Short answer
A professional salon should send exactly two automated appointment reminders. The first is a confirmation message sent immediately when the appointment is scheduled. The second is a smart reminder sent 24 or 48 hours before the client is due in. Sending more than this will only annoy your clients.
Booking confirmations
When a client books an appointment, they expect immediate confirmation. You should send an automated confirmation message right away. This message acts as a record of the booking, showing the date, the time, and the service. If you take a deposit through your online booking system, this message also confirms that you've received the payment.
Luminate lets you set deposits per service as a fixed sum or a percentage. If a client books online and the deposit remains unpaid after 30 minutes, the booking cancels itself. This keeps your calendar clear of unconfirmed bookings. Once the deposit is paid, the confirmation message goes out immediately, which stops clients calling the salon to check if their booking went through.
Smart reminders
The second message should go out 24 or 48 hours before the client's appointment. If you send it three or four days early, they'll still manage to forget. If you send it three hours before, you won't have enough time to fill the slot if they cancel. A client doesn't want three texts, two emails, and a push notification for a simple trim. Keep it simple.
A 24-hour window is the sweet spot. It gives the client enough notice to adjust their day, and it gives you time to offer any cancelled slots to people on your waitlist. By using two-way messaging, your clients can text back directly to confirm or reschedule, which helps you manage your drag-and-drop calendar. Once your smart reminders are running, you'll spend less time chasing people, the gaps in the diary will shrink, and your cancellation rates will come down.
Messaging limits and costs
Software suppliers that charge per user or add extra fees for every text you send make your monthly bills unpredictable. If your software charges £30 per user, a salon with eight staff ends up paying £240 a month before they even send a single text message.
With Luminate, you pay a flat £69 per month, which includes every feature and has no contract or exit fee. This includes 300 SMS credits each month, and both email and WhatsApp messaging are fully included. Your client communication stays active without extra costs, so you won't get caught out by unexpected bills when your team is busy.
What this means for your salon
Set up your system to send one immediate booking confirmation and one smart reminder 24 hours before the appointment. This keeps your diary organised and your clients informed without spamming their phones. By keeping your messaging clear and consistent, you'll protect your time, reduce no-shows, and keep your columns full.