What is an Appointment Booking System?

An appointment booking system is one that allows professionals and businesses to manage the scheduling of the appointments and bookings. This is also known appointment booking software or online booking software.

This can be classified into two separate categories mainly

-Desktop applications

-Web-based application

Desktop Application: These kinds of applications are usually licensed and can be installed on computer hardware that is end-user managed. These programs have various features and reporting that can be customized as per the company’s requirements. However, the only drawback of this type of system is that it does not have an online portal so that it can be accessed by both the customer and the staff. The applications that are installed require regular maintenance, upgrading, and support by the end user.

Web-based Applications: this is provided by a third party service provider and allows the appointment booking tools and features to be hosted as software solutions usually via web browsers. One of the benefits of this system is that it allows the customers to book their own appointments. The appointments can be scheduled over the web and can be accessible by the customers at their convenience. This system can be accessed from any computer at any time and the only requirement for this is to have a good internet connection.

Whether the appointment booking application is desktop based or web-based, the primary functions of these systems remain the same and can help the company in various ways. The primary functions of these appointment booking systems are:

-Integrating of the member, customer, and employee data

-There is a master database that is connected to the calendar system

-The application allows the employees to operate and analyze the data present on the calendar

-This type of application is also a permissions system

These applications software come in various different pricing models according to the requirements of the company. The desktop models are predominantly priced in the traditional software licensing model which is a licensing fee that has to be paid one time. On the other hand, the web-based systems can be subscription-based, advertising-based, per-use, free web-based systems and fee per booking pricing systems.

This software is a breakthrough technology together with a access control system that has helped to make the booking of appointments easier for the customers as well as the employees of the company and it also makes it more convenient to find a suitable time for the appointment that is suited to both the customer and the employees.