For groomers and mobile grooming vans

How to create a dog grooming waitlist

Requests come by text, Facebook message, and voicemail. You write them in the diary between dogs, and twice a month two requests land on the same afternoon. Grooming software charges per month and wants every dog's vaccination record before it lets you take a booking.

Ten dogs are booked and the van fits eight. 6 steps, about five minutes, or one click with the recipe below.

Step by step

Set up the Grooming, this week yourself

These are the exact values the recipe applies. Change any of them to match your line.

  1. Create the waitlist

    Sign in, click New waitlist, and name it "Grooming, this week". It starts as a draft, so nothing is public until you publish.

  2. Set capacity to 8 per day

    In Settings, set the capacity to 8 per day and the reset to daily at 7:00 AM. The count starts over at every reset; nothing is deleted.

  3. Set the opening hours

    Under Hours, set signups to open Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat, 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Outside those hours the form shows a closed screen with the next opening time, in the joiner's time zone.

  4. Add the form fields

    Email is built in. On the Form tab, add Your name (required), Phone (required), Dog's size (required), Service (required). Labels and help text render as plain text.

  5. Show the counter

    In Settings, turn on the counter so the form shows how many spots are left. People join faster when they can see the number.

  6. Publish and share

    Click Publish. The Share tab has the hosted link, a QR code, and the script tag or iframe for your site. The submit button reads "Take a number".

Or do it in one click

Use the recipe

The "Grooming, this week" recipe creates the waitlist with every step above already done. Sign in, click once, and it is live as a draft you can publish.

Create this waitlistSee the recipe page

Recipe

Grooming, this week

  • 8 per day
  • Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat 7 AM–4 PM
  • 5 fields
  • 8 dogs per day. The count resets at 7:00 AM.
  • The list opens at 7:00 AM and closes at 4:00 PM, Tuesday through Saturday.
  • After hours, the form shows when tomorrow's list opens.
  • Asks for owner name, phone, dog's size, and service.
  • Owners see their number for the day on the success screen.

After you publish

How the list runs

Cap the day

Eight dogs per day, reset at 7:00 AM. Set it to what the van or the table can handle.

Working days only

Opening hours Tuesday to Saturday, 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Sunday and Monday show the next opening.

Size and service

Two choice fields. Three large full grooms is a different day than eight nail trims, and you see it in the list.

Numbered requests

"You're #6 today." Owners stop texting to ask if you got the message.

Confirm the time by phone

Call in order, agree a drop-off, mark them served. The form takes the requests; you keep the diary.

Free a spot

A cancellation from the status link frees the spot. The next owner can take it.

FAQ

Questions people here ask

Can owners pick a drop-off time?

Add a slot field with morning and afternoon options, each with its own cap. The form greys out a full half-day.

Can I take a deposit?

No. Unwaited does not take payments. Take payment at pickup as you do now.

Can regulars book a week ahead?

Set signups to count two days ahead with the lead days setting, as the bakery recipe does. Or keep it daily and take regulars by phone.

Does it text owners when their spot is next?

No SMS. Owners get an email with their number and a status link, and you can send "your turn" by email from the Entries tab.

Related

Keep reading

Five minutes by hand, or one click.

Free for 100 signups a month. Unlimited waitlists. Every setting above stays editable.

Create this waitlist