Best App for Barber Appointment Setting

What’s the best app for barber appointment setting? “An ever-evolving world” is a quote heard often these days to describe how technology has overtaken our landscape. It seems as if everything has been digitized or has become Internet-based. Most of the services we love can be done at the push of a button on our phones by using an application.

This is definitely not a complaint about the population at large as it typically saves the average individual time and effort that they could put towards other actions. 

Within the service industry, it has helped quite a bit as well. In instances where one might have had to utilize their own memorization and/or organizational skills, we now have technology that does that part of the job for us. Now that having an important part of the job is handled it allows for a lot more efficiency and output because you have less on your personal plate.

A barber, as part of the service and beauty industries, can benefit from this as well. Gone are the days in which a barber had to draft his own schedule of client appointments, memorize who walked in the door in order, or even take payments physically and carry around dollars for change. There are now several different apps right on your phone that can assist in taking you to this level as a barber. The important part is choosing which app(s) work for your business setup and clientele.

Recommended Barber Booking App

When looking for the best app for barber appointments, It is important to note that the number one rated app in the App Store or Google Play may not be the one that is best for your usage. This doesn’t mean to count it out but it is vital that you take the time to evaluate the options presented. Some may have more than what you need and others may not have enough. Evaluating the different apps entails checking ratings, reading reviews, reading descriptions, etc. Below we will go through some popular apps dedicated and designed specifically for the barber and hair care community.

Persona

If you are wondering how Persona can enhance your work as a barber it is actually very similar, and in our completely unbiased opinion, much better than the alternatives.

Persona is an all-in-one business and financial management app for anyone who’s self-employed and offering services to others. It is supported by its partners – Stripe and Goldman Sachs. The features Persona has that really benefit the barber community is:

• Payment Collection – Sell services, collect payments, send reminders and track package usage all from within the app.
• Hassle-Free Scheduling – No need for lengthy back-and-forths with your clients. They can book pre-approved timeslots by themselves.
• Your Own Online Store – Share the link with your clients, and they can purchase any of your services without having to go through you. No downloads needed.
• Taxes – Persona automatically generates your Schedule C/1040 to make sure you have one less thing to worry about.
• Expense Management – We’ll save you hundreds of dollars by allowing you to easily track deductible expenses come tax season.

The absolute best part that is not mentioned with the features of the app is that it is 100% free forever for the user.

Boulevard

Based on information from Capterra.com, this app has received 4.5/5 stars overall based on its ease of use and customer service. There are a lot of components to Boulevard that it prides itself on when put up against other apps:

• All In One Platform
• No Hidden Costs
• Dedicated 1:1 Support
• Fully Customized Staff and Client Profiles and Accomodations: Set and apply custom pricing options and time duration for every staff member and client, making the appointment flow and front desk experience seamless. 
• Fully Customizable Reports: Build unique reports using predefined templates that provide the performance data you need. Customize what you need without paying a huge fee.
• 2-Way Integrated Texting: Send reminders, confirmations, and reschedule appointments directly with clients over text in real-time.
• User Friendly Features: Only need a few clicks to accomplish a task and are accessible through a mobile app or desktop.

Among what is listed as its prominent features, Boulevard also has noted via their website that top-rated barbershops and salons have switched over to using their app with positive reviews for it.

Fresha

According to their website, Fresha is the number one software for salons and spas. Also to help boast this is the 4.9/5 stars they received for their overall performance. The site also states they have 60,000+ business partners, 150,000+ stylists, and professionals, 250 million-plus appointments booked and is available to over 120+ countries. Some of the special features of the app are:

• Online Booking: Grow sales by attracting new clients online and retaining them, live online self-booking, and trusted rating and reviews
• Payment Processing: Very low processing fees, pay-by-app online processing and in store card terminals
• Automated Marketing: Customizable message templates, automatic campaigns, advanced client targeting, personalized per-client offers.
• Product inventory: Stock management with supplier ordering, professional use tracking, and retail stock.
• Reporting and analytics: Optimize your business with insights from live performance dashboards and financial reporting

This app is highly regarded as one of the best apps for usage by barbers and their customers and has rave reviews from top to bottom.

Square Appointments

Capterra.com has this app rated with 4.4/5 stars, which is the lowest named thus far but still a great rating nonetheless. Square Appointments website claims to not only be usable by barbers and hair care professionals but also those in fields such as health and wellness, tutoring, and more. Here’s a list of the features that stand out for this app:

• Scheduling: Google calendar sync, automated text and email reminders, multi-staff appointments and tip splitting
• Point of Sale: Keep card on file, professional invoices, contactless payments, data security compliance, plastic and eGift cards
• Customer Relationships: Customer loyalty program, Square messages, appointment and sales history, customer profiles and notes, custom marketing campaigns
• Staff Management: Timecard reporting, commission tiers, individual employee accounts, unlimited personal passcodes.
• Retail and Inventory: Bar code scanning, low stock alerts, Instagram integration, multiplication stock management, combined service and item checkout.

Unfortunately, it is not free to use this app, and the price varies based on the monthly subscription you need. The user can also integrate easily with other third-party apps and Square products such as Wix, Quickbooks, JotForm, and Homebase. All apps that can help you meet your customers’ needs. 

Booksy

With a 4.7/5 stars rating, Booksy stands out as another popular option for the barber community. They aim to help you take what you’ve built on your own and help you focus more on what you do best. In other words, helping you run or open your salon business and not the other way around. Some of the best features Booksy provides are:

• Inventory Management
• Online Payments
• Promotions Management
• Real-time updates
• Payroll & Commissions
• Booking Notes
• Activity Dashboard
• Sales Reports
• Confirmation and Reminders

Booksy is not a free app as it costs 29.99 per month and $10 additionally for every staff member added (up to 9). You can add an unlimited amount of staff for 119.99 per month. 

Finding What Works For You

As it was stated before, the App Store and Google Play store is filled with so much software that can be served towards barbers. It can be overwhelming to see the amount as you scroll through, actually. However this article has broken down some apps and in truth, the best-rated apps are similar give or take a few features that may be unique. Knowing this information makes the decision all that much tougher. You should make the decision based on two main criteria: pricing and ease of use.

Breaking down the pricing of an app is key because there is no replacement for money spent in vain. There are apps that can give you what you basically need for free however if you choose to go with an app that charges it must be worth your while. Especially because you are already running a business and that costs money on its own. Let the money you spend on the app replace some form of labor or cut costs in the future not add on to it.

Ease of use on the app matters because if it is hard for you to navigate and use then it will be worse for your customers who are more unfamiliar with it. Nothing will make business harder and more frustrating than having to constantly explain the way to work the app. It will also hurt your business because sometimes clients can be fickle. Something as small as not knowing how to properly book an appointment may keep you from retaining clients or gaining new ones.  This concludes our review of the best app for barber appointment, shoot us a message if you have any questions!