In this article:
Automated marketing sends text messages on your behalf and brings your customers back without you having to remember a thing. You build the message once, switch the automation on, and it handles the rest. This article covers both automations, their settings, and how to track results.
General information about automated marketing
Included in the PRO and PREMIUM plans.
Two ready-made automations, each with its own settings and its own results: Re-Book thanks the customer for their visit and invites them to book their next appointment, Re-Connect re-engages customers who haven't visited in a while.
The messages are text messages, and they are always sent between 10:00 and 18:00. Booksalon manages the send time so messages reach the customer at a suitable moment and don't disturb them at night. Messages that fall due outside this window are sent the next day.
A message is never sent to a customer who already has an upcoming appointment. If the customer has already booked a new time, no message is sent. So you never pay for a message to a customer who is already coming back.
How to find the automations
In the booksalon system, go to Marketing.
Open the Automated tab (next to the Email and Text message tabs).
At the top you'll see two cards, Re-Book and Re-Connect. Select the automation you want to turn on or whose settings you want to edit.
Re-Book: thank-you and advance booking after a visit
Re-Book thanks the customer after their visit and encourages them to book their next appointment in advance. It's an easy way to keep your calendar full, as the customer books a new time right after a good experience.
Timing
Next morning (recommended): the message goes out the day after the visit, starting at 10:00. The review request (2 h after the visit) and this message don't land on the same day, so the customer doesn't get several messages at once.
4 h after the visit: the message goes out the same day, four hours after the visit.
Message content
One text message is 160 characters. Write your message to this length and it will go out as a single message.
You can use the ready-made templates (Thank you and Fast-filling times) or write your own.
Add variables to the message so each customer gets a personalised message:
{firstName} = customer's first name
{salonName} = salon name
{link} = personal booking link
{optOut} = opt-out link (added automatically).
Example: Thanks for your visit, {firstName}! Book your next appointment at {salonName} in advance: {link} (fits in 1 message)
NOTE! The opt-out link is added to the message automatically and cannot be edited or removed. If a customer opts out of messages, it stops all of the salon's marketing messages, not just this automation.
Re-Connect: reach customers who visited before
Re-Connect sends the customer a text message once a chosen amount of time has passed since their last visit. The message invites them to book a new appointment. This is how you reach customers who have gradually drifted away, before they move elsewhere.
When the message goes out
Use the slider to set how many weeks may pass since the last visit before the message.
For example, at 6 wk the customer gets the message six weeks after their last visit.
Choose a time that matches the natural interval between your services. The right interval for a haircut is different from, say, a facial.
Message content
One text message is 160 characters.
Choose a tone for the message from the ready-made templates (Friendly, Offer, Short or Personal) or write your own.
Use the same variables as in Re-Book: {firstName}, {salonName} and {link}. The link code is replaced with each customer's own personal code.
Examples in different tones (edit to suit your salon):
Friendly: Hi {firstName}! It's been a while since your visit to {salonName}. Book a new appointment: {link}
Offer: {firstName}, does your hair need a fresh look? Book an appointment at {salonName} here: {link}
Short: See you again, {firstName}? Book an appointment: {link}
Personal: Hi {firstName}, you've been missed at {salonName}! Shall we book you a new appointment: {link}
Who the messages are sent to
In both automations you choose who the message is sent to:
Only those who have given marketing consent: the message goes only to customers who have separately accepted marketing messages. A more limited group.
All customers: the message goes to all customers on the basis of the customer relationship. Every message includes an opt-out link, and those who have opted out are excluded automatically.
NOTE! The All customers option is based on the customer relationship (a so-called soft opt-in). It requires that the customer was given the opportunity to opt out of messages already when their contact details were collected, and that every message includes an opt-out link. Opting out applies to all of the salon's marketing messages. The message may only concern similar services from your own salon.
What the messages cost
One text message (160 characters) costs €0.10.
Test messages are always free.
Skipped messages are never charged. If a message isn't sent (the customer has an upcoming appointment or has opted out of messages), it incurs no cost.
You can send yourself a test message before turning on the automation. In a test message the variables use example values. The daily number of test messages is shared across all automations.
Results and send log
Each automation has its own results view, which shows the figures from when the automation was started. Results start accumulating from the very first messages and fill in with a delay of a few days, so the full picture sharpens over time.
The figures in the results view:
Sent: how many messages the automation has sent.
Clicked: how many customers clicked the message link. Also shown as a share of messages sent.
Pre-booked (Re-Book) or Returned to book (Re-Connect): how many customers booked an appointment from the message link. Also shown as a share of messages sent.
Revenue (Re-Book) or Revenue from returns (Re-Connect): the sales brought in by the bookings, in euros.
At the bottom of the view there's a summary: message costs compared with revenue, i.e. how much the automation has generated relative to the investment (for example, around 150 times the message costs).
In Re-Book, customers who booked a new time from the message link are counted as having booked in advance.
In Re-Connect, returned bookings are identified from the same link tracking as other bookings made via the link. In Re-Connect you also see the share of Returned customers.
Send log
The send log shows the messages the automation has sent, newest first. The Result column shows whether the customer booked an appointment from the message link. Tap a row to see the message the customer received. Skipped messages are never charged.
Frequently asked questions
Can I keep both automations on at the same time?
Can I keep both automations on at the same time?
Yes. Re-Book and Re-Connect work in different situations, so they complement each other. Each has its own settings and its own results.
Does the customer get several messages at once?
Does the customer get several messages at once?
No. A message isn't sent to a customer who already has an upcoming appointment, and the Re-Book message that goes out the next morning is scheduled for a different day than the review request.
What happens if a customer opts out of messages?
What happens if a customer opts out of messages?
Opting out stops all of the salon's marketing messages to that customer, not just one automation.
Can I edit the opt-out link?
Can I edit the opt-out link?
No. The opt-out link is added to messages automatically and cannot be edited or removed.