Is Your Customer Base Really Yours? Research on Online Booking Platforms

In 2024, many businesses have already gained extensive experience with various online booking and business automation solutions. However, business owners have noticed that these platforms drive customers to their own websites or apps, where they promote competitors’ services. We have reviewed the world’s five most widely used solutions: Mindbody, Vagaro, Booksy, Altegio, and Treatwell, and investigated which of them build their business on ‘cannibalizing’ customer bases.

Most services offer core functionality for small business management such as:

• Schedule and Appointment Management: The ability to manage appointment schedules and quickly and conveniently move to the client profile with an enhanced set of fields that allow segmentation of clients, leave important comments on visits, and store any other visit history.
• Customer base management: The ability to find lost customers, and identify and retain regular customers.
• Notifications: Automatically send messages to clients about appointments via WhatsApp, SMS, or email to confirm and remind them of the appointment, as well as collect reviews and feedback from clients.
• Chain management: When a business has more than one location, the choice of accounting system is particularly tricky. Only Altegio, MindBody, and Vagaro offer the ability to consolidate branches into a network and manage and account for them centrally.
• Reports and analytics: The ability to get reports on customer return rates, staff appraisals, occupancy rates, etc.
• Loyalty programs: Tools to create and manage customer loyalty programs or memberships.

Integrations:

• Maps and social networks: Easy integration with the business website, Google Maps, and social networks such as Instagram and Facebook, allowing bookings to be made directly from these platforms.
• Point-of-Sale Equipment: The ability to integrate with fiscal point-of-sale equipment and POS terminals for flexible payment accounting and regulatory compliance.
• Communication services: Email, WhatsApp, SMS, and other messengers.

Altegio

• Website: https://alteg.io/
• Founded: 2022
• Headquarters: Budapest, Hungary
• Price starts from: USD 11 per month
• Number of Clients: Over 10,000 clients from more than 84 countries
• Business Model: Subscription for software without hidden fees

Altegio is a new solution on the market that immediately stood out from the crowd as the only booking and scheduling application that does not “cannibalize” the customer base. Although the company promotes its own mobile app to your customers, they can’t find your competitors or any other business they haven’t booked yet. This is unlike other platforms that promote their apps with unlimited offers from various, even competing businesses.

Key Features:

1. One of the fastest and most customizable online booking widgets available
   • Very easy to customize to your brand’s style, customers won’t even know they’re using a third-party solution.
   • Optimized booking interfaces with maximum speed to minimize wastage for even the least experienced customers.
   • The widget is automatically integrated with your company’s main web presence in Google Maps, Instagram or Facebook.
   • Customers can pay for services directly through the widget, simplifying the payment process and increasing convenience.
   • The widget can be used to promote special offers, discounts, and promotions, helping to attract new customers and retain existing ones.
   • The widget supports multiple languages, making it convenient for international customers.
2. Aunio – a free mobile application developed by Altegio to facilitate various customer interactions with the business
   • The app allows customers to repeat bookings in two clicks for places they’ve already visited.
   • The app allows you to send unlimited free notifications to your customers.
   • Customers can purchase and renew memberships or gift cards directly from the app.
   • The app allows businesses to configure and display cashback balances for customers, encouraging loyalty through flexible bonus programs.
   • Aunio supports the placement of promotional stories on company cards, which can include images and booking buttons.
   • Overall, Aunio is designed to improve the customer experience by providing convenient tools for managing appointments, gift cards, loyalty programs, and centralized promotions.
3. Chain Management: As the product is focused on larger clients, it offers a variety of possibilities
   • Centralized Management: Altegio allows the centralized management of all branches or service points through a single platform. This includes scheduling, staff management, and inventory tracking.
   • Unified Online Booking: Even large networks with branches in different cities can use a single online booking link where customers can quickly choose the most suitable location.
   • Centralized Customer Database: All customer data is stored in a single database, making it easy to track visit history, and preferences and manage loyalty programs.
   • Consolidated analytics and reporting: Altegio provides powerful data analysis and reporting tools for each store and the network as a whole. This helps business owners make informed decisions based on real data.
4. Customer Service
   • Proactive support throughout the connection and implementation process, from registration on the platform to full launch.
   • Free training for staff at the start of implementation and for new staff thereafter.
   • Multi-channel support: WhatsApp, phone, social media, email.
   • Fast response time: average response time of 3 minutes.

Treatwell

• Website: https://www.treatwell.co.uk/
• Founded: 2008
• Headquarters: London, UK
• Price starts from: EUR 30 per month
• Number of Clients: Over 25,000 businesses in Europe
• Business Model: Up to 20% booking commission + subscription for advanced accounting functionality

Treatwell is an online marketplace for booking beauty salons and spa treatments. It allows users to find and book appointments at salons, spas and wellness centers. In our research, we found that business users cited high commissions on bookings, even for returning customers, and the need to offer significant discounts to attract new customers.

Key features:

1. Wide range of services: The platform offers a wide range of services from different facilities including hairdressing, manicure, pedicure, massage, spa treatments, and more.
2. Paid listings: Businesses can pay to promote their services and increase their visibility on the platform. This includes priority placement in search results and advertising within the platform.
3. Payment Processing: When accepting online payments, the funds first go to Treatwell and then, after deducting the commission, are transferred to the business.
4. Reviews and ratings: Customers can leave reviews and ratings, helping new users choose salons and services based on others’ experiences.
5. Promotions and discounts: The platform often offers various promotions and discounts, allowing customers to save on services.

Treatwell operates in several European countries and is constantly improving its marketplace to provide a more convenient experience for end users.

Booksy

• Website: https://booksy.com
• Founded: 2014
• Headquarters: Warsaw, Poland
• Price starts from:  EUR 34,99 per month
• Number of Clients: No information available
• Business Model: Subscription for software + commission for bookings from the marketplace + commission on payments

Booksy, a Polish company, highlights the exchange of customer bases between its customers as a key feature of its business model in investor presentations. We noted that the company does not charge a commission for bookings from repeat customers, but instead focuses on free distribution of its app through customer bases and promotion of competing offers.

Key features:

1. Map Search: Users can view available salons on a map and select a convenient location. This allows clients to find salons near their location or in a convenient area and book services there.
2. Convenient Booking: Clients can easily and quickly find available time slots and book services online through the mobile app or website.
3. Reviews and Ratings: Users can leave reviews and ratings to help other customers choose the best professionals.
4. Commission: The commission charged by Booksy may vary depending on the region and the terms of cooperation.

Vagaro

• Website: https://www.vagaro.com
• Founded: 2009
• Headquarters: California, USA
• Price starts from: USD 30 per month
• Number of Clients: Over 50,000 businesses
• Business Model: Subscription for software + commission for bookings from the marketplace + commission on payments

Vagaro provides an appointment scheduling and booking platform for various businesses, including beauty salons, fitness studios, and wellness centers The company aims to promote its mobile app to end users and provide a convenient booking process. We’ve found Vagaro’s self-promotion to be less intrusive than some of its competitors in the market.

Key features:

1. Service Promotion: Businesses can promote their services on the platform and attract new customers. Vagaro provides tools to promote services and increase visibility on the platform.
2. Payment Processing: The platform integrates with payment systems, allowing businesses to accept payments online. Vagaro charges a commission for online transactions.
3. Customer Management: The platform provides tools for managing the customer base, including appointment history, preferences, and feedback.
4. Reporting and Analytics: Vagaro provides reports on various aspects of the business to help owners make informed decisions.

Mindbody

• Website: https://www.mindbodyonline.com
• Founded: 2000
• Headquarters: California, USA
• Price starts from: USD 120 per month
• Number of Clients: Over 60,000 businesses
• Business Model: Subscription for software + commission for bookings from the marketplace + commission on payments

Mindbody is a well-known business management platform focused primarily on companies in the fitness and wellness industry. It openly promotes its marketplace for the beauty industry and ClassPass for fitness.

Key features:

• The Mindbody marketplace offers a wide range of services from gyms, yoga studios, beauty salons, and many other businesses, allowing customers to choose from a variety of options.
• The commission charged by Mindbody to businesses for bookings and appointments made through the marketplace can vary depending on various factors such as region, type of business, and terms of cooperation. Typically, the commission ranges from 2% to 10% of the cost of the service. For example, in the USA the commission could be around 6-7% of the service cost.

Conclusion

In conclusion, most services charge a commission and act as a marketplace to attract a wide audience. However, this approach often runs the risk of diverting your customers to competitors through banner ads or better reviews. Only the Altegio platform is designed to protect your customer base. It ensures that your clients enjoy the features they love without being exposed to ads or notifications from other salons. With Altegio, you can maintain customer loyalty and focus on growing your business without the fear of losing clients to competing services.

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