Reminders are the single biggest lever you have against no-shows. ApptOnly sends them automatically and lets you tune the channels, timing, and content. This guide walks through what is configurable and what to set them to.
What gets sent out of the box
Without any configuration, every confirmed booking triggers:
- Confirmation email at booking time.
- 24-hour reminder the day before the appointment.
- 2-hour reminder on the day of.
- Post-visit follow-up the morning after.
You can turn any of these off, change their timing, add SMS versions, or add your own note to customer emails.
Channels
Each reminder type can be sent over email, SMS, or both:
- Email is on by default for all types.
- SMS is opt-in and sent only to clients who have a phone number on file and have consented (the booking page collects consent at first booking).
SMS has a small per-message cost passed through from Twilio. For most solo practices the cost is trivial; for higher-volume practices the cost shows up in your billing.
Timing windows that work
The defaults are sensible. If you tweak, a few patterns that practitioners settle into:
- Confirmation — keep at booking time. There is no reason to delay.
- First reminder — 24 hours is the sweet spot. Earlier than 48 hours and clients forget; later than 12 hours and you cannot recover from a "I forgot" cancellation.
- Second reminder — 2 hours works for most practices. Move to 1 hour if your clients are walk-in-style and you want a last-minute heads-up. Move to 4 hours if your clients drive a long way and need lead time.
- Post-visit follow-up — same-day evening or next morning. Either is fine.
Customizing the message
The wording of each reminder is fixed. What you can add is one note of your own, under Messages, on the Settings tab, in Additional text on customer emails (up to 2,000 characters).
That note is added to the emails a client gets before the appointment: the booking confirmation, change notices, and reminders. It also shows on the client's Manage Booking page. It is not added to the follow-up, the cancellation email, or any SMS.
It is one note for all of those emails, sent exactly as you write it, so a client who books in Spanish sees the same words as a client who books in English. Good uses:
- Directions, the entrance, or a suite number, especially for a private address.
- Parking notes.
- What to bring or how to prepare.
- A short reminder of your cancellation policy.
SMS request-confirmation
For SMS specifically, there is a "request confirmation" option. When on, clients get a separate confirmation request by text two days before the appointment. It asks them to reply YES and carries a link to reschedule: "Reply YES to confirm or visit {link} to reschedule." The reminder itself carries no prompt. Clients who reply YES are auto-confirmed; clients who do not are flagged for you to follow up on. This is useful for very high-value or hard-to-fill slots.
For most appointments, the friction is not worth it. Leave it off unless you have a real reason.
Opt-out behavior
Clients can opt out of either channel:
- Email — every reminder has an unsubscribe link in the footer. Clicking it removes them from reminders only; they still get critical booking confirmations and receipts.
- SMS — replying STOP unsubscribes them per Twilio's compliance requirements. Same scoping: they still get transactional confirmations.
Both opt-outs are stored on the client record. You can see who has opted out from the client's profile.
The post-visit follow-up template
The default template thanks the client and offers a rebooking link. If you want to write a more personal version, do it from Settings, Notifications, Follow-up. Avoid making this one too sales-y. A simple thank-you with a clear next-step link converts better than a promotional pitch.