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As a podcast consultant, I needed a way for my potential customers to see my schedule and book an appointment. This would eliminate the “what day is good for you” and then the whole confirmation, etc. I wanted to streamline things a bit. So I went looking for an online tool. My goal was to find a script I could throw on my site (with no monthly fee) if those exist I couldn’t find one. However what I did find (in some case free) were very powerful and very cool.
Genbook.com
genbook.com
I found this site via a google search. After coming across a couple of sites that didn’t let you see the service (the whole “Call for a demo” routine) genbook.com is a great website. They have some cool demos, and more importantly no strings. That’s right if you want to try their free version for a while – go ahead. (the full version has additional notifications, the ability to get into the customer database a bit deeper, and the ability to accept payment right at the scheduling point).
It really look simple, and since it was free, I jumped right in. It turns out, it IS THAT EASY. Here is the cool part. You end up with a “book now” button that you can put anywhere. So I can put it on my website, my myspace page, facebook, craigs list, etc. (This really got me thinking). You can have multiple services at multiple prices (this is also available in the other services). I also love the way I can customize the look of it, how easy it was to set up my working hours, block hours I didn’t want to accept appointments. It was two very key words: easy and powerful. Ok, that’s three words, but you get my point. I’m using it at www.schoolofpodcasting.com and I’ll let you know how it goes.
Wev-Appointments
web-appointments.com
This site has many of the big sites, it is cheaper than some of the other services I looked at. The problem I ran into was the interface. I’m not sure you can customize it alot as most of their demos had the same layout, etc. Also their flash demo was very 1992. It might be worth a shot. Their customer interface seemed pretty fairly straight forward. They have a 30 day free trial at
Booking Calendar
bookingcalendar.com
This site has a ton of features to their site. Easy to use and fully customizable Online Appointment Scheduler and Event Registration Software. The ultimate onlinee-booking Calendar software for any business type. The only thing I thought was strange is they limit the number of bookings per month (300 bookings for $20 a month. $30/month for 600). They have the most features and a very slick site. You can try it free for 30 days at bookingcalendar.com
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