Will online booking lead to less time talking with clients and less sales as a result?
Offering online booking does not have to replace phone call appointment setting. Fitness business websites can offer clients the choice of scheduling via the phone or online. Some clients are going to prefer the phone and others to schedule online. You can satisfy both types of clients. When a client books by phone, you enter the appointment information into the online booking system to keep everything in one place.
You already have your timetable of trainers, classes, events and bootcamps so why not make it easier and quicker to fill them up.
Your fitness business may be able to increase business from clients that prefer phone booking by having online booking! When the business is closed, offering only phone booking means that clients cannot book appointments when there is not someone to pick up the phone and look at the calendar. While clients can leave a message and get a call back from you, that does not work well if they want the appointment for the next day.
Research from Acuity Scheduling shows that over 40% of bookings are made 1 day or less in advance, occurred during non-business hours. By not offering online booking, you’re missing out on appointments from people calling the night before, or early in the morning.
Also, online booking creates time for staff to have longer conversations with clients that call in by phone. Instead of dealing with the logistics of scheduling, fitness business staff will have more time (and less interruptions) when talking to new clients that want to learn about the face-to-face and group classes or existing clients that need help deciding which training suits their personal circumstances.
