Online Scheduler Overview

Written By Christopher Scott

Last updated 3 months ago

Overview

The Online Scheduler is a customer-facing booking system that allows clients to schedule appointments directly through your website. It guides customers through a streamlined process to select services, provide property details, choose appointment times, and submit their booking—all without requiring phone calls or manual coordination.

What customers can do:

  • Review and submit their booking instantly

  • Browse and select services with guided filtering or search

  • Receive AI-powered addon recommendations based on their selections

  • Enter property information with auto-populated details

  • View available appointment times in a visual calendar

  • Choose specific inspectors (if enabled)

  • Apply discount codes

What you gain:

  • 24/7 booking capability for customers

  • Reduced phone calls and manual scheduling

  • Automated property data collection

  • Consistent booking information

  • Customizable service filtering to guide customers to the right services

  • Real-time availability based on inspector schedules

The scheduler integrates seamlessly with your existing job management system, creating quotes or jobs automatically when customers complete their booking.

Setup

Prerequisites

Before customers can use the online scheduler, you need to:

  1. Configure your services - Ensure services are set up with correct pricing and durations

  2. Set inspector availability - Inspector schedules determine available time slots

  3. Configure scheduling settings - Set booking rules, cutoff times, and display preferences

  4. Set up service filter (optional but recommended) - Create guided questions to help customers find the right services

  5. Generate scheduler URL - Create a secure, embeddable link for your website

Initial Configuration Steps

  1. Navigate to /settings/scheduling in your admin dashboard

  2. Review and configure the scheduling settings:

    1. Set default hold duration for quotes

    2. Choose what information displays to customers

    3. Set next-day booking cutoff time

    4. Configure maximum property size for online booking (optional)

    5. Customize AI addon recommendation guidelines (optional)

  3. Build your service filter at /settings/scheduling/online-service-filter to guide customers through service selection

  4. Generate your scheduler URL and embed it on your website

Usage

For Customers

Customers access the scheduler through a unique URL you provide (either as a direct link or embedded on your website). They follow these steps:

  1. Services - Answer filter questions or search to select primary service

  2. Property - Enter address and verify property details

  3. Schedule - Choose an available appointment time from the calendar

  4. Contact - Provide contact information for additional contacts

  5. Summary - Review selections and submit booking

The scheduler saves progress automatically, so customers can return later if needed.

For Staff/Admins

Embedding the scheduler:

  • Generate a secure URL from the scheduler settings page

  • Copy the provided iframe code

  • Paste it into your website where you want the scheduler to appear

  • The scheduler displays as an integrated part of your site

Managing settings:

  • Visit /settings/scheduling to adjust scheduler behavior

  • Configure what customers see (inspector names, service descriptions)

  • Set booking restrictions (cutoff times, size limits)

  • Update the service filter as your offerings change

Monitoring bookings:

  • Customer bookings appear as quotes or jobs in your system

  • Follow your normal workflow to review and confirm appointments

  • The system holds time slots temporarily while customers complete booking.'

  • Abandoned quotes will be sent to the office.

Common Use Cases

Scenario 1: Simple service booking

Customer knows exactly what they need → Uses search to find service → Books appointment directly

Scenario 2: Guided service selection

Customer unsure what they need → Answers filter questions → Receives service recommendations → Books appropriate service

Scenario 3: Complex property with addons

Customer books inspection → Receives AI-powered addon recommendations based on property details → Adds relevant addons → Books comprehensive appointment

Scenario 4: Discount code redemption

Customer has promotional code → Enters code at summary step → Discount applies automatically → Completes booking with savings

Next Steps:

  • Read the Scheduling Settings Configuration guide to configure your scheduler

  • Read the Service Filter Setup guide to build customer-facing questions

  • Read the Generating and Embedding the Scheduler guide to add it to your website

  • Share the Booking an Appointment guide with customers who need help