iMessage for salons and barbers

Salons and barbershops have the cleanest business case for this channel of any small business. Your inventory is time, it expires hourly, your no-show rate is measurable, and your customers are on their phones in your chair.

The three messages that pay for everything

1. 0124-hour reminder with a reschedule link. Cuts no-shows immediately. Make rescheduling easier than cancelling — a customer who cannot move an appointment simply does not turn up. Full playbook.
2. 02Gap alert to a short waitlist. A 2pm cancellation goes to fifteen people who said they wanted a shout if something opened. First to reply gets it. How to run it.
3. 03Review request two hours after the visit. While they still like the haircut. Timing matters more than wording.

export const salon = {
  reminder: (c: Ctx) =>
    `Reminder from ${c.shop}: ${c.service} with ${c.stylist} tomorrow ` +
    `at ${c.time}. Reply C to confirm or R to move it.`,
 
  gapAlert: (c: Ctx) =>
    `${c.shop}: ${c.time} today just opened up for a ${c.service}. ` +
    `First to reply Y gets it.`,
 
  rebookNudge: (c: Ctx) =>
    `Hi ${c.firstName} — ${c.stylist} here. You're usually due about now. ` +
    `Want your usual ${c.dayOfWeek} slot? ${c.link}`,
};

Stylist-specific detail is the whole advantage

Name the stylist. Reference the usual service. A chain cannot do this credibly and you can, because it is true. 'Your usual with Amy' is a completely different message from 'Your appointment'.

What not to send

• Product promotions to everyone. That is a newsletter and it belongs in email.
• More than one gap alert per person per week — the fastest way to burn a waitlist.
• Anything before 8am. Your clients are not awake and you are now the salon that woke them.

Start with reminders only. Measure your no-show rate for a month before and after — that number alone usually justifies the whole thing. How to measure it.