This article contains affiliate links. This means that if you buy a product using one of my links, I’ll earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. However, this is not a ‘paid promo post’ - I’m just sharing the love for a tool that I use myself. Oh and, if you do choose to purchase using my affiliate link, my dogs say thank you for your contribution to their ‘treat fund’ 🐾🦴

If you’re sick of playing ‘email tennis’ 📨 to arrange training sessions, tired of continually chasing payments 💸 or fed up with the faff of intake paperwork 📑, you probably wish that there was a simple system that could just take care of it all for you.

Well, there is! And no, it doesn’t need to cost you an arm and a leg or require you to be a tech-nerd to use it… phew.

Do you need online scheduling and payment software, as a dog trainer?

Well, no. You can certainly run your business without it. However, I’ve never met anyone who switched to online booking and payments and wished they hadn’t done it sooner, so that probably tells you something.

The thing is, implementing a smooth booking and payment process really is a win-win…

For you as the business owner, it streamlines administrative tasks, meaning that you spend less time on scheduling and chasing payments, and more time doing the job that you actually chose to do (and, importantly, are actually paid for!).

For your clients, it can enhance the overall experience and reduce friction, helping your relationship get off to a great start. These days, many clients expect to have the convenience of booking and paying for services online. Being able to pick from available slots and then make a secure card payment is so much easier than having to go back and forth to arrange a convenient time and dealing with the tedium of online banking [I mean… seriously, how many times do I need to enter my security code and thumb print?].

So, yeah… you don’t NEED this but you might want to seriously consider it.

Oh and Just in case you’re thinking….
But I don’t want just anyone booking my services online: I like to talk to them first to check whether they’re a good fit for me (or whatever). That’s ok - you can use booking systems flexibly, to suit your business needs. So, if you prefer not to allow bookings directly from your website for certain services - or all services - that’s no problem. You can simply share a link by email or message, later in the process (after the client has provided some initial details or you’ve had a call), giving you control over who gets to book in with you… whilst still avoiding the headache of doing everything manually.

Of course, there are lots of scheduling and payment systems out there that would be suitable for dog trainers or animal behaviourists. Some are industry-specific (although these tend to be pricey and include functionality that many dog trainers/ behaviourists won’t use) and others are generic (such as Acuity Scheduling and Calendly).

Acuity was my go-to for many years and it’s great if you (a) need all that it offers and (b) are happy to spend a few hundred pounds a year on it. However, for many people, a simple system for online booking and payment is all that’s needed. This is where Calendly has been a hit in recent years - it’s easy to use and relatively inexpensive.

However, my favourite online scheduling and payment system for dog trainers and animal behaviourists has got to be TidyCal.

What’s so good about TidyCal, as a booking system for dog trainers?

Well, where do I start?

One-Off Cost

One of the standout features of TidyCal is its affordability. Unlike many subscription-based services that charge monthly or annual fees (Acuity and Calendly, we’re looking at you!), TidyCal requires just a one-off payment. This means you can enjoy all its benefits without worrying about ongoing costs eating into your budget. Unbelievably, it’s currently available for less than £25 for life… yes, you read that right!

Easy to Set Up

TidyCal is incredibly user-friendly and easy to set up. Whilst I love the advanced functionality of Acuity, if you’ve ever grappled with setting it up, you’ll know how hard it is! TidyCal is a million miles away from that experience. Even if you’re not particularly tech-savvy, I’m confident that you’ll find the process straightforward and quick. In just a few steps, you’ll have a fully functioning booking system, tailored to your business needs.

ONLINE PaymentS

Gone are the days of chasing unpaid invoices or clients having to faff around with bank transfers. TidyCal integrates seamlessly with payment platforms like Stripe and PayPal. This allows you to receive payments at the time of booking, ensuring that you get paid promptly and securely (and, from the clients’ point of view, easily!).

INTEGRATES WITH YOUR CalendaRS

Keeping track of your schedule can be challenging, especially if you use multiple calendars. TidyCal integrates with various calendar systems, including Google Calendar. This ensures all your appointments are synced in one place, reducing the risk of double-bookings and missed sessions.

Customisable Settings

TidyCal offers a range of customisable settings for different appointment/ booking types. For example, you can set padding to allow for breaks between appointments, define your availability for different appointment types, and adjust various other parameters to suit your business. You can watch a quick video outlining some of the main features (and how I use them) at the bottom of this blog post.

Class Bookings

TidyCal is also pretty well-equipped to handle group class bookings. For example, you can set maximum numbers of attendees for each session, ensuring that you don’t overbook and you can manage group sessions effectively. You can even choose whether or not to show how many spaces are still available.

On-Brand and Professional

Who doesn’t love a bit of brand consistency? Having an ugly, generic scheduling page after impressing potential clients with your beautiful website, just lets the side down. Luckily, TidyCal allows you to customise the booking interface to match your brand. You can embed it on your website, add a link to a button, or share the link via email, ensuring a seamless booking experience that also looks great.

Comprehensive Intake Questions

There’s no need to send out a separate questionnaire or intake form to new clients: TidyCal streamlines the client intake process with customisable questions at the point of booking. This means that you can gather all the necessary information from your clients before their first session in a way that feels easy and friction-free for everyone.

Terms and Conditions Agreement

As well as gathering all of the information you need about the client and their dog through your intake questions, TidyCal also allows you to add a confirmation tick-box, where clients confirm that they agree to your terms and conditions as part of the booking process. So simple but essential protection for you.

Zoom/ Google meet integration

If you conduct some of your sessions online, TidyCal can take care of automatically generating an online video call link (Zoom or Google Calendar) or you can provide a static link (e.g. your personal meeting room).

Continuous Improvement

One of the things I love most about TidyCal is that it’s continually being improved and updated based on user feedback. You can submit feature requests and see the roadmap for future development, so you can look forward the system getting even better over time.

TidyCal vs Calendly
When you compare the features of TidyCal against Calendly’s paid plans, it’s pretty impressive! For most solo business owners, TidyCal offers more than enough and even outstrips Calendly in some areas… AND without the ongoing monthly cost.
Psst…. You can find my quick video demo of TidyCal at the end of this blog post 👇

SIGN UP FOR TIDYCAL - Just $29

Anything not so great about this as a scheduling system for dog trainers?

While TidyCal is fantastic, of course no system is perfect. Here are a few areas where I think it could be improved:

Packages Are Tricky

Managing packages or bundled services can be a bit tricky with TidyCal. While there are easy workarounds (such as setting up the first appointment to take payment for the full package and then sending the clients a link to book a ‘free’ session for the follow-ups), this is definitely an area where the system could be more intuitive. I’m optimistic that improvements to this will be made in the near future.

Custom Email Confirmations

TidyCal does not yet offer the ability to send custom initial confirmation emails according to the specific booking type (however, for some reason, the reminder emails CAN be customised according to the booking type). Custom initial confirmation emails is a popularly requested feature so it seems pretty likely that this will be added in future updates.

No File Upload Feature

Currently, TidyCal doesn’t support file uploads as a question type. This means that clients can’t upload documents, videos or photos directly through the booking system, unlike in Acuity. However, this is a relatively minor issue and can be worked around with email communication. Perhaps it will be added in the future.

Conclusion

TidyCal offers a comprehensive, affordable, and easy-to-use booking and payment system which can be tailored to the needs of dog trainers and behaviourists. With its range of payment and scheduling integrations, TidyCal can make it easier for clients to work with you and simplify the admin side of your business, for less than £25 for life!

So, if you’re looking for an efficient and cost effective way to manage bookings and payments, TidyCal is definitely worth considering.

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