Simulation Mode: See What Your Customers See
Overview
Simulation Mode lets you step into your customer's shoes and see exactly what they experience when booking or completing their profile. Instead of guessing why a pet owner is having trouble, you can view the same screens, services, availability, and profile steps they see.
No real bookings or profile changes are made. Simulation Mode is purely a read-only troubleshooting and verification tool.
When to Use Simulation Mode
Scenario | Which simulation? |
Customer says "I can't see any services" | Booking simulation |
Customer says "There are no available times" | Booking simulation |
Customer says "I'm stuck completing my profile" | Profile simulation |
You've just changed service settings and want to verify | Booking simulation |
You want to check what profile steps a customer still needs | Profile simulation |
Customer asks "What do I need to do before I can book?" | Profile simulation |
Quick Start
Go to Customers & Pets and find the pet
Click Manage to open the pet's profile
On the pet summary card, click the Simulate dropdown (gamepad icon)
Choose Booking Experience or Profile Completion
Direct URLs (replace {petId} with the pet's ID):
You can find the pet ID in the browser address bar when viewing a pet's profile.
Booking Experience Simulation
How to Access
Navigate to Customers & Pets in the sidebar
Search for the pet and click Manage
Click the Simulate dropdown on the pet summary card
Select Booking Experience
What You See
The booking simulation walks through the same three steps the pet owner would see:
Step 1: Pets and Services
The pet is pre-selected (matching the profile you navigated from)
Only self-serve eligible services are shown, just like the customer sees
A badge indicates how many services are hidden from self-service if any exist
Service tiles show pricing, duration, and descriptions
What to look for:
Are the services you expect showing up?
If a service is missing, it may not have self-service booking enabled
Check eligibility rules (weight, breed, age) if expected services aren't appearing
Step 2: Availability
A calendar grid shows available dates
Time filters let you narrow by morning, afternoon, or evening
Available time slots are displayed for the selected date
If no availability exists, the system explains why
What to look for:
Are time slots appearing for dates when your team is working?
Do the available times match your team's working hours?
Are there any blocking reasons displayed?
Is the notice period preventing near-term bookings?
Step 3: Review and Terms
Shows the selected date, time, and pricing breakdown
Displays terms and conditions status
Shows payment method status (card on file)
The "Complete Booking" button is disabled (no real booking is created)
What to look for:
Is pricing correct?
Are terms and conditions displaying properly?
Does the customer have a card on file if required?
Self-Service Blocked Indicator
If self-service booking is disabled for this pet owner's relationship with your business, the simulation clearly states this. No booking flow is shown because the customer wouldn't see one either.
Profile Completion Simulation
How to Access
Navigate to Customers & Pets in the sidebar
Search for the pet and click Manage
Click the Simulate dropdown on the pet summary card
Select Profile Completion
What You See
The profile simulation shows the step-by-step completion flow the pet owner sees when they need to finish setting up their profile:
Card on File (if required)
Shows whether your business requires a card on file before booking
If required and the customer hasn't added one, this step appears first
Business Terms (if pending)
Shows any business terms the customer needs to accept
Displays the terms content they would see
Pet Details
Shows each pet's profile with the information the customer can fill in
Highlights any missing or incomplete fields
Basic Information
The customer's personal details (name, address, phone, email)
Shows which fields still need completing
Preferences
Communication and service preferences
Any additional questions your business has configured
What to Look For
How many steps remain for this customer?
Is a card on file blocking their progress?
Are there business terms they haven't accepted?
Is pet information incomplete?
Common Troubleshooting Scenarios
"My customer says no services are showing"
Open the Booking simulation for their pet
Check Step 1 (Pets and Services)
Look at the self-serve filtering badge, which tells you how many services are hidden
If expected services are missing, check:
Is the service published?
Is self-service booking enabled for the service?
Does the pet meet the service's eligibility requirements (weight, breed, age)?
"My customer can't find any available times"
Open the Booking simulation for their pet
Select the service they're trying to book
Check Step 2 (Availability) for available dates
If no availability shows:
Are team members assigned to the service?
Do those team members have working hours set for the searched dates?
Is the notice period preventing near-term bookings?
For deeper diagnosis, use the Availability Troubleshooter
"My customer says they need to complete their profile first"
Open the Profile simulation for their pet
See exactly which steps remain
Common blockers:
Card on file required but not added
Business terms not yet accepted
Missing pet details (weight, breed, etc.)
"My customer says self-service booking isn't working"
Open the Booking simulation for their pet
If you see a "self-service blocked" message, self-service is disabled for this customer
Check the pet owner's booking settings override in their profile
Simulation Mode vs Other Testing Methods
Method | Best for | Customer-specific? | Creates real data? |
Simulation Mode | Seeing exactly what a specific customer sees | Yes, uses their actual profile and data | No |
Magic Schedule | Testing the availability engine generally | Partially (select any pet) | No |
Availability Troubleshooter | Diagnosing why specific time slots are blocked | Yes (when used with a specific pet) | No |
Direct Booking Form | Full end-to-end customer experience testing | No (uses your own test details) | Yes, if completed |
Recommendation: Use Simulation Mode as your first step when a specific customer reports an issue. If you need deeper availability diagnosis, follow up with the Availability Troubleshooter.
Tips
Start with simulation: When a customer contacts you about a booking or profile issue, open their pet's simulation before anything else. It takes seconds and often reveals the problem immediately.
Share what you find: After running a simulation, you can clearly explain to the customer what's happening and what they need to do (e.g. "I can see you need to add a card on file before you can book").
Test after changes: Whenever you update service settings, eligibility rules, or booking configuration, run a quick simulation to verify the customer experience matches your expectations.
Bookmark the URL pattern: The simulation URLs follow a predictable pattern. If you know a pet's ID, you can navigate directly:
Related Articles
Testing Your Self-Service Booking Experience - All testing methods including Magic Schedule and direct booking form
Availability Troubleshooter - Deep-dive into why specific time slots are blocked
Self-Service Readiness Checklist - Prepare your business for self-service booking
Pet & Owner Profiles - Understanding the pet profile system
Service Configuration - Setting up services and eligibility rules
Booking Configuration - Global booking rules
Need Help?
Still stuck after running a simulation? Our support team is here to help:
💬 Live Chat: Click the chat icon in the bottom-right corner
📧 Email: [email protected]
Pro tip: When contacting support about a customer's booking issue, mention the pet's name so we can run the simulation alongside you.