November Newsletter: New Custom Feature Fest!

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Hi Everyone, your friendly update on the developments from SimplyBook.me here in the November newsletter, and we have some cool stuff to tell you about this month. We have implemented not one but two new custom features this month and an update that many of you have been waiting for.

What’s Hot for a Chilly November?

Okay, it hasn’t been chilly for everyone, but as a rule, November isn’t usually all that warm, even for those of us in Cyprus. More reason than any to stay indoors and keep working on the developments for SimplyBook.me. 

So let’s take a look at November’s new developments…

Service Add-ons Feature Enhancement

One of the first things to happen in November was the release of the Service Add-ons custom feature enhancements. We know a lot of you wanted the ability to add images and descriptions to your service add-ons.

To make it easier for your clients to see the benefit of your service add-ons, we added the option for you to include both images and detailed descriptions to better sell your service extras.

Clients are far more convinced when they can see a benefit to including a service extra.

File Uploader – Google Drive Custom Feature

While we’ve had intake forms for specific bookings and client fields for long-term client information, they’ve always been limited to defined field inputs. Sometimes, you don’t get the information you need. The new feature lets you request clients to upload documents required for the booking.

You can connect uploaded documents to either a specific booking or, more generally, to the client data. It will also be possible to set the field as hidden for clients but active on the user side. For example, we’d show an upload field on the booking form in the admin interface but not on the client-side booking.

The uploaded documents are accessible either from the client history or booking details. You will also be able to access them through the direct file in your Google Drive under “SimplyBook”. If necessary, access to uploaded documents can be restricted to only admins and senior users.

Telegram Notifications Feature

Many of you asked for this because it lets you contact clients without the cost of SMS or the poor open rate of email. It’s understandable, people often ignore emails when they are busy. Moreover, SMS messages can cost a lot of money if they’re your primary method of messaging clients.

You start by enabling the Telegram feature and go through the setup instructions. After you’ve completed the setup, the system will ask clients if they want to receive notifications via Telegram, when clients book and confirm an appointment. If they respond yes, the system will take them through the connection process. From then on, they will receive all booking notifications via their chosen methods – email and SMS and Telegram.

This features works best for companies who have enabled client login as otherwise the client will be asked repeatedly to enable the Telegram notifications.

Client app “Remember me” Feature

The Client App is a fantastic feature. However, we heard people were impatient with inputting their login details for every use of the app. So now we’ve rewritten the app’s cookie code to allow the users to check “remember me” on their login details.

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In case you missed it…

This month, we’ve had some exciting guest posters, starting with Tammy Wood on the benefits and mistakes to avoid in customer service automation. The following week we had a very informative and insightful article from Carsten Pleiser from Paperless.io about the benefits of going paperless. and not least, we had an interesting article from Michal Leszczyński about how to use online marketing events to generate business leads.

We also have a detailed article and video about the set-up and use of the File Uploader feature and an updated approach to adding booking functionality to an existing website.

If you’re seeking inspiration for your beauty business Instagram account, you might want to have a look at how some of the top salons are using it to create a buzz online. 

Alternatively, if you are looking for some entrepreneurial wisdom and advice, you might want to check out these invaluable business blogs.

Upcoming Developments

Some of our upcoming developments are pretty large, so we have no releases scheduled for December. However, we’ll be back just before New Year with our annual round-up and plans for the new year.

That’s all for the November Newsletter 2021. Look for us again when we’re on the cusp of 2022 with the new developments for SimplyBook.me in the future.

For now, stay well and enjoy the holiday season ahead.