In my practice – I work with small business owners who are beginning to build a successful business.  When I work with these clients – I am positively fanatical about focusing upon the CONSUMER – because the consumer is the ultimate “boss”.

It’s not exactly a well kept secret that pleasing the consumer is a critical element in the success of your business.

So – when I got a comment from Ron on this blog over at my free appointment scheduling page – I was horrified to read that – in his opinion – online appo0intment scheduling software is all about making HIS life easier.

I sincerely hope Ron isn’t a business owner – because with that attitude – he’s not going to be in business for very long.

Your business should offer online appointment booking – simply because it makes life EASIER on your CUSTOMERS.

Now, I’m not saying that adding online appointment booking is going to be a great burden for you as a business owner – it’s not.  I’ve found amongst my clients that transferring your appointment book to the web is a wonderfully freeing experience.

However, change is difficult for most of us- there’s no question about that.  As a business owner, you’ll surely want to take some time to compare the various online appointment software options available and see which one works best for your business.  Different online appointment book software programs offer different features.

For example, Genbook offers real time 24X7 scheduling – and unlimited appointments for as little as $19.95 per month.

If you’re a solo practitioner who needs precision scheduling, mobile access and makes most of your contacts via Facebook – then Genbook is ideal for your practice.

However, if you want your appointment book software to act like a marketing tool as well -you might want to check out Appointments Plus – which offers additional modules which help you to leverage your online appointment booking software and make it really earn it’s keep creating more business for your business.

For example, Appointments Plus offer an invaluable feature which allows you to make sure your repeat customers remain repeat customers.A software module can be added which automatically send e-mails to customers who have not made an appointment in a specified time frame. You can set the time frame and can customize the text in the e-mail. Appointments Plus also offers a module which will allow your customers to purchase gift certificates through your site.  This module automatically e-mails the gift certificate to the sender or the recipient.

If your business relies on repeat business – or if your business or salson sells gift certificates –  you’ll definitely want to check out Appointments Plus.

There is no “one size fits all” option when it comes to online appointment scheduling – but one thing is for sure – consumers LIKE the ability to book online.  When businesses big and small begin offering online appointment scheduling – there is frequently a significant upward trend in bookings and profits.

Consumers are accessing the web using smart phones to find information about local businesses – and adding the ability to book appointments quickly and easily online just makes good business sense.