Packages can mean a lot of different things in different businesses, industries and even countries! This guide covers how the Packages feature works in Timely, so we're all on the same page.
How do they work?
Packages work similarly to a concession card, which allows customers to purchase services in bulk and redeem their visits against that package in the future.
They are usually pre-paid at the time of issue and are redeemed when an appointment is marked as Completed, or a class as Attended, in the Calendar.
You can track which appointments and classes a package is redeemed on and easily see how many visits a customer has left on their package and report on any outstanding visits or packages.
The process for using packages, is as follows:
- Create the Package.
- Sell the Package to a Customer.
- The Customer makes a booking.
- You redeem the visit against the package.
What can you use Packages for?
You can create a package that can only be redeemed on a specific service or class, against a combination of services or classes or a general package that can be redeemed against any customer visit (appointment or class).
You can choose to set the limit for the package as a certain number of Visits, Minutes or Hours. You can also add a package expiry period (e.g. 6 months after issue) or a specific redemption period (e.g. only in the month of May).
There are a number of ways in which you can use them, here's a few we've come up with:
- For buying in bulk e.g. 10 Hours of Personal Training sessions or 60 Minutes of Sunbed Tanning.
- As a loyalty system e.g. 10 Visits for the price of 9 or 10 Visits, get a free Blow Dry and Style.
- For a combination of services: e.g. "Pamper Package" of 1 Relaxation Massage, 1 Facial, 2 Manicures.
Things to remember:
- Packages are redeemed when an appointment is marked as Completed.
- Packages can be redeemed against online bookings, as long as the service or class matches the issued package. You don't have to use the "Book package" button for the visit to be eligible to be redeemed.
- Packages can't be shared between customers.
- Multiple packages can be redeemed against a single appointment.
- The number of visits/minutes/hours, the expiry date and the Start and End redemption dates can all be edited once a package has been issued to a customer. However, a package can't be editing once it is expired.
This feature may not be available on your current plan. Find out how to upgrade in our How to change your Timely plan guide.