A booking confirmation message should leave the customer with nothing to ask: what they booked, when and where to show up, how many people or items the slot covers and how to request a change. Below you will find templates for three situations: an appointment, an equipment rental and a group class. Receiving a request and confirming a slot are two different pieces of news, so we cover each separately. Square brackets mark fields to fill with booking details.
This guide covers the first message after booking. Reminders before the visit have their own ready-made reminder templates, and a message that never arrived is covered in our guide to a wrong email address on a booking. All businesses in the examples are fictional.
What a booking confirmation message must include
Customers usually call after booking for a handful of reasons: they are unsure the slot is valid, they cannot find the entrance, or they forget how many people they booked for. Each of these calls points to a missing element. Before writing your own template, check that it answers every question on the list. Order matters too: status and time first, practical details below.
- Status in the first sentence: “we confirm” or “we received your request”.
- What: the service or offer name and a booking number to search for.
- When: weekday, date, start time and, where relevant, end time.
- Where: address, entrance, floor or meeting point.
- How many: people, items or variants covered by the booking.
- An indicative price with its unit, matching the offer.
- What to bring and how many minutes early to arrive.
- How to change or cancel: channel, deadline and who will reply.
Leave out anything the customer does not need in order to attend. Form answers, team notes or the purpose of the visit do not belong in a confirmation, because other people may read the inbox. If your cancellation and lateness rules are long, summarise them in one sentence and point to your online booking terms.
Google Calendar Help explains that the description of an appointment schedule appears on the booking page and in confirmation emails. This shows why the offer text and the confirmation should say the same thing; the source does not describe how Meetlead works. Google Help: appointment schedules.
A received request and a confirmed slot are two different messages
With automatic approval, the customer receives a confirmation straight away. With manual approval, they first hear that the request arrived and that a decision is still pending. If both messages sound alike, the customer may turn up for a slot nobody approved, or call to make sure. The difference has to be visible in the subject line.
Scroll the table sideways to see all columns.
| Element | Request received | Slot confirmed |
|---|---|---|
| Subject | “We received your booking request [number]” | “Booking [number] confirmed” |
| First sentence | “This is not yet a confirmed appointment.” | “We look forward to seeing you [date, time].” |
| Should the customer come | No, only after a decision | Yes, at the stated time |
| What happens next | When and how the decision arrives | What to bring and how to change it |
In the request-received message, state the latest time you will reply and leave out directions or a list of things to bring. Those details suggest the slot is already settled. Our guide to manual booking approval explains how to set duty cover and decision deadlines.
Wix Bookings Help explains that when a booking requires approval, the client gets an email that the request was submitted, and another email about the status once you approve or decline it. It is an example of a different system separating both stages, not a description of Meetlead. Wix: bookings that require approval.
Template for a clinic or salon appointment
A fictional physiotherapy practice takes bookings for 50-minute appointments with automatic confirmation. Most calls were about the building entrance and whether to bring test results. Both answers therefore went into the fixed text of the message.
Subject: Appointment [number] confirmed, [date] at [time]. Body: Hello [name], we confirm your appointment: [service name], [weekday] [date], [start]–[end]. Address: [street and number], entrance on [side of building], [floor]. Please arrive 10 minutes early and bring [documents, if needed]. Indicative price: [amount]. To reschedule or cancel, email [address] or call [number] no later than [deadline from your terms]. Booking number: [number].
The version for a pending request opens with: “We received your request for an appointment on [date, time]. This is not yet a confirmation; we will reply by [decision time]”. Cut the rest down to the service name and request number. Send the address and preparation details in the confirmation once the slot is certain.
Template for an equipment rental
For a rental, customers ask different questions: how many items they collect, where, and by when they must return them. A fictional kayak rental therefore confirms the return time and the list of variants as well as the start. If the booking covers a whole day, say exactly when collection opens; our guide to all-day bookings covers that mode.
Subject: Booking [number] confirmed: [equipment], [date]. Body: Hello, we confirm your booking: [variant] × [quantity], [variant] × [quantity]. Collection: [date], from [time], [pickup point]. Return: [date] by [time], at the same place. Please bring [items required by your terms]. Indicative price: [amount] per [unit]. To change the quantity or date, contact [channel] by [deadline]; we will check availability and reply.
The last sentence is deliberately cautious. Adding two kayaks is a new availability decision rather than a formality, so the message does not promise an automatic change. If you show a price, use the same unit as the offer; see our guide to per-person or per-booking pricing.
Template for a group class
In group classes, one booking often covers several places. Whoever books for friends needs to know how many participants were confirmed, because they will pass the details on. A fictional pottery studio also adds the time the room opens, since arriving late means missing the introduction.
Subject: Places for [class name] confirmed, [date]. Body: Hello [name], we confirm [number] places for [class name], [weekday] [date], [start]–[end]. Venue: [address, room]. Doors open at [time] and the class starts on time. Please bring [clothing, materials]. Indicative price: [amount] per person. If the number of participants changes, contact [channel] by [deadline]. Please forward this message to the people you are booking for.
Do not list the other participants by name unless the class requires it. The number of places is enough. When someone drops out, our guide to online booking cancellation explains how to release the place.
How to set up templates in Meetlead Bookings
In Meetlead Bookings, you set email templates separately for each offer. They cover five events: request received in manual mode, confirmation, rejection, cancellation and expiry. Each message can be switched off, and one you leave unedited goes out with a short default text in the customer's language. The body can contain variables that are replaced with booking data on sending, such as {{referenceNumber}}, {{startAt}}, {{partySize}}, {{items}} and {{totalPrice}}.
- Add the fixed offer details.Write the address, entrance, things to bring and the change channel into the template for that offer. A rental template need not fit an appointment.
- Replace fields with variables.Take the number, time, party size and items from variables so nobody retypes them for each booking.
- Separate request from confirmation.In manual mode, set two different texts. The request-received message carries no arrival instructions.
- Make a test booking.Book a slot with your own address and check the subject, body and details card before you share the form.
The email also contains a card with the number, offer, time and, where set, party size and price. Meetlead does not send pre-visit reminders as a separate event and does not take payments in bookings; the price is for information only. A message goes out only when emails are enabled in the settings and in the offer, and the customer gave an address.
Questions about booking confirmations
Should the confirmation include cancellation rules? Yes, briefly: the channel, the deadline and who will reply. Keep the full rules in your terms rather than pasting several paragraphs into every message. The customer should quickly find the one step to take if plans change.
Should I send a confirmation after a phone booking? Yes, if the customer gave an email address. A booking entered by hand should give them the same information as an online one: time, place, party size and how to change it. Our guide to phone bookings explains how to record what was agreed before you promise anything.
