10to8 Review
What Is 10to8?
It’s time to leave the days of manual appointment scheduling behind.
In the age of computers, there are so many options for automatically keeping track of your schedule.
Today, we will have a look at one such example - 10to8.
This is a cloud-based system for appointment scheduling which can be accessed via a phone or a computer. No app downloads are required and all your data is saved automatically.
How does it work?
10to8 scheduling happens instantly. Whenever a client books an appointment with your business, you receive an SMS notification. At the same time, that appointment is automatically written down in your calendar, should you accept it.
10to8 Features
What kind of things can you do with 10to8?
While at first it might seem unassuming, don’t be fooled. There are plenty of options and features you can take advantage of to personalize your business’ online presence.
Calendar
We’re starting with the obvious one.
The calendar is where you go to check up on your schedule. Any future appointments you have will be displayed here.
The 10to8 calendar is divided by hour for each day of the week. For every appointment, you can see exactly at what time it takes place.
You can also create custom markers.
By clicking anywhere on the calendar, you can place an appointment marker for that day. You can change how long the reminder is, attach contacts to it, and even send automatic emails to the relevant people. It’s extremely handy.
The only problem is something that 10to8 generally has an issue with - customizability.
There is no custom color coding for appointments, besides the default colors the program uses. You also cannot type in custom text for the reminders. Only select from a list of services your business provides.
Integrations
If you like using other third-party applications to complement your scheduling, no worries.
10to8 integrations let you sync your data with programs like Zoom, Microsoft Office, Facebook, and more. It gets better - doing so is super easy.
Let’s say you want to sync your calendar to your Google account. What do you do?
First, you head to the Integrations tab. Then you click on the Calendar sync button. This will show you a few options such as iCloud, Google, Outlook, etc. Click on the one you want, then all you have to do is link your accounts together. That’s all!
The same principle works for every other integration. Of which there are tons.
10to8 online payments are possible by synchronizing your PayPal or Stripe accounts. Make use of plugins for your WordPress or Weebly websites for faster booking. Or, if your business has a Facebook page, integrate a custom 10to8 page tab.
While there aren’t that many integration options as with other alternatives, here are the available choices as of now:
- Zoom
- Microsoft Teams
- iCloud
- Microsoft Office 365
- Microsoft Exchange
- Outlook.com
- WordPress
- Weebly
- Google Classroom
- Salesforce
Online Booking Page
When you create an account for your business, 10to8 also creates a booking page for appointments.
What do I mean by that?
It’s a custom webpage, through which clients can make appointments. Each appointment made through there will automatically show up in your 10to8 booking system.
It’s a fantastic alternative if you don’t have a website, as 10to8 takes care of everything for you.
The best part is that it is customizable.
You can add your business’ logo and header, add business details, even change SEO and analytics settings.
The URL of your booking page is initially a placeholder, but premium plans let you have a custom domain.
Widgets
Do you have a custom website?
If you do, you’ll love 10to8’s widgets.
What are they?
They are a web element that you can embed into your website’s code which then redirects to your 10to8 profile. For example, a custom button that leads straight to your 10to8 online booking page.
There are several widgets you can choose from.
First, there is the button that redirects to your online booking page. Then, there are HTML widgets that let users book appointments straight from your website. Finally, there are widgets that work specifically with WordPress and Weebly.
SMS Notifications
Here’s the thing - 10to8 doesn’t have an app.
So how does it send you notifications of new bookings?
SMS.
The program uses your business’ phone number to send you information and reminders about new clients and appointments. Every time a client makes a booking, you receive a text message with the time and date. Then another one shortly before the appointment.
You can also use the software to send your clients SMS notifications.
10to8 appointment scheduling lets you notify customers via either email or SMS of any changes or cancellations. You can alter the contents of the messages and then send them in bulk if multiple people are involved.
It’s very handy!
Reports
Are you an Excel person?
10to8 has a neat Reports feature that lets you export your data to spreadsheets software. You can select the time range which you want to export and then which fields you want in the report.
10to8 reports can include things like messages, customer details, staff details, and many more.
Then click Run this report, and you’ll get a notification when it’s ready for download!
Ease of Use and Interface
How good of a substitute is 10to8 for keeping notes by hand?
You won’t have to carry a computer with you everywhere, will you?
No.
10to8 is made to work with mobile devices just as well as with computers. Everything you do on your computer is automatically saved and accessible from any other device. The best part is the mobile site isn’t a constrained version of the software.
Everything you can do on the desktop version, you can also do on mobile.
What about the user interface?
While doing testing for our 10to8 review, I stumbled upon occasional bugs. Images not loading, failing to save new data, buttons not working, and other minor nuisances. Not a dealbreaker by any means, but still things that could be ironed out.
Other than that, the UI is clean and intiutive.
Everything is segmented into sections which you can access via the sidebar on the left. And even if you feel like there is too much information to handle, you can activate the simple mode.
Simple mode strips down the service to only its most vital functions.
It removes most of the menu options some would deem unnecessary and allows for much faster navigation. It’s a great feature that is sure to come in handy if you’re still learning the ropes.
Customer Support
10to8 customer support is always available via the blue button in the lower right corner. Doing so will open up the chat box where you will have to input your information. After that, you’re free to ask your question, and an agent will respond to you whenever they’re available.
There’s a catch, however:
Customer support is not available 24/7. Only from 6 AM to midnight UK time.
The good news is if you fall within that time period, replies are usually very quick. The chat box says agents respond within a few hours, but in my experience, it only takes a few minutes. Responses are polite and to the point.
But customer support is not your only option for finding assistance.
The website’s support center is a knowledge hub where you can go and search for information regarding all 10to8 features. This includes tutorials on how to set up your account to more detailed guidance on specific functionality.
Some guides even have video tutorials, which definitely help in getting the point across much clearer.
So what’s the bottom line?
10to8 is fairly easy to use as is. But even if you’re having trouble, you can either contact customer service or head to the support center for help.
Pricing
How much does 10to8 cost?
Well, first of all, there is a free plan. This gives you some basic functionality of the service but you will be restricted to using a 10to8 domain. Any custom branding is exclusive to the paid versions of the software.
Here is a full list of all 10to8 pricing plans:
All the 10to8 pricing plans listed above are billed annually.
Each of these plans, except Enterprise, are available for free for 30 days. The Enterprise plan features a custom price depending on your business’ needs.
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