Every once in awhile I feel the need to say something about no-shows and last-minute cancellations. Anyone who works on an appointment basis knows exactly what I'm writing about and (I'm just guessing) the people reading this post probably aren't the people who need to read it.
Before I continue, let me say that I understand that life is what happens when you were making other plans. Sometimes missing an appointment is unavoidable; I get that. In such cases, an apologetic phone call or email is generally all it takes to mollify even the grumpiest of groomers.
But when there is no good excuse? Read on:
No-shows and last minute cancellations are not only impolite, they are costly both to the business owner and to other customers. When someone makes an appointment with me, that block of time is no longer available to other customers. Some groomers (and airlines) make up for this by overbooking their available schedules. Anyone (including me) who has ever had to wait 8 hours for their pet to be groomed or has been bumped from an overbooked flight knows how maddening that can be. It's hard to blame the businesses. Their costs don't go down just because a customer doesn't show up and they have to make money or they won't stay in business long. They end up having to pass the cost of this lost revenue on to other customers who do keep their appointments. It's not fair to anyone and is almost always avoidable.
I have chosen never to (intentionally) overbook my schedule. Anyone who visits my salon will immediately notice that I keep the number of simultaneous clients in-house to a minimum. It's safer and less stressful that way. When you visit a grooming salon with a small staff that's packed to the rafters with dogs and cats, they've chosen the other route and you can be sure that your pet will pay the price in stress and grooming quality).
I make a point of requesting as much advance notice of cancellation as possible from all my customers and have instituted a low-tolerance policy toward no-shows and last-minute cancellations, but it still happens.
If you are one of those unfortunate people who just can't keep your schedule straight, remember to give me your email address(es) and as many phone numbers as possible when booking your appointment. My automated reminder system will call you, email you, send you a text message, and do everything but shake you out of bed on the morning of your appointment. I'll do everything I can to make sure you don't forget. But if you do, please understand that I'm going to charge you for the appointment (and you will be required to pay the charges before I'll accept another appointment from you).
Now, to end on a happy note: I want to thank all of my clients who do keep their appointments and/or who do give me plenty of notice when they can't. You make my day every time you come through the door. See you soon!
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