How to take payment when clients book

Charging at booking works best for time-based services sold in fixed units: a coaching session, a consultation, a tax prep appointment, a portfolio review. It cuts no-shows because the client has already paid for the slot, and it removes the invoice-and-chase step entirely. For a free discovery call that may turn into a project, leave the call free and charge later through a proposal.

Full price or deposit

• Full price: the client pays the whole session up front. Best when the price is fixed and the session is short.
• Deposit: the client pays part now and the rest later, by invoice or at the session. Best for longer or variable work, or when you want commitment without asking for the whole amount before you've met.
• Free: no payment at booking. Keep this for discovery calls and existing clients you bill monthly.

Decide your cancellation policy first

Write the policy before you turn payments on, and put it in the meeting description so clients read it before they pay. Three questions cover it: until when can a client cancel and get their money back, is the deposit refundable at all, and what happens when you cancel. A common setup is a full refund up to 24 hours before the session and none after. If you cancel, refund in full; anything else damages trust fast.

Set it up in SoloWOS Scheduling

1. Connect your Stripe account in Settings > Client payments. Payments are charged on your own Stripe account, so the money lands in your Stripe balance and is paid out to your bank on Stripe's schedule.
2. Open a meeting type and, under Charge, pick Full price or Deposit. Enter the amount and the currency (USD or MXN). The minimum is 50 cents in USD and 10 pesos in MXN.
3. Check "Refund if the client cancels in time" and set how many hours before the meeting a cancellation still gets a full refund. The default is 24 hours.
4. Leave "Refund the client when I cancel" on unless your terms say the deposit is non-refundable. You can still refund by hand in Stripe.
5. Pick a Time to pay: 30 minutes, 1, 2 or 24 hours. The slot is held while the client is on the Stripe checkout page; if they don't pay in time, it opens up for someone else.
6. Choose what happens if Stripe stops working, for example if you disconnect it or Stripe asks you for more details: let clients book for free, or stop taking bookings for that meeting type.

From then on, a client picks a time on your booking page, fills in your questions, pays on Stripe Checkout and gets the confirmation email, with links to add the meeting to their calendar, once the payment goes through. If they reschedule to a later time, they aren't charged again.

What it costs

Stripe charges its standard processing fees on your own account; check the current rates for your country on Stripe's pricing page. SoloWOS doesn't add a fee on top of Stripe's. Build the fee into your session price so the client sees one clear number.

When a booking needs more than a payment

For a project that starts with a paid kickoff, send a proposal first and let the client accept it online; Proposals can turn an accepted proposal into a deposit invoice. For sessions sold in packages or billed monthly, keep the meeting type free and bill through Invoicing. The guide on getting clients to pay on time covers deposits and terms for project work.