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Booking & getting paid

Deposits, card holds, booking policies, retainers, and late fees, set up so clients see the rules before they book.

Plan deposits, client-facing cancellation terms and recurring invoices around your actual workflow. These documentation-based guides describe settings to check, not evidence that a policy will prevent no-shows or late payments.

Follow the workflow

  1. 01Take a session deposit and a signed-off policy at booking in Acuity (photographer setup)Charge a fixed or percentage deposit per session type, make clients tick your terms before they can book, and know where Acuity stops (no e-signatures, and no saved-card holds if PayPal is connected).
  2. 02Bill a monthly retainer automatically in FreshBooks, with reminders and a late feeOne recurring template that sends each month's invoice by itself, nudges the client before and after the due date, and adds a late fee only if they're late. Includes a late-fee calculator.
  3. 03Set up a barbershop booking page with deposits (or a no-show fee) in Square AppointmentsBuild services and online booking, then choose a payment policy your Square plan actually supports. Deposits, full prepayment and no-show fees have different limits.

Compare approaches

  1. 01Acuity vs Calendly: compare the booking you actually sellEvaluate Acuity around service appointments, calendars and deposits. Evaluate Calendly around meeting types, connected calendars and team routing. Both now document payments, so “only one takes payments” is not a useful distinction.

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