't in my client list, I have to pay MassageBook to schedule the appointment? Am I understanding the payment structure correctly?

I've seen no reviews that take issue with this hefty "finder's" fee.

Would you add clarity and insight in this aspect of the scheduler?

Many thanks.
Tiara

Reply
Paula Moerland
8/12/2015 02:04:50 pm

Hi Tiara,

I understand your concern for it was my initial concern as well. However, they are good folks over there and wouldn't do anything like that. The link they give you for your own site has an indicator in it that tells them that the client came from your site and booked, so you wouldn't have to pay the referral fee. And if MB does get you a new client via their directory listing, that is just $6 for the one client, even if they come to you dozens of times.

Reply
Tiara
8/13/2015 07:10:56 am

I appreciate your comments, Paula. They've assuaged my concerns. Thanks again!

Laura link
10/20/2015 07:56:40 pm

Hi Paula - thanks for the reviews. I'm currently trying to go on my own and trying to figure online booking software. I am a former computer geek myself. MassageBook is not that intuative to me - argh! I'm doing outcalls and some in-house appointments so I'm playing around. So far I've only been able to "request" appointments but not see available times. Do you have any more tricks of the trade? I don't really like how MB takes the user to all MB users after an appointment is requested. I need to try some other embedding items.

Reply
Paula Moerland
10/27/2015 02:39:31 pm

Hi Laura,

I see you already received some responses from the pros. What neither addressed is the issue of what happens once our clients book. Referring the public user (our client) back to a directory of our competition after booking with us, is not particularly a move I like. I saw that with Schedulicity and hated it, quite frankly. Hate is a strong word, but my stomach definitely said, "ICK!" So, I hope the owners of sites with directories are listening: Your therapists don't appreciate you using our clients to further your business; please find another, more honest way of making your directories fabulous, like assuring that they only contain health and wellness professionals with legal businesses. (stepping off soap box)

Reply
Paula Moerland
10/27/2015 03:06:20 pm

Having stated my gut reaction to my clients being driven back to a directory of other massage therapists, the other side of that coin is that none of us really have anything to fear from competition. Each therapist IS their own, unique brand and will attract clients who resonate with THEM. And let's face it: There are more than enough clients to go around. I even encourage my clients to seek out other massage therapists who are better at some things, like super-duper-relaxation massages, that I'm not that good at, due to my found-this-in-your-tissues-and-gotta-fix-it nature. Still, something isn't quite right about redirecting a client to a directory after they've just finished booking.

Archie link
3/17/2016 06:28:36 pm

For me, it's more about quality referrals. Random therapists showing up after booking an appointment is akin to a recommendation from me which I don't take lightly. How am I to know what their quality control is if any? I don't want my name attached to what might be thinly veiled ads for sketchy services. This could lose me clientele, especially a first time client who doesn't understand what's going on.

Steve link
11/11/2015 07:58:44 pm

Hi Paula!
Thank you for your amazing and comprehensive reviews on the online systems. I literraly had no idea that there were so many systems available, and at the same time it doesn't surprise me. I'm aware that the CEO of MB started Massage Warehouse which is one of the many places I shop for massage supplies. He did an amazing job with that, and I suspect he and his team will do a great job with MB as he was a massage therapist before starting these other businesses. I'm curious to know what your experience is of MB since you have been using it for over a year? Are you still enjoying all aspects of it including the upgrades? Do you use the Stripe functionality? If yes, do you like it? I noticed from your website that when I click on the link to schedule an appointment it takes me to a MB interface with your picture. Is it possible to integrate MB into my own website so it basically handles things on the backend, but doesn't look like the customer is being taken away from my site?

Again, you are super sweet and thoughtful to put all of this time and effort into reviewing these programs and then placing your unbiased reviews on the blog. Your reviews feel like you are stating facts from your experiences.

Thanks again,
Steve

Reply
Archie link
3/17/2016 06:22:07 pm

Wow, thanks so much for your thorough and concise reviews. I sooooo appreciate another sharing their process with me as you have answered all my questions and made my decision to go with MB cemented. I would hate to find out the hard way after hours upon hours of work.

I am currently old school and stuck in my ways, but coming to the conclusion I hate booking clients and want an easier, cost effective way that won't frustrate me. I'm a bit of a geek and can't stand terrible software. I hated the client end experience of MindBody so much that I make my practitioner who uses the service book it for me as I refuse to use their system. Plus, $60? Are you kidding me?

One of my pet peeves with their system is a requirement to have a very complex and long password just to book an appointment. Ugh. Sure, if I store my CC with you this make sense - but i'd rather not do that.

Anyway, much appreciated! Thanks again.

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Jessica
8/7/2016 12:48:34 pm

Thanks so much for your reviews. The pluses and minuses. I've done the Schedulicity, MindBody, Booker, and now Appointment Plus route. I hate switching systems, but with sites going down repeatedly, lack of tech/customer support with most (excluding MindBody).....

Really looking at MassageBook. There are only 2 of us and paying $69/month and we can't even talk to a person? I've been using spaboom for 11 years (at one point their website), they used to be absolutely fabulous. Once they expanded, it is harder to get ahold of people. I only use there GC these days & am happy with that and no monthly fee. However I will say I'm impressed with the MassageBook ones from what I can see in the demo version. It looks like a lot has improved in the last 2+ years on MassageBook.

I'm really impressed about the SEO stuff too. It sounds strange, but I have asked numerous companies here in town (I like to support local business) with assistance with optimization with my own site and people drop the ball or never get back to me.

Anyway, thanks again. Also, are people still happy with MassageBook? & if a problem arises, about how long does it take for a customer/tech support person to get back to you?

Reply
Paula Moerland
8/9/2016 04:29:57 pm

Hi Jessica,

Thank you for checking out so many sites ... I've only switched once, and I know the hassles involved. However, experience is a kind of knowledge that no review (not even mine) can match. So, I'd say go ahead and give MB a try. I'm still with them. One thing they have that's always been good, is great customer service and little-to-no downtime. Sure, I bug them about bugs, but none of them have interfered with my business, and that's an important thing to note: If it interferes with business, you can guarantee they put a top priority on it. As for how long does it take for them to get back to you? Why don't you just give them a call and find out? Tell them I said, "Hi!" :)

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Aija
1/8/2017 08:30:45 am

Thank you for your well written and insightful blog. I have kept myself from the mainstream tech as I have happily relied on referrals and maintained a healthy practice. I am interested in upgrading as I am adding new technologies and modalities to my practice as a therapy and want me visibility on the web. Most of these sights are all booking sites and dont offer the full scale usability for LMTs. I want to use the soap note feature -is there another service you have had experience with that offers SOAPS and all of the other benefits? Have you tried SoapVault or know anything about it? It is tiresome and alot of work to do before embedding oneself into a system - not to mention clients etc!... I want to make a very educated move so as to be comfortable and happy with it!... Also, I have found FattMerchant - as a credit card provider, they have a monthly membership fee and no other charges beyond the base of interchange fees and .25 per transaction. It interrupting the market as per merchant services and I like not paying almost 3% of what I make to a 3rd party. Happy Abundant 2017... Thank you for staying current with your replies~

Reply
Paula Moerland
1/9/2017 01:17:25 pm

Hi Aija,

Thank you for commenting and asking questions - I'd love to help if I can. Did you read the paragraph on putting all your eggs in one basket? I think that you may want to consider that there are consequences to this, especially in an industry such as ours where there is little standardization.

HIPAA has helped to force companies to standardize, so if I were you, I would start with two simple questions to those companies offering all-in-one packages: Are you fully HIPAA compliant? And where is my backup data kept in case your company disappears or changes hands? You see, if the company I’m using for appointment data goes under for any reason, I’ve not lost much of importance, but if I were using them for any data related to HIPAA? That’s different. So, I advise evaluating what client data is too valuable to lose and make sure, if you decide to digitize it, that it can survive changes in software. If it can’t, I’d keep my paper records as my first and main backup.

If you want an all-in-one system, they are there and they can be costly, it’s all a matter of what your particular priorities are - which is why I also added a paragraph about what my priorities are when I am looking for a new system. For this reason, I still do my own soap notes on paper and keep it with my client charts, which are also still on paper. This data, for me, is just too important to digitize.

Oddly, it reminds me of the frustration I’ve had with digitized x-rays from my doctor/hospital: No one but that doctor and that hospital can read them because the software they use is not universal. If I never leave that doctor or hospital, it's not a big deal. However, I’m more of a nomad in reality, so I do my own or have separate bookkeeping, client records, and soap notes, all of which I can independently improve without losing anything.

Online booking of appointments is where the time savings and convenience really matters for both client and therapist, so I want software that’s going to handle it in the most efficient way possible for the benefit of both. So, communication and easy appointment making matters, and that is why I care so much about emails and customization. So, to answer your main question: I was selfish and did not spend much time evaluating software that I made a choice not to use.

I’m also glad you brought up the additional payment option of FattMerchant. Here’s why I don’t go solo on payment processing: Booking and paying for an appointment go very hand-in-hand. This is one area where I would prefer the software handle both, seamlessly. With my current FullSlate, I have four or five options to choose from and I chose Stripe because Stripe is what MassageBook was using under-the-covers, so the setup was nil. Also, with a Stripe dashboard (or app), I can handle charges for almost anything outside of FullSlate without exerting any extra effort or waste more time. And this latter, I need to add to the review! As for the “almost 3%”? For low-volume businesses, that percentage is pretty standard for credit cards - and as much as I don’t like it, the convenience factor is simply part of “the cost of doing business” and I’m okay with that. I’d rather have cash or check as payment, and I say so, but I also get a lot more return business simply because many people (myself included) prefer not to carry around cash or checks. That, and at least I don’t have to deal with Paypal any more! LoL. Not trashing them or anything, but it was a bit of a pain back then to put payment processing on my regular business website, separately.

Thank you, again, for responding so thoughtfully, and have a Meaningful New Year! (My resolution is to replace “happy” with “meaningful” wherever I can.)

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Annelise link
2/6/2017 10:40:59 am

Hi Paula! Thank you for such comprehensive reviews. I"ve been in business for myself almost a year now. I've been using Massagebook, but some of my frustrations are that I feel like I'm doing some of my accounting work double or triple the work. This is because when I'm out and about, maybe doing mobile / chair massage somewhere or needing to send a company an invoice, I have to use Square bc Massagebook doesn't seem to have those options. So if I want all my reports in one place, I then have to input my Square activity into MB, adding to my workload. :-( I don't believe I canb sync it with Quickbooks or other accounting software, either, right?

Also it is not integrated with my own website very well, so that when clients click to book an appointment, it takes them away from my website and into Massagebook.

Last week, I switched to Mindbody. It is so complicated my head is about to explode. I'm stressed partly because of the amount of money I'm agreeing to spend, but I've been assured that once it's really up and running, it is going to help me be more streamlined and efficient. But I'm not so sure. I was told it could be fully integrated with my website, but that's not accurate so far. Several different glitches have come up this week, and support told me that those various issues were things that couldn't be bought or booked online, only through their own app... or that "add-on's" could only be added after an appointment was already made, not during booking... Just a lot of things that seem entirely too complicated and not user friendly. I'm very frustrated.

I haven't canceled my Massagebook account yet, so I'm considering just going back and staying with them. I LOVE that they email an intake form out to new clients so I can review it before I meet them. That's helpful. And I love having their Soapnotes online to keep up with. But I understand what you said about keeping paper files and always having them, so I guess I could live if I switched that option. ;-)

But I need advice ASAP about what to do. I hate bouncing my clients back and forth and also worrying my Webmaster to death with the changes. Considering Fullslate and Square, too.

Any more last minute advice for me??? (LOVE YOUR BLOGPOST. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THIS INFO!)

Reply
Paula Moerland
2/7/2017 01:25:16 pm

Hi Annelise,

Thank you for reaching out. I'll do my best to address your issues.

I think your frustration with MB bookkeeping is legitimate and one of the problems they have had from the beginning. I refrained from stating my personal opinions about it in the review, because I genuinely don't feel qualified. However, at the same time, this issue was one of my earliest complaints with the company. At one point, I even offered to redesign their bookkeeping end in a way that would likely be useful to the majority of massage therapists who need something both straight-forward and accurate. My offer was turned down, but admittedly, I wanted to be paid for my services. They corrected things that I noted were in error, but it was never enough to make me feel confident in using their bookkeeping system, at all. But in all fairness, I can't/don't use anyone's system but my own. Mine makes sense and is error-free and allows me to easily reconcile. However, unless I was able to turn it into an app (and I can't), my ideas are useless. Your feedback on the issue tells me, though, that I am not far off in my opinion about their bookkeeping as it currently is.

Regarding MindBody, others have commented their deep frustrations as well, which is unfortunate considering the costs involved.

I still stand by FullSlate for the most stable, accurate, and headache-free system. You can trial them for free. I believe they let you have x number of real bookings before they ask you to upgrade.

As for Soap Notes? You could always do a stand-alone Soap Notes app.

As for website integration, there are two kinds that I am aware of:

The most common way to integrate online booking is to have a button or link on your site that takes the client to the booking system. I'm okay with this, but primarily because FullSlate does not require my clients to have a login and password, and because they are so stable and trustworthy - and my clients feel it. (But I also tell them it's safe, just to be sure.)

The type of website integration you are asking for is less available, but I believe FullSlate offers that, too: The booking is done via your website or your Facebook page. Instead of an embedded external link, like above, it is embedded code. I am relying on faulty memory that FS allows this, so please check their site to confirm.

Btw: I left MB but I wouldn't close or cancel my account there. It may not suit me now, but they do have a directory that might some day be proficient, and it doesn't cost anything to be in the directory and allow clients to email you if they are interested in an appointment. So, you can just set a few switches in the settings and leave everything there.

As for an online intake form? Why don't you put one on your existing website? There were once apps for that, most of them free. I like my two-sided intake/consent form that I keep in my files and write on whenever I want. For me, an online intake form would be extra work, unless I redesigned my intake, altogether, and I’m not having any problems with it and rather like what I’ve got on paper :) But unlike you, I don’t do outcalls.

If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact me via this site (look under INFO for the contact link,) and we can set something up.

Reply
Annelise link
2/13/2017 07:34:00 pm

Wow! Thank you SO MUCH for such an amazing, thoughtful reply! I've signed up for a trial for Fullslate and am checking it out. But it has occurred to me... looks like it still has to use Stripe for payments. Which still brings me back to having accounting in multiple places, bc of needing to use mobile Square when I'm out doing chair massages or need to send invoices, etc. So I'm wondering if I keep coming back to needing Square, maybe it is worth totally switching everything over to them! Online scheduling and everything! I've posed the question on several massage forums on FB, and one person has replied that she uses it for everything and is happy with it. So maybe that's the answer.

Sure is frustrating trying to figure all this out.

Paula Moerland
2/13/2017 07:55:31 pm

You might be confusing bookkeeping with taking payments. Take payments wherever and however it's convenient to you. Make sure your bookkeeping can handle multiple payment streams. Don't choose online booking for bookkeeping. Choose it to book appointments and take payments at booking (which often brings more clients,) and for communicating professionally and regularly with your client base. But it doesn't and shouldn't be your only source of client payments, just like you probably take cash or check at time of service outside of booking an appointment, right? Well, why limit yourself to only one credit card processor? But you DO want to limit yourself to only one bookkeeping system - and that's for you to choose - or design - yourself. Good luck! Have fun!

Reply
Carole link
4/27/2017 12:03:22 am

Hi Paula,

I see you've started using Vagaro since the recent FullSlate meltdown. How do you like it so far? In your article above you say you haven't reviewed it.

Reply
Paula Moerland
4/27/2017 01:17:02 pm

Hi Carole,

Yes, I have begun using Vagaro. There is a learning curve, but I find myself wanting to learn it. I still have a little ways to go until all my i's are dotted and t's crossed, but this looks like a long-term investment, which is what I want going forward. They will be reviewed very soon for I think Vagaro is doing much of what I have wanted other company's to do. Stay tuned!

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Carole link
4/27/2017 03:35:36 pm

I will stay tuned. Very interested in how this works or doesn't work for you. I have been a long time user of FullSlate. I find the features they offer not to be standard in online scheduling. I have checked out 15+ online scheduling services. Looked at Vagaro early on, but was turned off by having to put credit card info in right away and how they seemed to be really geared toward beauty salons and spas. I don't need all that stuff, but really want the automatic messages I'm used to triggering/sending through FullSlate.

Reply
Amanda link
5/6/2017 03:14:35 pm

Hi Paula,

Very informative blog post with a lot of scheduling options. I would like to contribute to the post and suggest booksteam.com I use them everyday and it's been very sooth.

Cheers,
-Amanda

Reply
Paula
5/11/2017 06:32:35 pm

Thank you, Amanda! It's always nice to get feedback about what is working for people. Booksteam has been added to the unreviewed list so that others may more easily find them and investigate on their own.

Best Regards!

Reply
Fred Helou link
5/16/2017 02:27:43 pm

Hi Paula

This is Fred Helou (CEO at Vagaro.com) your blog was brought to my attention by my employees. I want to thank you personally for taking the time to post this and I am very impressed with how well you got yourself familiar with our software. We take pride in the fact that more than 50% of our customers come from referrals. We aim to never disappoint and we are glad that you are enjoying our software and all of the improvements. We hope to have you on board for a very long time.

Regards

Fred Helou
CEO Vagaro.com

Reply
Paula Moerland
8/23/2017 03:08:06 pm

Hi Fred,

I revamped your company's review to reflect the maturation process. I'm reporting it to you because it may be of interest you.

All the best,

Paula

Reply
Paula Moerland
5/17/2017 01:05:25 pm

Hi Fred,

Very nice to digitally meet you!

Thank you for popping in to say hello and I, do, indeed hope to be on board for a long time.

Your customer service folks may get some bodywork-business-oriented suggestions from time to time, like this one I'm getting ready to send in: In bodywork, one service may have multiple time lengths; right now, we have to repeat the same service name and description three times, for example, with my main service which comes in 60, 90, and 120 minute durations. Or my secondary service which comes in 30, 60, and 90 minute durations. Hope the design team will consider this!

See you around, and thank you, again, for popping in.

Paula

Reply
Carole link
8/23/2017 03:52:05 pm

Just want to resubscribe to following comments. Thanks.

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Veronika Lenzi link
9/7/2017 04:31:03 am

Hi Paula,
I hope you are still reviewing and reading comments. I have been using Fullslate for about 3 years now, and although I love love love the customizable texts and emails, since they have changed hands several times I find that they have had some serious bugs in the last year, like calendar two way sync stopped working. But my biggest complaint is that after syncing with my apple calendar (which works again) I am shocked that all appointments that sync to your personal calendar are deleted after 30 day's. So if I do a client/appointment search in your personal calendar, the appointments are gone. I contacted customer support and all they could tell me was 'yes, they are deleted'. Also I wish they had an appointment confirmation text, I have been creating those manually, not everyone reads their emails right away. If you have any comments I would love to hear them. Have you tried Clinicsense? Also, are you still pleased with Vagaro? Thank you.

Reply
Paula Moerland
9/7/2017 04:23:14 pm

Hi Veronika,

Glad to hear your input about the FullSlate issues, but I'm sorry to hear that they are still having issues. One that you reported is an old issue that is something they just decided to not worry about from the get-go: Calendar booking history. That's when I learned, the hard way, not to rely on any app to retain old calendar data: Few do it. Make your own calendar backups for that, okay? On the other hand, many apps retain a client's appointment history on their client record. I hope you see the difference. That uncertainty is why I still maintain paper records as my base backup: I not only keep client charts, but I have a simple form that keeps track of every appointment. These are issues related to the part of the blog that discusses what can happen when we choose software that puts all our eggs in one basket. As for where I am at: I switched to Vagaro only just this year (2017) in April. I am quite happy with them. They have a maturity level and accuracy that seems to be lacking in most places, so I also hope they will continue that, so that I can stay with them for the long-term. Any other apps that I have personally tried, are listed in the blog, which will continue to get updated for as long as the blog is useful to people. Having to shift from one app to another is tedious and tiresome, but having done so also brings new awareness of what is important to us. There were things at the beginning that I thought were least important (bulk email) that I now find to be utterly necessary to my peace of mind and marketing savvy. You seem to find appointment confirmations vital, in which case, you might prefer Vagaro, too. They take that confirmation to the next level, and you don't have to do a thing.

Reply
Veronika Lenzi link
9/7/2017 07:59:14 pm

Paula,
Thank you so much for the response. I used to be a software engineer, so I'm pretty critical of what's out there. So many things that we as professionals would like to have, can be very easy to implement. I might take a look at Vagaro, I am pretty frustrated with Fullslate, especially their customer support which 3 years ago was really great. Storevantage is another nice product (customizable email and text) but no calendar syncing, which for me is another must have. Thanks again

Reply
Tiara Catey
9/8/2017 11:37:49 am

Hi. I am subscribed to this blog post, which I think is great, on a different email account: tcatey@yahoo.com. Since I rarely use this account anymore, I thought I would ask if you would delete the old address and subscribe me with the gmail account. All the best and thank you!

Reply
Paula Moerland
9/8/2017 12:26:05 pm

Hi Tiara,

By replying to the blog, you automatically signed up for notifications under your new email. If you get a duplicate notification to your old email, you should be able to unsubscribe from a link at the bottom of that email. Without contacting tech support, I can't do that for you. Hope that helps.

Reply
Olivia Carollo
9/12/2017 05:20:31 pm

Hi Paula-

Thanks for posting these reviews. I've spent countless hours researching a good online scheduler / calendar. I'm a clinical psychologist and was wondering if you know which (if any) of these programs are HIPAA compliant - it actually seems quite hard to determine. Any suggestions would be helpful.

Reply
Paula Moerland
9/16/2017 12:12:31 pm

Hi Olivia,

Thank you for asking such a good question. Of the apps that I looked at, only one was in the talk therapy area, and I believe it was YellowSchedule and they are HIPAA compliant. I know that FullSlate did a massive upgrade to incorporate HIPAA compliance, yet their home page doesn't advertise it, which is illogical except for the fact that their upgrade didn't go very well. Consequently, I must be honest and say that HIPAA compliance should be one of the first things an app advertises and not something you would have to go look for. Most of the apps I reviewed are for massage therapists and if they offer Soap Notes, that's usually an indication that they are HIPAA compliant - for it is only protected data and certain situations that require the extra compliance. I don't use booking apps to store health data, nor do I work directly with hospitals (anymore), so it's less of a concern for me and most independent bodyworkers.

Reply
Helen FLoyd link
11/2/2017 08:32:32 pm

Hi,
I have used both Schedulista and Massagebook. Schedulista was great and had reliable sync with google calendar, but no room use features, no checkout, no accounting. I started with Massageook early on, and actually helped them degug/get past some of their early google sync issues. I left Scheulista because, well I had outgrown them. Massagebook was fully featured, as you have outlined above. I do find them more reliable though than some of the others you have reviewed. My daughters employer uses Mind Body, and is frustrated with them. I do actually like the biweekly updates in Massagebook, I find it great they they are keeping tabs on making things more streamlined, accessible and useful. I think you may have not given them the Kudos they deserve.

Reply
Paula Moerland
11/4/2017 03:00:38 pm

Hi Helen,

Thank you for your input. I decided to comment on your last statement to give clarity. Massagebook was given more kudos until their biweekly updates continued to be beta-style, always rewriting and fixing billboard stye, instead of quietly, seamlessly enhancing, unnoticeably. Therefore, the review was changed like others before it. Some apps get better with age, others, especially when they change hands too much, like FullSlate, start to decline. It's difficult to describe, but there seems to be a fine line between seamlessly making improvements regularly and regularly fixing what never went in quite right the first time. Having been at Vagaro this year, the difference is noticeable in that my attention is on my practice, now, and not so much on the booking software. They have glitches, too, but they are minor and rarely take up my time unnecessarily.

Reply
GG link
11/23/2018 04:44:34 pm

I'm looking at changing our online appointment and records keeping from MBO to Massagebook.
HIPPA complient and SOAP notes are important to us. There's under 8 therapists.
Any suggestions as I'd like to TRANSFER ALL prior appointments to the new system smoothly. Thanks!!! GG

Reply
Paula Mae
11/24/2018 11:40:04 am

Hi GG -
While I could be mistaken, I don't think any of the online booking systems convert historical data. It's a lesson I learned the first time I switched, and a lesson I never forgot. It's part of the section of this blog where I talk about the risks of putting all one's eggs in one basket. So, my paper records are my long-term history until this issue - if it ever does - gets resolved digitally and reliably. But, having my history of appointments someplace where they are never truly lost, means I'm not dependent on any app for that, therefore I am always free to change booking systems when the urge to do so arises. There are so many now! I do believe, though, you will enjoy having that extra money in your pocked with the switch you are making. Online booking isn't rocket science, so it shouldn't be costly, either. Good luck to you!

Reply
Eli McCutchen link
12/14/2019 12:19:42 pm

Hey Paula,
I'm curious if Appointedd supported your writing their review? I read it thoroughly before getting my booking software, and chose it because of your glowing reviews. I've had it for a year now and I keep waiting for it to get better or blow my mind like it did yours... and it just doesn't. Maybe because I became familiar with Vagaro first as an employee at a small studio, and it's high-powered & user friendly capacity can do everything. But Appointedd just doesn't have that great a capacity to do the basic things i need it to do.

Reply
Paula Mae
12/16/2019 11:40:55 am

Hi Eli,

I'm glad you wrote to me for it allows me to clarify: I left Appointedd. I switched to Square Appointments because it's modern, well known, and free. Square isn't where I'd like them to be, yet, but they are progressing, so I am being patient. I am sorry and a little surprised, though, that Appointedd isn't doing what you need. Perhaps they changed quite a bit after I left? FullSlate went dramatically downhill, so I know change for the worse is possible. I have yet to find the perfect system. I keep this review alive in hope that one day the perfect system for solos will reveal itself.

Reply
Paula Mae
12/17/2019 12:08:47 pm

Btw: You are right about the comparison between Vagaro and Appointedd. Vagaro is mega-full-service as well as beauty industry focused. You know it, up-front. Appointedd, on the other hand, is a sleeper. I went into Appointedd thinking it was too small and basic, but it's not. That's why I took the trouble to mention all the things included in Appointedd. If one was a solo practitioner who traveled internationally, Appointedd would be of more use than Vagaro. So, it all depends on individual need.

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Hours

By Appointment
​10 AM - 4 PM

Location

Manhattan Valley
Between the Upper West Side and Harlem

Contact

Email preferred
Voice message
Text

Please

No walk-ins
No last-minute appointments
​No advance or phone consultations
No sales or marketing calls

FAQ

TESTIMONIALS

ABout

Repairing the human body since 2003

Fasciae (connective tissue) healing from skin to muscle to bone through innovative, no-nonsense bodywork and education.
Prevention, Pain Management, Pain Solutions, Rehabilitation, Special Needs, Body as Instrument (Singers, Dancers, Athletes, Brainiacs, etc.), Stress Reduction, Anti-aging, Sports, Geriatric, Prenatal, etc.

Paula's brand of bodywork is derived from  professional training in Western therapies including but not limited to: Swedish medical massage, Neuromuscular (NMT), and Trigger Point, as well as therapies of Eastern origin including but not limited to: massage cupping by machine and for joint therapy, Acupressure, Shiatsu, and gentle Gua Sha (similar yet superior to Graston Technique), along with various vibrational therapies from dense to subtle like: Tok Sen (hammer massage) and BioSyntonie.
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 Paula's Body Shop
Paula Mae, LMT
Massage Energetics
Copyright © 2003 - 2022
All rights reserved.
The word 'massage' denotes Paula's Fasciae Therapy, aka Connective Tissue therapy, and is remedy-based to solve the root of the issues in your tissues.
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