Booking confirmation message templates
A good booking confirmation says what, when, where and what happens if plans change, in under forty words, sent within a minute of the booking. Send it by text as well as email. The confirmation is not a receipt, it is the first reminder, and the ones that include the address and a way to reply get the fewest phone calls asking you to repeat it.
What belongs in a confirmation
- The service, in the words the customer used, not your internal name for it
- The date and the time, written out, not only a calendar link
- Where, including a postcode if they are coming to you, or a note that you are coming to them
- How to change it, in one short sentence
- Anything they need to bring or do beforehand
Leave out logos, terms, three links and a survey. Every extra line makes the important ones harder to find on a phone screen at a bus stop.
The general one
"Hi {name}, you are booked in for {service} on {day} {date} at {time}. We are at {address}. Reply to this message if you need to move it. See you then."
Salon and barber
"Hi {name}, all booked: {service} with {stylist}, {day} {date} at {time}. We are at {address}, please arrive a few minutes early so we can start on time. Reply here to change it."
Clinic and treatment room
"Hi {name}, your {service} appointment is confirmed for {day} {date} at {time} at {address}. Please have {item} with you. If you need to rearrange, reply to this message and we will sort it."
Trades, where you go to them
"Hi {name}, booked in for {day} {date}, arriving between {window}. {engineer} will ring when he is on the way. We will need access to {area}. Reply here if that no longer works."
Coaches and consultants, online call
"Hi {name}, your {length} session is set for {day} {date} at {time}. The link is {link}, it works in the browser, nothing to install. If anything comes up, reply to this email. Looking forward to it."
When a deposit is due
"Hi {name}, holding {service} for you on {day} {date} at {time}. To confirm the slot, the {amount} deposit goes here: {link}. It comes off the final bill. The slot is yours once it is through."
Wording for the policy behind that, including what happens on a late cancellation, is on deposit and cancellation policy wording.
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Send me the free BlueprintBooked outside working hours
"Hi {name}, got your booking for {day} {date} at {time}, that slot is yours. The office opens at {time} and someone will be in touch in the morning if anything needs checking. Nothing for you to do."
This is the one most businesses skip, and it is the one that stops the customer booking somewhere else overnight. More on that in how to handle after hours enquiries.
Rescheduled by the customer
"Hi {name}, no problem at all, you are now down for {day} {date} at {time} instead. Everything else is the same. Reply here if you need to move it again."
Sending them without remembering
A confirmation written by hand goes out in ten minutes on a quiet day and not at all on a busy one, which is the opposite of what you want, because busy days are when people book. Attach it to the booking itself so it leaves whether anyone is looking or not, then add the reminder the day before. The how is on how to automate booking reminders, and the reminder wording is on appointment reminder text templates.
GoHighLevel sends the confirmation the second the slot is taken, by text and email, and lets the customer reply to the same thread rather than ringing you. If you want the whole picture of booking, confirming and reminding as one system, read all in one booking system for a small business.
Want to see it running?
GoHighLevel is the tool we use for all of this in our own business. You can try everything on the 14-day free trial and judge it on results.
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Common questions
Text or email for a booking confirmation?
Both, but the text is the one that gets read. Send the text for the essentials and the email for anything longer, such as directions, parking or preparation notes.
How quickly should it go out?
Within a minute. The confirmation is most useful while the customer is still thinking about the booking. An hour later it is just admin, and by the next morning some people have already rung to check.
Should the confirmation include a calendar invite?
It helps for online calls and longer appointments. It is not a substitute for the plain text version, because plenty of people never open the attachment.
Is one confirmation enough, or do I need a reminder too?
You need both. The confirmation is for the booking, the reminder is for the day. Businesses that send only one of the two usually have a no show rate that tells them which one was missing.
What if the customer does not reply?
That is normal and it is fine. A confirmation is not asking for anything. The only reply you want is from the small number of people who need to change something, and making that easy is the entire point of inviting it.