Every salon owner knows the feeling: a full afternoon booked, and a gap where a client should be. A no-show is a paid hour you can't sell again, and for a stylist on commission it's lost wages too.
You can't stop every one. But many no-shows aren't rude; they're forgetful, and that makes them fixable. Here's what works, in the order to try it.
1. Send a reminder, every time
The cheapest fix is a reminder the day before. It gives a client who'd forgotten the chance to come, or to cancel in time for you to fill the slot.
Make the reminder useful, not just a nudge:
- The day, time and who they're seeing.
- How long it takes, and anything to do beforehand ("come with dry hair", "allow 15 minutes for a consultation").
- How to cancel or move it, and by when.
Setout sends every client a confirmation when they book and an email reminder before their appointment, with a link to cancel or move it online.
2. Set a cancellation window, and say it plainly
Decide how much notice you need, say 24 or 48 hours, and put it where clients see it: on your website, on the booking page and in the confirmation. A rule clients agreed to before they booked is a rule they'll respect.
Let clients cancel or move online up to that point. It sounds backwards, but a client who can move an appointment at midnight without phoning is a client who moves it, rather than just not turning up.
Setout lets you set how late clients can cancel or move online. After your cut-off, they're asked to call you, so the late ones become conversations rather than silent gaps.
3. Use deposits where they matter
Deposits work, especially for long or expensive appointments: colour, extensions, bridal and new clients you've never met. They don't need to cover the whole service. A deposit is about commitment, not cash.
A few rules keep deposits fair and friendly:
- Ask for them on the services where a gap hurts most, not on a 15-minute fringe trim.
- Say clearly what happens to the deposit if the client cancels in time, cancels late or doesn't turn up.
- Take them off the final bill, and say so.
- Under UK consumer law, a charge for late cancellation has to be fair and made clear before the client books, so put it in writing, up front.
To be straight about it: Setout doesn't take card deposits yet. If deposits are central to how you work, keep taking them the way you do now, or choose a system that takes them today.
4. Get the wording right
How you say it matters as much as the rule. Compare these:
"Failure to attend will result in a charge."
"If you can't make it, just let us know 24 hours before and there's no charge. That way we can offer the time to someone on our waiting list."
The second is the same policy. It explains why, it's on the client's side and it tells them exactly what to do.
5. Make rebooking the easy habit
A client who books the next appointment before leaving has the date in their diary, not just in their head. Offer to book the next one at the desk, or send them your booking link so they can do it from the chair.
6. Keep a list, and use it
Most salons have a handful of clients who'd happily take a short-notice slot. Keep a note of who they are. When a cancellation comes in at your cut-off, you can fill it in a message or two.
7. Notice the repeat offenders
Every salon has two or three clients who miss more than they make. Your booking history shows who they are. For those clients, a deposit or a booking by phone only is reasonable, and saying so kindly is part of running a business.
Where to start
If you do nothing else this week, do these three things: send a reminder the day before every appointment, write your cancellation window on your website and booking page and let clients cancel or move online up to that point.
Setout gives salons their own website with online booking for the whole team, email reminders and a cancellation cut-off, for £39 a month including VAT, however many stylists you have. Setout takes no commission on any booking. See websites for hair salons, beauty salons and barbers, or read how we compare with Fresha.