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Booking websites are a popular option for businesses such as beauty, hair and nail salons, tattoo shops, massage and therapy locations, and fitness and yoga studios. Rather than relying on a disparate collection of tools for appointments and classes, a booking website can seamlessly integrate with your existing website, helping to drive more business, simplify scheduling for clients, and save your business valuable time and money.
Whether you’re starting from scratch or looking to add a booking platform to your existing website, this guide will help you learn how to set up an easy online booking solution from start to finish.
What is a booking website?
A booking website allows clients to reserve and book various types of services or activities with your business. Most booking websites let users make appointments and modify or cancel online without having to call or go to a physical location. These websites may also be able to collect payment for services, fully or partially, at the time of booking to hold a specific time slot.
Many booking websites require users to log in to make and change appointments; one of the key benefits of Square Appointments is that it doesn’t require a user login to work, but users can create one if they choose to. Clients can make appointments with your business any time they are ready – 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Appointment-booking websites often include scheduling capabilities based on staff, service, and time. Square takes this a step further and allows waitlisting for bookings. Some booking sites also let users rate and review service providers, which can help others make informed decisions. One difference between Square and some other booking sites is that Square allows you to create a homepage, sell items online, and take bookings; many others don’t integrate those functionalities into one tool.
How to create a booking website
It’s easier than you might think to make a booking website. Simply follow these 10 steps and you’ll be ready to start taking online bookings from customers.
1. Pick a domain name and hosting provider
Your domain name is your website address – it should be short, memorable and reflect your brand. For instance, if you run a salon called ‘Bloom’, the domain bloomhairsalon.co.uk contains your brand name and succinctly explains what you do. Before you commit to a domain name, check that it’s available and not already being used by another business.
Next, find a hosting provider, which will store your website on a server and make it accessible to people on the internet. If you choose Square Appointments, Square Online will be your website platform, which means you can skip this step as hosting is included, even with the free plan.
2. Select a website platform and template
Your website platform is the foundation of your booking website, so it’s important to choose a platform that fits your needs and budget. Square Online is a website platform that makes it easy to create your own booking website. Simply choose from our range of flexible website templates to set up your site. You can start with a free plan and upgrade to a paid plan with advanced features whenever you need.
3. Design and personalise your booking site
Once you’ve selected your website template, it’s time to make it your own. You can customise the layout and styling to match your branding, choose your colours and fonts, and add your own images and text. Most website builders let you add, remove or rearrange sections with simple drag-and-drop tools, so you can create a site that works for your business without any technical knowledge.
When designing your site, follow best practice guidance to ensure a good user experience. Keep the layout simple and uncluttered, make the navigation clear so users can find your services and contact details, and create prominent booking buttons to prompt action.
4. Activate online booking and appointment features
When you’re happy with your website design and content, turn your attention to the booking functionality. Depending on the website platform you’ve chosen, you may be able to set up the booking flow within the platform, or you may need to integrate your website with an online booking provider.
If you have a Square Online site, you can simply turn on online booking and appointment features. If you have a website on a different platform, you can still drag and drop an online booking flow using our widget.
5. Define your available times or schedule
Decide when you’re available to take appointments. Most booking platforms let you set your regular working hours, block out time for breaks or admin tasks, and mark days when you’re closed. You can usually set different availability for different services or staff members if needed.
6. Tailor your booking form fields
Your booking form is where clients provide the information you need to prepare for their appointment – typically their name, contact details and the service they want. You might also want to add custom fields, for example, a massage therapist might ask about injuries or areas of concern. Keep your form simple and only ask for information you’ll actually use.
7. Set up appointment-based services
List all the services you offer, along with descriptions, prices and how long each appointment takes. Clear service descriptions help clients understand exactly what they’re booking and reduce the chances of confusion or no-shows. Most booking systems let you set different prices depending on staff members’ experience levels.
8. Add necessary legal pages
It’s essential to create pages with your policies and link to them clearly before customers click your ‘Book’ button. This keeps you compliant with UK regulations and helps build customers’ trust. As a minimum, you should have a privacy policy explaining how you handle client data, and your terms and conditions for bookings and cancellations.
9. Connect a payment gateway
To make a booking website ready for customers to use, you’ll need a payment gateway – the service that processes card payments. Some booking platforms require you to connect a third-party provider, which can mean additional set-up and fees.
With Square, you don’t need to connect an external payment gateway. Square Payments provides end-to-end payment processing that’s built in, accepting all major cards, contactless payments and digital wallets. You can take full payment at booking, request a deposit or allow clients to pay when they arrive.
10. Market your booking website
Once your booking website is live and you’ve tested that the functionality works, the final step is to spread the word. Square Marketing makes it easy to email your existing clients about your new online booking option. You can design a custom email campaign in minutes and set up automated follow-ups after appointments to encourage rebookings.
Beyond email, add a “Book” button to your social media profiles and Google Business listing to take potential customers straight to your online booking page. The more visible your booking website is, the more appointments you’ll secure.
How to create a booking website for free with Square
If you are just starting a website for your business, the first step is to decide on a domain name and register it. Square provides hosting if you don’t already have an existing website and allows you to connect your custom domain.
You have three choices for building a booking appointments website:
- Option 1: Create a simple booking site.
- Option 2: Create a custom, full-service site.
- Option 3: Add booking functionality to your existing website.
Option 1: Create a simple booking site with Square Appointments
Square Appointments can help you create a simple online booking site with just a few clicks so you can start taking appointments immediately.
Your online booking site can be a simple webpage where you list business hours and get bookings that sync with your calendar. It’s included in your Square Appointments subscription and can be set up right from your online Square Dashboard.
This option is ideal for a new business or a business that doesn’t already have a website and needs only the most basic booking options to streamline operations.
Here’s how you do it:
- From your Dashboard, click Online Booking > Channels.
- Then choose Enable Online Booking.
- Click Manage to edit your business details, service category and order, and view booking flows.
Option 2: Create a custom, full-service site with Square Online
A custom, full-service website gives you the design freedom to showcase your brand online and provides a dedicated, more sophisticated website for service businesses. You can create a free website with Square Online and allow clients to book appointments, purchase items, and stay up-to-date with your business. Bookings and orders from your website are automatically synced with Square Appointments and your point-of-sale system. Everything from colours to fonts to styles can be edited so that every element of the website design looks and feels like your business. It’s a customised, all-in-one solution.
This option is great for small to medium-sized businesses that already have an online presence or are using Square as a point-of-sale solution. It’s also ideal if you need more booking features, such as creating appointments at multiple locations or offering a wider variety of services and options.
Here’s how to get started with a custom Square Online booking website with Square Appointments:
- In Square Dashboard, click Online Booking > Channels.
- Select the Square Online website option, then click Preview > Edit to begin building your booking website. During first-time setup, Square automatically generates a website; this can take a few minutes.
- Customise your website specifications, including location, service list, colours, and designs. You can change as much or as little as you want, giving you full control of everything about your booking website design.
- When you have everything set up in the way you want, click Publish so that you (and others) can see your website.
Option 3: Add booking functionality to your existing website
If you already have a website, you can add Square Appointments booking functionality to your existing site without having to start from scratch. Square Appointments has a booking widget that you can add to practically any website – even if it was custom-built – as an easy way to incorporate appointments into your existing online infrastructure.
This option is often popular for businesses that already have a custom-built website and want their clients to stay on their website to book. Simply log in to your Square Appointments Dashboard and then click Online Booking > Channels.
If you have multiple locations, select the location you want to manage and navigate to Add a booking flow to an existing site. Click Get Started.
There are four setup options for integration with your existing website. Choose the one that makes the most sense for your business:
1. Add a booking flow URL to your website
Get a booking flow URL that you can add to your website by clicking Get URL and selecting a specific location if you have multiple options. Copy the URL, and you can paste it anywhere on your current website. (We recommend adding a link in the main navigation or menu to make it easy for customers to find.)
2. Create a booking ‘button’ for your website
Create a button in Square and add it to your website by clicking Create Button and selecting the proper location if you have multiple locations. This allows you to create the HTML for a button without coding. Choose a button colour, text, shape and font. Copy the HTML and embed the button on your website or in emails.
3. Add the Square Appointments booking widget to your website
Embed the booking flow into your website using the Square Appointments booking widget. Click Get Embed Code, select the location you want to create a widget for if you have multiple locations, and copy the code provided. Then paste the code directly where you want the widget to appear on your website.
4. Add a booking button to your email signature
Add a button to your email signature by using the Create Button option in option 2 and pasting it into the email signature preferences for whatever email client you regularly use, including Outlook or Gmail.
Reasons to use a booking website
A strong booking website can make it easier for a business owner to manage business and day-to-day tasks. In addition to ensuring appointments are easily booked and managed, here are some other reasons to use a booking website:
- Generate leads or acquire new clients: A booking website can be shared online and can help you connect with prospective clients when they are ready.
- Book consultations: By offering an introductory appointment online, you can connect with new customers.
- Create operational efficiencies: A booking website saves time that would otherwise be spent by staff answering phone calls, emails, or in-person requests to set appointments.
- Save money: Businesses upgrading from taking phone calls to taking automatic bookings can see cost savings.
- Make your business discoverable on search: Because appointment pages are likely to be popular on your website, they can have extra search engine value, helping you get discovered online.
While booking sites are often associated with appointment-based businesses like health care and beauty, they can also be used for retail and food-and drink-based businesses. If you have that type of business, there are some additional reasons you might use a booking website:
- Book fittings: Certain types of businesses, such as tailors or clothing boutiques, can use appointments to set fitting times for customers to help keep in-store traffic moving with ease.
- Set up pickup times: Appointments can be beneficial for businesses where customers pick up products, such as a frame shop, to ensure that orders are ready when customers arrive.
- Schedule tastings or special events: Restaurants or wine shops can use a booking website to set times for special tastings or events so that crowd flow is controlled.
What businesses benefit from having a booking website?
Not sure if your business needs a booking website? There is a practical application in a wide variety of industries. Almost any company that takes phone bookings can benefit from switching to online bookings.
Business types that should consider using online appointments include:
- Spas
- Full-service salons (hair, nail, skin/aesthetics)
- Barbershops
- Medical spas
- Independent yoga, pilates or barre studios
- Retailers and food businesses
- Boxing gyms
- CrossFit gyms
- Tattoo shops
- Piercing studios
- Tutors
- Pet groomers
- Escape rooms
- Tailors
- Custom-fit retailers, including bridal shops, suits, etc.
- Professional services, including tax accountants, mortgage advisors, solicitors, or web designers
Square Appointments is the all-in-one solution for business owners looking to add an online booking option to their website. There’s immense value for customers when they can make and manage appointments online when it’s convenient for them, just as there is significant value for you to have your bookings automated.
Square Appointments is easy to set up for new businesses or first-time users and works with existing websites if you’re already online but don’t offer booking yet. Getting started just takes a few clicks.
Booking website FAQs
Which booking site is free?
You can create a booking website for free with Square Appointments. The free plan lets you add as many staff calendars as you want, customise your availability and send automated reminders to customers. You can upgrade to a paid plan if you need advanced features such as managing multiple locations or allowing customers to join a waitlist.
Can I make a booking website without coding?
Yes, you can make a booking website without any coding knowledge. Modern booking platforms are designed to be simple enough for anyone to use, with drag-and-drop editors and pre-built templates that do the technical work for you. With Square, you can set up a booking website and customise every detail – from colours to layout to fonts – without a single line of code.
How do I accept payments on my booking website?
To accept payments on your booking website, you’ll need to connect a payment gateway – a service that processes card payments securely. Square Appointments includes integrated payment processing, so you can start accepting payments straight away without setting up separate accounts or services.
How much does it cost to create a booking website?
The cost to create a booking website varies depending on which platform you choose and what features you need. Square Appointments offers a free plan that has everything you need to get started, including a custom booking website, integrated payments and unlimited staff accounts, as well as free web hosting For growing teams and complex businesses, more advanced features are available on the Plus plan (from £29/month per location) and Premium plan (from £69/month per location). Paid plans also come with a free custom domain, worth £17.95.
