PocketSuite's Multi-session booking feature lets you and your clients book several sessions in one checkout, with one bill. Book two dogs for the same grooming time, the same lesson on several dates, or different services for different family members, all at once. Each session is still its own booking, with its own details, price, team member and reminders.
Note: Multi-session booking is available on paid plans.
In this article:
- Key terms
- How to turn on Multi-session booking
- How to schedule multiple sessions for a client
- Pricing across sessions
- How clients book multiple sessions online
- Confirming multiple sessions
- Editing and canceling sessions
- Payments, receipts and reports
- Frequently asked questions
Key terms
- Session: one service, class or reservation at a specific date and time. Every session becomes its own booking.
- Seats: the number of sessions booked for the same service at the same date and time. Seats are labeled with your sub-account type, like Pets. If you don't use sub-accounts, they're labeled Seats. A seat can be for a different pet or family member, or another spot for the same client, like a couples massage.
You can book up to 30 sessions in one checkout.
How to turn on Multi-session booking
To get started, go to Settings > Features > Multi-session booking and toggle on.
Multi-session booking is separate from Repeat Appointments. If you already had Repeat Appointments turned on, Multi-session booking was turned on for you.
Note: You can't combine repeating appointments and multiple sessions in the same booking. Use Repeat for a regular schedule, and Multi-session booking for several specific sessions at once.
How to schedule multiple sessions for a client
The Schedule client screen keeps the client at the top, with each session listed below it ("Session 1," "Session 2" and so on). Each session has its own sub-account, service, products, date and time, price, form, contract, location, fields and memo.
There are three ways to add sessions, and you can mix them:
Book multiple seats
- On the availability screen, set the Pets filter (or Seats) to the number of sessions you need.
- Pick a date and time. PocketSuite shows only times that have room for every seat.
- On team accounts, assign each seat in turn. Choose a team member and resources for Pet 1, tap Next, and repeat for each seat. On the last seat, tap Done. You can leave the last seat unassigned.
Each seat becomes its own session. When you book multiple seats, you can't pick another date in the same step. Tap + to add sessions on other dates.
Pick more than one date and time
On the availability screen, select a date and time, then select another date and time before you tap Done. Each one becomes its own session.
Note: You can only pick more than one date and time this way when the session has no add-on products and you're booking one seat. Otherwise, tap + to add a session for each date.
Add a session
After your first session is set up, tap + on the Schedule client screen to add an empty session. Each new session can be any service, reservation or drop-in class.
For same-day reservations, add a session for each day the client is coming. See Same Day Reservations for more.
Filling in sub-accounts
If you choose a pet (or other sub-account) before adding sessions:
- Several dates, one seat: the pet is filled in on every session.
- Several seats at the same time: the pet is filled in on the first session only. Choose the sub-account for each other session.
- Sessions added with + start with an empty sub-account field.
New sessions use the service's default settings. They don't copy edits you made to another session.
Note: If you change a session's service, its date, time, team member and resources are cleared. Pick them again for the new service.
What you can combine
- Services, overnight and same-day reservations, and drop-in classes can all be booked in the same checkout.
- Series and open enrollment classes can be booked for multiple seats, but not with other items.
- On solo accounts, if a time is only unavailable because of the number of seats, you'll see a "Double book time slot?" warning: "The number of selected seats exceeds your capacity."
When you review the booking, you'll see each session with its sub-account, service, date and time, team member and total, plus the session count and overall total.
Pricing across sessions
Each session has its own Session total, and the booking shows a combined Total.
You can set these for every session at once from the overall total: gift certificate, discount, sales tax, surcharge, deposit and check-in amount.
- A fixed deposit, check-in amount or discount applies to each session. While you edit it, you'll see the math, for example "$20 x 3 sessions = $60."
- A percentage applies to each session's own subtotal.
- A gift certificate is applied to Session 1 first, then the next session, until it's used up.
- Surcharge can only be turned on or off for the whole booking.
You can also change any of these on a single session (except surcharge), and edit a session's subtotal. Once you change a value on a single session, that value can no longer be edited for all sessions.
Important: A deposit can't be more than your lowest-priced session. If it is, you'll see "The deposit cannot be greater than the value of any one session." A check-in amount can't be more than any session's total after its deposit.
Only one package can be applied per checkout.
How clients book multiple sessions online
Clients book multiple sessions from your booking site or the client app.
- The client chooses a service. If the service has add-on products, they choose them next. Products apply to every seat booked in that step.
- On the date and time screen, they set the Pets (or Seats) count, then pick a date. The count locks once a date is chosen.
- After picking a time, they can tap Add another:
- Add another date goes back to the calendar for the same service and team member. This is how clients book more than one date.
- Add another service goes back to your service list.
- On Who is this for?, they choose which pets each group of sessions is for, for example "Select up to 2 pets." They can add a new pet here. Any session they don't assign is booked for the client.
- They fill out their info, each pet's info once, and Booking details for each date. Answers carry over from the previous date to save time.
- If a service needs a location, they enter one for each date. PocketSuite fills in the pet's address first, then the client's.
- They complete gratuity and payment. Gratuity applies to each session, for example "$10 x 3 sessions = $30." Total due now is the total of all deposits.
- They complete any forms and contracts.
The cart lists each session's date and time, with prices like "$100 x 3 sessions" (or "$50 x 2 nights x 2 sessions" for overnight reservations). Clients can remove a session from the cart on the date and time screens, and change product quantities until they reach the gift certificate and gratuity step.
On the success screen, clients see every session with its pet. Add to Google Calendar adds only the first session. Downloading the calendar file adds all sessions.
Note: Series and open enrollment classes, packages, subscriptions and gift certificates can't be booked or purchased with other items. Clients will see a message if they try.
Forms and contracts
Forms and contracts are required once per checkout for each client or pet, not once per session. For example, if a form is set to Every booking and a client books three sessions for their dog Luna, Luna's form is filled out once. If they book one session for themselves and one for Luna, the form is filled out twice.
Confirming multiple sessions
When your client confirms
When you schedule multiple sessions, your client gets one confirmation link for all of them. They can review every session, assign pets to any session that doesn't have one, fill out what's needed, and tap Confirm all. Any deposits are paid in one payment.
Clients can also reply 2 to your text to confirm all sessions, as long as nothing else is needed from them.
When you confirm
Every session booked together is linked in a combined booking record. Open it by tapping the booking in your message thread, or from Other sessions on any session's booking record. The top shows the total and the number of sessions.
To confirm everything at once, tap Confirm all. You'll see a requirements screen for each session that needs one. Anything you complete on an earlier screen, like a card on file or a form required once, carries through to the rest. Then you'll collect any deposits in one payment.
Confirming from a single booking record confirms just that session.
Note: Staff members can't use Confirm all if some sessions are assigned to other team members. Limited staff can't see the combined booking record.
Editing and canceling sessions
Each session is edited on its own from its booking record. You can change anything except the client. Changes only affect that session.
When you cancel a session from its booking record, only that session is canceled.
Clients cancel one session at a time from their confirmation link. When two or more sessions are still active, they tap Cancel appointments, choose a session, and tap Cancel.
At checkout, your cancellation policy shows a summary, and clients can tap More to see the fee or lost package session for each session and when it applies.
Payments, receipts and reports
- Deposits paid together are one payment with one receipt. The receipt shows the number of session deposits and lists each session's date and time.
- Tap Source on the payment record to see each booking in the payment and the amount applied to it. Clients see the same in the client app.
- Each session's price, tax and surcharge are calculated and stored separately, so your reports show each session as its own booking.
- Clients get separate reminders and check-in links for each session.
- Team members get a message for each appointment they're assigned to.
Frequently asked questions
Q: Can a client change the number of pets after picking a date? A: Not for that date. They can tap Add another > Add another date and set a new count for the next date.
Q: Can I book multiple sessions that repeat every week? A: No. Repeat Appointments can't be combined with multiple sessions. Use one or the other.
Q: How many sessions can be booked at once? A: Up to 30. If you try to save more, you'll see "You can only book up to 30 sessions at a time."
Q: Can I edit all the sessions at once after booking? A: No. Once a booking is saved, each session is edited on its own.
Q: Can a client book a class and join a waitlist in the same checkout? A: Yes.
If you have questions, reach out to our support team at support@pocketsuite.io.