An online booking system your customers actually finish using
Most appointment businesses lose time in the same four places. A customer calls while you are with someone else and never calls back. A booking is made, then forgotten. Someone does not show up and the slot stays empty. A happy customer leaves and nobody asks for a review.
Magnet Mint is a Boston studio. We set up online booking for small businesses and the follow-up around it, so the appointment is booked, confirmed, reminded and followed up without you typing each message. We start with your website. Then we improve your business one step at a time, and you choose every step. Booking is Step 3, after the website and the AI assistant.
What an online booking system for a small business has to do
Appointment scheduling software is easy to buy and easy to set up badly. These are the points we check:
- Services and durations match reality. A 90-minute color appointment cannot be bookable as 30 minutes.
- Staff, rooms and buffers are set. The calendar respects who does what and the time between jobs.
- Customers can book from where they find you. Your website, your Google Business Profile, Instagram and a link in a text.
- Rules are written down. Deposits, cancellation windows and no-show fees are shown before the customer books.
- The customer record is shared. Name, phone, service history and notes sit in one place, not in three apps.
Booking software we set up
You do not have to change tools to work with us. We connect the one you use, or help you pick one. Examples:
- General scheduling: Square Appointments, Acuity Scheduling, Calendly.
- Salons, spas and wellness: Vagaro, Fresha, GlossGenius, Boulevard, Mindbody.
- Home services and job scheduling: Jobber, Housecall Pro.
These are examples of tools we connect, not partnerships. Details are on booking software setup.
How to add booking to your website
- Choose the tool and the services to offer online. Not every service has to be bookable online. A complex quote can stay “request a call”.
- Set up the calendar. Hours, staff, durations, buffers, deposit and cancellation rules.
- Add the booking widget or link to your website, Google Business Profile and social profiles.
- Test it on a phone. Book, change and cancel an appointment ourselves before customers do.
- Turn on the follow-up below, once you have approved the wording.
The follow-up that runs after the booking
Each part is optional, and each has its own page.
- Confirmations, reminders and rescheduling. The customer gets a confirmation, a reminder and a link to change the time. See appointment reminders.
- Missed-call text back. A short text goes to a caller you could not answer, with a booking link. See missed-call text back.
- Waitlist, cancellation fill and rebooking. An opened slot is offered to people waiting, and regulars get a reminder when it is time to return. See waitlist and rebooking.
- Review requests. Every customer gets one message with one direct link to your review page. See review requests.
If you want to cut no-shows with policies and deposits as well as reminders, read how to reduce no-shows.
Texting rules we follow
Texts are the fastest way to reach a customer and the easiest way to get a business in trouble. Texts to customers need their consent (TCPA). Business texting numbers need carrier registration (A2P 10DLC), which takes time and is billed by the carrier. Every flow needs STOP handling, so a customer who replies STOP is not texted again. We write the opt-in wording, set up STOP handling and register the number. This is not legal advice. If your situation is unusual, ask your lawyer.
Clinics need extra care. Under HIPAA, even a patient’s name tied to an appointment is protected health information, so booking, reminders and texts for a clinic run only through tools whose vendor signs a HIPAA business associate agreement, and reminders say only that an appointment exists. This is not legal advice.
What it costs and what is not included
- Booking setup: from $600, 1-2 weeks.
- Follow-up pack (missed-call text back, reminders, review requests): setup from $500, then from $99/month.
Prices are as of October 2026. Scope, price and timeline are agreed in writing before work starts, and the first 30 days after launch include help and fixes within the agreed scope.
Not included in any price: domain and hosting, new photography, third-party software subscriptions (billed at cost), SMS carrier registration (A2P 10DLC) and message fees, and AI usage above the plan allowance. See pricing for all steps.
Who this is for, and who it is not for
This is for owners of salons, med spas, clinics and home service companies who take appointments and want fewer missed calls, fewer no-shows and more reviews without adding office work. It fits Boston and Greater Boston businesses, and businesses elsewhere in the US that work with us by call and screen share.
It may be more than you need if you take five bookings a week and a free calendar link does the job. Tell us, and we will say so. Not sure how your clients book today? Compare tools by business type in salon and med spa booking software or scheduling software for HVAC, plumbing and cleaning. Booking pairs well with an AI assistant that answers questions before the booking, and the next step connects bookings to your CRM.
How to start
Ask for a free demo: 30-minute call; demo shared within 3 business days. Or call 617-991-9912. Our AI assistant answers and passes your request to the team, which is available Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm ET. We will tell you which parts of booking and follow-up are worth setting up first, before you commit to anything.
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