Booking platforms do a wonderful job lifting the administrative load for businesses that manage clients and a diary schedule. That includes booking lessons (art, driving, golf), appointments (doctors and tattoo artists), repairs and services (car, cleaning) or professional services like accountant Building assessments)
Customisable online booking systems also provide exceptional ongoing marketing results after the client has booked their first session or lesson with you. The challenge for many businesses is however is to get the first booking. So here is some guidance on how to set up some of your marketing assets to attract more initial bookings.
- Make your ‘Book Now’ option prominent on your business website
Great User Experience (UX) principles is to have one clear Call to Action (CTA) per page. With a business that rely’s on bookings, this means the most important asset you need to present is your call to action to Book. This is achieved generally through the “Book now!” button.
In order to achieve this prominence you should present your button “Above the fold” which is content that is displayed on a web page shown before scrolling. Another way to present it is beside the menu options or have it set as a sticky format. This means no matter how far a user scrolls down the page the button is always visible (and clickable).
The button should also ensure the button is clearly visible on mobile as well.
- Make the ‘Book Now’ button stand out
Make the Book now button stand out, Now here is the time to think income over art of a beautiful color scheme. The ‘Book Now’ button can, quite literally, make or break the number of bookings you receive. We’ve seen a simple change to the button to increase bookings by over 30%. Use contrasting colours from the rest of the page. In other words make it stand out and be the most dominant eye-catching element on the page. Yes, this often when either you or the designer clash on opinion. The simple question is do you want to have more business or a color scheme that will please a year 12 graphics student.
Not convinced, run a split test, set up a second page with a change in the Book Now button and measure the difference. We have many place strong resistance on adopting the bold new button, until after they see the impact on their business.
- Add online booking details to your Google Profile page
Having a Google Business Profile enhances your ranking in search engine results and drives more traffic to your websites, while also increasing your booking rate. You can set the location for your booking which you can directly accept bookings through interactions on the platform. It’s a simple process, or you can seek help from SEO experts if needed. Keeping your Google Business Profile up-to-date is crucial for the success of your business.
- Use email marketing smartly
While email marketing may not be as trendy as some newer methods, it still stands as one of the most dependable ways to reach your customers and enhance conversions. By skillfully crafting your email subject lines and content, you can instil a sense of urgency for limited-time offers or build excitement for upcoming launches, depending on your objective.
Considering that the average email open rate across industries is approximately 21.08%, you have a significant opportunity to increase bookings through email marketing. Therefore, it’s essential to make the most of this channel to boost your booking rate effectively.
A small positive is to also add your booking link to your email signatures.
- Optimise your social media business page
Keep your profile page up-to-date with a brief, yet complete description of your services and any ongoing promotions. Don’t forget to set up a user-friendly ‘Book Now’ button, which will effortlessly guide potential customers to the appropriate booking platform.
- Use display, search and social media ads
By utilising Google Ad campaigns, specifically Search Ads or AdWords Display, you can elevate your website to the top of search results and reach a significantly broader audience to showcase your offerings.
Through strategically optimised and clickable ads, you have the potential to boost direct bookings and swiftly observe returns on your investment.
Moreover, platforms like Facebook and Instagram offer opportunities to share engaging image or video ads, providing you with ample creative freedom to capture attention before presenting a direct booking or ‘book now’ option, conveniently placed with the ad.
Get to Work..
Invested in a great online booking system to make daily admin easier for you is just the start of the process, to complete the transition, we recommend utilse all your digital assets to encourage online bookings. We have seen business grow by 30% overnight with simple changes to their website and making the booking process seamless.