Set your Microsoft Bookings scheduling policies
Not all appointments are the same. Some take only a few minutes, while others can take hours or more. In Microsoft Bookings, the booking page is where you set the scheduling policies for your business. Scheduling policies include the length of appointments, acceptable lead and cancellation times, and automatic notifications of booking changes. Additional customization can be added for each service within the Services page, with additional duration settings and policies that apply only to that service.
The policies you set here are the top-level policies. They're automatically applied to all the services you offer unless you choose to modify them on a per-service basis. For example, let's say that for most services, such as initial consultations, one-day notice for cancellations is acceptable. But for those services that require facility reservations or fees, such as golf lessons, you might require three days' notice. You can set this service-level policy on the Services page. See Define your service offerings for instructions.
Types of scheduling policies
This table explains the various scheduling policies available on the booking page.
| Policy | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Time increments | Determines the intervals between appointments. You can set your time increments from 5 minutes to 4 hours. You can also set your own customized time increments. An interval of 15 minutes, for example, means a customer could schedule a 60-minute appointment at 8:00, 8:15, 8:30, and so on. Conversely, a 60-minute interval means that appointments are only available on the hour. (To set service durations, see Define your service offerings.) |
| Lead time in hours | You build your staffing plan based on the appointments that are scheduled so it's important to know in advance how many customers are coming in for service on any particular day. The lead time policy enables you to specify the number of hours in advance that customers must book or cancel an appointment. The minimum lead time is based on regular hours and not business hours. |
| Maximum days in advance | If you want to limit how far in advance customers can book appointments, then this is the setting for you! You can set the maximum for 365 days or more. |
| Notify when a booking is created or changed | Select this option when you want to receive an email anytime a customer books an appointment or changes an existing one. The email will go to the mailbox specified on the Business information page. See Enter your business information for details. |
Set your policies
In Microsoft 365, select the app launcher, and then select Bookings.
In the navigation pane, select Booking page.
Select your policies under the Scheduling policy section.
Select Save and publish.
Publish the booking page
When you're ready to publish your booking page, select Save and publish. See Customize and publish your booking page for more information.