Clients arrive early and leave late...what to do...ideas or tips?

Bookings
#1

Although I state it on the booking notes that the rental period includes your load in, setup , tera down and load out, clients still seem to get to the studio early. I had one guy arrive over an hour early and just yesterday 1/2 early. I also have a regulars that rent the studio for 3 hours every Wednesday and are usually going over about 45 minutes on their time.

Up to this point I haven’t really enforced anything because it’s not like the studio is booking back to back on the same day, if it was I’d have a big problem.

There is no one present from the studio so a client simply shows up with the key lock code that I give them on the day of the rental.

I guess I could give them the code 15 minutes prior to the rental start time but what if I’m pre-occupied and miss the window. Don’t want to deal with that.

Is this common with others? How do you enforce the in and out rules?

Thanks!

-Paul

#2

I rep homes and businesses in NYC for production. You don’t charge OT afterwards? Peerspace collects for me from the client for any hours not booked on the platform. I give a 15 minute grace period only for loading out, otherwise billed. For arriving early, I’d charge that time, too. Now with extra cleaning protocols I don’t want anyone on location until the space is ready fully and safely.

2 Likes
#3

That’s what the overtime is for. You should state your overtime policy in your description so there is no confusion. Like @Claudia_B I give 15 minutes on the backend…although I don’t advertise it. Showing up 15 minutes early may be allowable, but an hour is out of the question.

#4

We have a welcome message 2 days prior that we send out reminding them of their appointment time and letting them know that if there is no booking prior they can access 10 minutes prior to the beginning of their meeting. We also make it clear that overtime is charged if they stay. I add this to the booking after they leave. PS sends out an email to you where you can add the extra charges in using a Google form.

#5

I would set up a Ring camera so you can see the time they arrive and when they leave. This way you can charge appropriately.

1 Like
#6

Your remote situation is unique. Other than not giving them the code until it’s time to load in, I don’t see a way around people showing up early. If you can’t manage to remember to send it yourself, use your email application to pre-schedule sending the access info 15 mins before hand. Gmail allows this. I assume other applications do too. There’s probably a service that will send the info as text for you too.

For people who stay late, take a screenshot of your security cam when they’re walking out (please tell me you have one!) and simply bill them for the extra time via Peerspace.

#7

@BLiNK_C is your key code remotely programmable? Would be nice if you could schedule it to activate with the new code 10 minutes before their start time. Would be great if the lock can track when they leave as well. Definitely charge for overtime.

Tell them to check in 30 (or 60) minutes before their end time and let you know if they will need additional time, so you can let them know if that time is available. You can message them as well, a chance to remind them that they will pay for overtime. Our temptation is to be “nice” and let it go, but they need to pay for the full use of the space.

#8

We make all customers sign a waiver prior to their session that is extremely detailed so they understand how we operate business. We don’t mind if people show up 5 mins early but that’s the earliest we will allow. We also require the clients to setup and breakdown all their equipment during the amount of time they booked. If they go over their booked time by 10 mins we charge an additional hour mandatory because that interferes with the next bookings. We have a 2 hour minimum, but will allow clients to book an additional hour(s) if the time slot is available. We never allow people to book anything less than a hour when they request extra time. 30 minutes is just a waste of time for us and throws our schedule off for the next customers. We also send texts to our clients 30-45 mins before the end of their session just to remind them that that their session is coming to an end soon.

1 Like
#9

I like @Geoffrey_B’s suggestion about using Gmail to automate sending codes out to guests. That seems like a solid workaround without investing in a new lock. I also absolutely agree with the others here too that you should be charging for extra time and having clear rules that clients are made aware of ahead of time helps. If you were looking for a lock upgrade, I’d recommend checking out igloohome’s products. We also run our studio remotely and guests check themselves in and out autonomously. The lock we use is their “Smart Mortise” and it’s been amazing for controlling when people can get in with custom duration PIN’s that get sent out the day before their session with the rest of our check in instructions. Clients can not enter until their session start time and their custom PIN is only active during their allotted time. We have done it this way for several months and there’s never been an issue with check in. We’re fortunate to have a lobby in our building that guests can also wait in until their start time, so every situation is of course unique. Also, you mentioned having repeat guests, and there’s an option for custom PINs that you can create for your regular users. The lock keeps a log of who comes and goes every time the door is opened and everything is controlled via their app. When guests forget something and need to get back in to grab something left behind, it also allows for one time PINs to get people in. Best of luck with journey, would be curious to hear how you decided to resolve this!