How-to

Creating a booking

Schedule a booking for a customer, or record a walk-in.

Create a booking when a customer needs a specific service at a specific time. For customers who arrive without an appointment, use the Walk-In option instead.

Before you start

You need at least one service configured. If you haven't set services up, go to Settings›Services first.

Steps

  1. Open the Add booking form

    From the Dashboard or Bookings page, tap Add (top right). On Calendar, tap an empty time slot.

  2. Pick a service

    Select the service for this booking. The form adapts to the service — some require a resource, some don't, and duration is set by the service.

  3. Choose a customer

    Search by name, email, phone, or date of birth. If the customer isn't in Light yet, create them inline from the search results.

  4. Pick a time

    The form opens with the current time selected, or the slot you tapped on the calendar. Change it if you need to. Available slots reflect trading hours, resource availability, and existing bookings; picking a clashing or out-of-availability slot surfaces a Booking issues warning (see below).

  5. Schedule

    Optionally add Notes for anything staff should see when they open the booking, then tap Schedule. The booking appears on the calendar and dashboard immediately.

    Tip: hold ⇧ while tapping Schedule to open the new booking instead of staying on the current page.

Overriding a conflict or availability issue

If the time clashes with another booking or falls outside a resource's or the site's normal availability, the form shows a Booking issues warning listing what's wrong — the specific conflicting bookings (linked so you can open them in a new tab) or the availability rule being broken. Tick the acknowledgement checkbox to unlock Schedule and book anyway.

Walk-ins

For customers who arrive without an appointment, turn Walk-In on in the form. The customer field disappears, the start time is set to now, and Light offers a QR code, shareable link, and kiosk hand-off once the booking is created. See Creating a walk-in booking for the full flow.

What happens next

  • The booking appears on the Calendar and in the day's run sheet
  • If the service has forms, they're assigned to the booking's service and become available for completion
  • If notifications are enabled for the service, the customer receives a confirmation