What you need
- A plan with messaging: Premium, Agency or Unlimited. Booking in the chat is part of messaging.
- A meeting type: what people can book, for how long and when.
- A calendar connection for syncing and video links: your own Google Calendar or Zoom account. You can create meeting types without one, but meetings won't sync to a calendar or get Meet links until you connect Google Calendar.
- A channel and a flow where customers ask for a time. Build your first automation.
Set up a meeting type
- Connect your calendar. Open Integrations, choose Google Calendar and sign in with Google. Pick the booking calendar: Postocial checks its free and busy times and adds Google Meet links.
- Connect Zoom, if you meet there. Open Integrations, choose Zoom and sign in with Zoom. Each booking then gets its own Zoom meeting.
- Create a meeting type. Open Salesbot > Growth > Meetings, choose MEETING TYPES, then NEW MEETING TYPE.
- Set the length and availability. Enter a name, the duration and the slot interval, then your weekly availability and time zone. Add buffers before and after, a minimum notice and how many days ahead people can book.
- Choose the place and reminders. Pick where you meet, then the reminders: 1 day, 2 hours, 1 hour, 30 minutes or 10 minutes before. Edit the confirmation, reminder and cancellation messages, or leave them blank to use the defaults.
- Save it. Make sure the meeting type is active, so people can book it, and choose SAVE MEETING TYPE.
Each meeting type has one location:
- Google Meet, with a link made for you
- Zoom, with a link made for you
- A phone call
- In person
- Your own link or notes
Let people book in the chat
- Add a Book Meeting step. In the flow builder, add a Book Meeting step and pick the meeting type, or install a booking template such as Book Appointment / Consultation.
- Let people pick a time. On WhatsApp, Messenger and Instagram, the step shows tappable times in the chat. On SMS, it sends a booking link instead.
- Share the link from the inbox. In the Unified Inbox, use Insert booking link to offer times in any conversation.
- Run a test booking. Book a slot from a personal account and check that it shows under Bookings and in your calendar.
Ready-made booking templates cover salons, clinics, property viewings, test drives, trial classes, consultations and cleaning. They need a connected calendar.
Manage bookings
Salesbot > Growth > Meetings lists upcoming and past bookings under Bookings, each with its join link. You can reschedule or cancel a booking, and the contact is told. With Zoom, rescheduling moves the Zoom meeting and canceling deletes it.
Fewer no-shows
- Send two reminders, such as one day and one hour before.
- Add a buffer after each meeting, so one that runs late doesn't eat into the next.
- Set a minimum notice, so nobody books a slot that starts in ten minutes.
- Put the address, the join link or what to bring in the confirmation message.