Booking Settings & Availability
Overview
Booking settings control how customers interact with your services: who can book, when they can book, whether bookings require approval, and how the service appears on your booking page. Proper configuration ensures smooth customer experience while protecting your business operations.
How Availability Is Calculated
When a customer tries to book, Petboost evaluates multiple layers in order. All checks must pass for a slot to appear as available.
The Availability Stack
CUSTOMER REQUESTS A BOOKING │ ▼┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐│ LAYER 1: SERVICE LEVEL ││ ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── ││ • Is self-service booking enabled for this service? ││ • Is there enough notice time? (booking notice period) ││ • Is the booking date within the advance booking window? ││ ││ ❌ If NO → Service not bookable online │└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │ ▼┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐│ LAYER 2: INITIAL SERVICE CHECK (if configured) ││ ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── ││ • Does this service require a prerequisite? ││ • Has the pet completed the required initial service? ││ (e.g., temperament test before daycare) ││ ││ ❌ If NO → Pet must complete initial service first │└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │ ▼┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐│ LAYER 3: PET ELIGIBILITY ││ ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── ││ • Is the pet's age within the allowed range? ││ • Is the pet's weight within the allowed range? ││ • Is the pet's breed on the allowed list (or not on blocked)? ││ • Does the pet have required vaccinations? ││ ││ ❌ If NO → Pet cannot book this service │└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │ ▼┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐│ LAYER 4: TEAM MEMBER AVAILABILITY ││ ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── ││ • Is a team member assigned to this service? ││ • Is the team member working at this time? (schedule) ││ • Is the team member on leave? ││ • Is there a blocked time or override? ││ • Does the team member have capacity at this time? ││ ││ ❌ If NO → No team member available │└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │ ▼┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐│ LAYER 5: RESOURCE AVAILABILITY (if required) ││ ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── ││ • Is a resource assigned to this service? ││ • Is the resource available at this time? (schedule) ││ • Is there a blocked time on this resource? ││ • Does the resource have capacity at this time? ││ ││ ❌ If NO → No resource available │└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │ ▼┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐│ LAYER 6: GEOGRAPHIC CHECK (mobile services only) ││ ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── ││ • Is the customer's suburb in the service area? ││ (Suburb restrictions are set per service) ││ ││ ❌ If NO → Customer outside service area │└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │ ▼ ✅ SLOT AVAILABLE FOR BOOKING
Key Insight: Rules Stack and Filter
Each layer you configure filters out potential bookings. The more rules you add, the narrower your availability becomes.
Illustrative example (actual impact varies based on your specific setup):
Each rule you add = fewer available slots│├── Working hours/schedule → BIG impact (defines when you're available)├── Capacity limits → BIG impact (limits simultaneous bookings)├── Initial service req. → MODERATE impact (gates new pets)├── Pet eligibility rules → MODERATE impact (filters specific pets)├── Geographic restrictions → MODERATE impact (filters by location)├── Booking notice period → SMALL-MODERATE impact (filters short-notice)│└── The more rules you stack, the tighter availability becomes
This isn't a bug—it's how filtering works. The goal is to configure the right balance: enough rules to protect your business, not so many that customers can't book.
For help choosing the right level of rules, see The Booking Rules Spectrum.
Self-Service Booking
Enable/Disable Online Booking
Control whether customers can book this service online.
Enabled - Self-Service Booking:
Service appears on public booking page
Customers can book without contacting you
Works 24/7 even when business is closed
Reduces phone calls and admin workload
Disabled - Manual Booking Only:
Service hidden from public booking page
Only staff can create appointments
All bookings require manual intervention
Full control over who books and when
When to disable:
Services requiring consultation before booking
High-value or specialized services
VIP-only offerings
Services being phased out
During testing/setup phase
Configuration:
Navigate to service → Booking Settings tab
Toggle Self-Service Booking
Enable or Disable
Save changes
Booking Confirmation
Instant Confirmation vs. Manual Approval
Control whether bookings are automatically confirmed or require your approval.
Instant Confirmation (Auto-Confirm):
Booking immediately confirmed
Customer receives instant confirmation
Appointment appears on schedule automatically
Best for most services
Manual Approval (Pending Until Approved):
Booking goes to "Pending" status
You review and approve/decline
Customer notified once you decide
Gives you control over each booking
When to use manual approval:
Complex services requiring preparation
High-demand time slots you need to manage carefully
Services where customer suitability matters
VIP or specialized offerings
When managing capacity manually
Configuration:
Navigate to service → Booking Settings tab
Find Booking Confirmation setting
Select Instant or Manual Approval
Save changes
Workflow for manual approval:
Customer books service
Booking appears as "Pending" on your schedule
You receive notification
Review booking details
Click "Approve" or "Decline"
Customer notified of decision
Mobile Service Settings
On-Site vs. Mobile Service
Configure whether service is provided at your location or customer's location.
On-Site Service (Default):
Customer brings pet to your business
Appointments scheduled at your facilities
Uses your resources and location
Mobile Service:
You travel to customer's location
Appointments include travel time
May have service area restrictions
Often higher pricing
Configuration:
Navigate to service → Booking Settings tab
Toggle Mobile Service
If enabled, configure:
Service area (zip codes, radius)
Travel fees
Travel time between appointments
Mobile service considerations:
Build travel time into duration or buffer
Set minimum booking notice (travel planning)
Consider service area boundaries
Account for travel costs in pricing
Booking Window
Advance Booking Restrictions
Control how far in advance customers can book.
Minimum Advance Notice:
Earliest customer can book before appointment
Prevents last-minute bookings you can't accommodate
Gives you preparation time
Examples:
2 hours: Same-day bookings allowed with short notice
24 hours: Next-day bookings only (most common)
48 hours: Two-day advance minimum (grooming)
1 week: Week-advance for specialized services
Maximum Advance Booking:
Furthest in future customer can book
Prevents booking too far out when schedule uncertain
Helps manage capacity planning
Examples:
4 weeks: Standard for most services
8 weeks: For services with long lead times
12 weeks: For seasonal or specialized services
Configuration:
Navigate to service → Booking Settings tab
Set Minimum Advance Notice
Set Maximum Advance Booking
Save changes
Customer Selection Options
Team Member Selection
Control whether customers can choose which team member provides service.
Customer Can Choose:
Customers see available team members at booking
Can select preferred staff member
Builds customer-staff relationships
May create uneven workloads
Business Assigns:
System assigns team member automatically
Balances workload across staff
Customers don't choose
Fair distribution of appointments
Configuration:
Navigate to service → Booking Settings tab
Find Team Member Selection setting
Choose Customer Choice or Business Assigns
Save changes
Considerations:
Allow customer choice when:
Building staff-customer relationships is priority
Staff have different specializations
Premium service level
Small team where customers know everyone
Auto-assign when:
Balancing workload is priority
Large team where customers don't know staff
All staff equally qualified
Preventing favoritism concerns
Eligibility & Restrictions
Pet-Based Restrictions
Control which pets can book this service based on criteria.
Weight Restrictions:
Minimum weight: e.g., "6kg minimum"
Maximum weight: e.g., "15kg maximum"
Weight range: e.g., "10-15kg only"
Example:
Service: Full Groom (Large)Weight Restriction: 10-15kgResult: Only pets in this weight range can book
Age Restrictions:
Minimum age: e.g., "6 months minimum"
Maximum age: e.g., "12 years maximum"
Age range: e.g., "Puppies under 6 months only"
Example:
Service: Puppy Socialization ClassAge Restriction: Under 6 months onlyResult: Only puppies qualify
Breed Restrictions:
Two types of breed restrictions:
1. Included Breeds (Whitelist)
Restrict service to specific breeds only
All other breeds cannot book
Use when service is specialized for certain breeds
Example: "Poodle Grooming" only allows Poodles, Labradoodles, Goldendoodles
2. Excluded Breeds (Blacklist)
Specific breeds that cannot book this service
All other breeds can book freely
Use when service isn't suitable for certain breeds
Example: "Group Dog Walking" excludes aggressive breed types
How to configure:
Navigate to service → Eligibility & Restrictions tab
Find Pet Eligibility section
For Included Breeds: Click "Edit Breeds"
Search and select allowed breeds
Only these breeds can book
Leave empty to allow all breeds
For Excluded Breeds: Click "Edit Breeds"
Search and select prohibited breeds
These breeds cannot book
Leave empty to exclude no breeds
Common use cases:
Specialized grooming:
Service: "Poodle Cut Specialist"
Included Breeds: Poodle, Toy Poodle, Miniature Poodle, Labradoodle, Goldendoodle
Result: Only these breeds see and can book this service
Safety restrictions:
Service: "Small Dog Daycare"
Excluded Breeds: Large breeds over 50 lbs
Result: Large breeds cannot book, all others can
Breed-specific training:
Service: "Terrier Training"
Included Breeds: Jack Russell, Yorkshire Terrier, Bull Terrier, etc.
Result: Only terrier breeds can book
Best practices:
Be specific with breed selection (don't just exclude "large dogs")
Provide alternative services for excluded breeds
Use included breeds for specialization
Use excluded breeds for safety/capacity reasons
Clearly communicate restrictions in service description
Important notes:
Breed data comes from customer's pet profile
System blocks booking at checkout if breed doesn't match
Staff can override restrictions for manual bookings
Breed restrictions work alongside weight/age restrictions
Species Restrictions:
Dogs only
Cats only
Small animals
Exotic pets
Vaccination Requirements
Require Vaccination Certificates:
Customer must upload proof of vaccination
System validates before allowing booking
Protects all pets in your care
Required Vaccinations:
Core vaccines (Rabies, Distemper, Parvovirus)
Bordetella (Kennel Cough)
Other specific requirements
Configuration:
Navigate to service → Eligibility & Restrictions tab
Toggle Require Vaccination Certificate
Specify which vaccines required
Set certificate expiration validation
Save changes
When to require:
Boarding services (always)
Daycare services (always)
Group classes (always)
Grooming (recommended)
Any service where pets interact
Service Visibility
Show/Hide Service
Control service visibility without deleting it.
Visible (Active):
Appears on booking page
Can be booked online
Shows in service lists
Appears in reports
Hidden (Inactive):
Hidden from booking page
Cannot be booked online
Still visible to staff for manual booking
Appears in historical reports
When to hide services:
Seasonal services out of season
Services being revised
Testing new services before public launch
Phasing out services gradually
Temporarily unavailable services
Configuration:
Navigate to service → Overview or Basic Info tab
Toggle Service Visibility or Active Status
Save changes
Booking Page Appearance
Service Display Order
Control where service appears on booking page.
Options:
Alphabetical (default)
Category order
Custom sort order
Featured services first
Configuration:
Typically managed at service list level or through drag-and-drop ordering.
Service Image & Description
Service Image:
Appears on booking page
Shows in appointment cards
Improves customer engagement
Recommended: 800x600px, professional photos
Description:
Detailed explanation for customers
Appears on service detail page
Include what's included, duration, what to expect
Short Description:
Brief summary for service cards
1-2 sentences
Appears in lists and previews
Configuration:
Navigate to service → Basic Info tab
Upload/change service image
Edit description and short description
Save changes
Advanced Booking Rules
Buffer Between Appointments
Prevent back-to-back booking of same customer.
Example:
"Customer cannot book another appointment within 24 hours of this service"
Use case:
Grooming: Pet needs rest between sessions
Training: Time to practice between lessons
Boarding: Check-out/check-in gap
Concurrent Booking Limits
Limit how many of this service can be booked simultaneously.
Example:
"Maximum 3 Full Groom appointments at same time"
Use case:
Based on staff capacity
Resource limits (grooming tables)
Space constraints
Configuration:
Typically managed through team member and resource capacity settings rather than per-service limits.
Best Practices
For New Services
Initial Launch:
Start with self-service disabled
Manual approval enabled
Test with a few customers
Gather feedback
Enable full self-service once confident
For High-Demand Services
Manage capacity:
Enable self-service booking
Use instant confirmation
Set realistic duration and buffer
Assign adequate team members and resources
Monitor booking patterns and adjust
For Specialized Services
Control quality:
Manual approval enabled
Clear eligibility restrictions
Detailed service description
Higher minimum advance notice
Pre-booking consultation recommended
For Standard Services
Maximize convenience:
Self-service booking enabled
Instant confirmation
Flexible team member assignment
Clear pricing and duration
Minimal restrictions
Troubleshooting
Use the Availability Troubleshooter First
When creating an appointment in Magic Schedule mode, click "Why these results?" to see exactly what's affecting availability. This tool shows you which layer is blocking or limiting slots.
Where: Create appointment → Magic Schedule mode → Click "Why these results?"
"Why is my service showing no availability?"
Work through this diagnostic checklist layer by layer:
Layer 1: Service Level Issues
Symptom | Likely Cause | Fix |
Service not on booking page at all | Self-service booking disabled | Services → [Service] → Booking Settings → Enable self-service |
No slots for today/tomorrow | Notice period too long | Reduce booking notice period |
No slots beyond a certain date | Maximum advance booking limit | Increase or remove advance booking limit |
Service visible but can't book | Service marked inactive | Check service visibility/active status |
Layer 2: Pet Eligibility Issues
Symptom | Likely Cause | Fix |
Specific customers can't book | Their pet doesn't meet eligibility | Check age/weight/breed restrictions |
Message says "pet not eligible" | Eligibility criteria too narrow | Review and widen eligibility settings |
Vaccination error | Pet missing required vaccination | Customer needs to upload certificate |
Layer 3: Team Member Issues
Symptom | Likely Cause | Fix |
No slots any day of week | No team member assigned | Assign team member to service |
No slots on specific days | Team member not working that day | Check team member working hours |
Slots disappear after a few bookings | Team member at capacity | Increase capacity or add more team members |
Specific times blocked | Team member has an override or leave | Check overrides and leave in team member settings |
Layer 4: Resource Issues
Symptom | Likely Cause | Fix |
Service requires resource but none assigned | No resource linked | Assign resource to service |
Limited slots despite team availability | Resource at capacity | Increase resource capacity or add resources |
Specific times blocked | Blocked time on resource | Check resource blocked times |
Layer 5: Geographic Issues (Mobile Services)
Symptom | Likely Cause | Fix |
Customer sees no availability | Their suburb not in service area | Add suburb to service area, or customer is outside your range |
Common Configuration Mistakes
These are the most frequent issues we see:
1. "I set capacity to 3 but can only book 1"
Cause: Team member AND resource both have capacity, and the lower one wins.
Example:
Sarah's capacity: 3
Grooming Room capacity: 1
Result: Only 1 booking at a time (resource is the bottleneck)
Fix: Align capacities, or remove the resource requirement if it's not needed.
2. "Customers complain there's never availability"
Cause: Too many rules stacked, each filtering out slots.
Fix: Audit your rules using The Booking Rules Spectrum. For each rule, ask: "What real problem does this solve?" Remove rules that don't solve actual problems.
3. "Service worked yesterday but not today"
Cause: Often a working hours override or leave period that just started.
Fix: Check team member and resource overrides for today's date.
4. "Only some customers can book"
Cause: Eligibility restrictions filtering out certain pets.
Common culprits:
Age restrictions too narrow
Weight restrictions not matching customer's pet
Breed restrictions blocking common breeds
Fix: Review eligibility settings and consider creating service variants instead of restrictions (e.g., "Small Dog Groom" and "Large Dog Groom" rather than one service with weight restrictions).
5. "Slots available but booking fails at checkout"
Cause: Race condition (someone else booked it) OR eligibility check that happens at checkout.
Fix: If it's eligibility, the message will explain. If it's capacity, slots may have been taken while customer was on the page.
6. "I want walk-ins but the notice period blocks same-day"
Cause: Booking notice period set too high.
Fix: Reduce to 1-4 hours for services where same-day booking is acceptable.
Service not appearing on booking page
Check:
Self-service booking is enabled
Service visibility is active
Service has assigned team members (if required)
Service has assigned resources (if required)
Eligibility restrictions aren't too narrow
Customers can't select desired time slot
Use the Availability Troubleshooter - When creating an appointment in Magic Schedule mode, click "Why these results?" to see exactly what's blocking the slot.
Check:
Team member availability
Resource availability
Minimum advance notice restriction
Maximum advance booking restriction
Existing appointments blocking time
Too many bookings at once
Solutions:
Reduce team member capacity
Add buffer time between appointments
Limit concurrent bookings
Require resources with limited capacity
Adjust service duration
Common Questions
Q: Should I use instant confirmation or manual approval?
A: Instant confirmation for 95% of services. Use manual approval only if you truly need to review each booking.
Q: How do I prevent same-day bookings?
A: Set minimum advance notice (e.g., 24 hours) in booking settings.
Q: Can I hide a service temporarily without deleting it?
A: Yes, disable self-service booking or mark service as inactive/hidden.
Q: How do I limit bookings based on pet size?
A: Use weight restrictions in Eligibility & Restrictions tab, or create size-specific service variants.
Q: Can customers book multiple pets in one appointment?
A: Depends on multi-pet booking settings (account-level configuration). Service configuration controls single-pet eligibility.
Q: What if customer books wrong service for their pet?
A: Eligibility restrictions prevent mismatches. If customer bypasses somehow, you can cancel/reschedule manually.
Q: Can I require customers to call before booking certain services?
A: Yes, disable self-service booking and include phone number in service description.
Next Steps
Choose the right rules level: The Booking Rules Spectrum
Check self-service readiness: Self-Service Readiness Checklist
Understand scheduling: Scheduling Fundamentals
Review Service Configuration for pricing and duration settings
Configure Team & Resource Assignment
Check Getting Started for service creation
Use Availability Troubleshooter to diagnose booking issues
Visit FAQ for additional tips