Hiusviisikko is a professional hair salon in Vantaa, Finland. The company goes back 20 years with the current team of five women working together for 10 years. Hiusviisikko were first introduced to booksalon at an exhibition in 2018, before the first service had even been released. The group liked what they heard about the new system and were interested in the opportunity to help develop the new product as well. The group started by changing over from their paper calendar to the free booksalon reservations calendar in 2019. The implementation was done at their own pace.
"First, a digital calendar was set up alongside the pre-existing paper calendar. This meant the change-over could be done step by step." The group says the entire process was easy and logical.
Hiusviisikko were previously using a very traditional set-up: a paper calendar, an old-fashioned cash register and a separate payment terminal. The main challenges they had using this system included:
Compiling a monthly report using the old checkout was cumbersome and took hours every month.
The separate cash register and payment terminal often meant typos, as the seller IDs had to be entered into both systems. Corrections to receipts often had to be made during free time on Sundays.
The customer service of the cash register and payment terminal providers was weak during problem situations. They often had to wait days for assistance.
The biggest obstacle to changing to the electronic appointment calendar was the concern that the service might not work as required, or that the group finally wouldn't know how to use it. Here were some of their concerns:
What if the implementation was cumbersome, and nobody would know how to use it?
Booksalon is easy to set up and use, and we help the customer every step of the way. If you've ever set up a social media account, you will find booksalon no problem to use at all.
What if the internet connection crashed and the system would not be accessible?
Booksalon can be used on all devices, so if your laptop's web gets stuck, you can smoothly switch over to your phone.
What if the customers made double bookings in the calendar?
Booksalon's smart booking system automatically prevents duplicate calendar bookings.
What if the customers would not be able to book times correctly online?
With booksalon, services and additional services can be set up on a per-employee/entrepreneur basis and times can be booked accordingly.
“I’m much calmer these days as booksalon automates time-consuming tasks from my daily entrepreneur life”— A member of the Hiusviisikko team
In retrospect, Hiusviisikko understand their fears were largely unfounded. The chat support inside booksalon helps entrepreneurs while they are using the system, and the team has been really pleased with how quickly booksalon helps with any system issues.
"We have always received help and answers from customer service very quickly. Our development proposals have been listened to as well and many of them have already been implemented", the group states with satisfaction.
In 2020 Hiusviisikko became booksalon PRO customers. Most importantly, the change of systems took place in stages as suited their salon. First, from a paper calendar to a free electronic booking system. After that, the cash register and payment terminal were completely upgraded to booksalon’s electronic system. Now, booksalon's all-encompassing system takes care of e.g. checkout reports for all employees automatically, and they no longer have to worry about typing errors within the payment terminal.
"Sundays are now free and time can be spent on the important things", they rejoice.
Card settlements arrive quickly in 2 days directly to each entrepreneur’s account. Telephone bookings no longer take time away from the entrepreneurs, and the salon states that the number of calls has decreased significantly.
"Calls to our salon have reduced by about 70% and the time spent on the phone is now less than 10min a day."
Best of all, Hiusviisikko say that their daily life has calmed down considerably by using the booksalon system.
"I'm much calmer these days, as booksalon automates time-consuming tasks from the everyday life of an entrepreneur, one member of the team confesses.
The Switching guide is written for an entrepreneur who wants to grow their business, seek savings from existing systems, or learn more about booksalon features and how to switch systems. You can also book a free, remote demo. Would you like to switch from a paper calendar to an electronic booking system? You can start already today!