Opening: both bays and the online requests

What does this tour show?

It shows the first fifteen minutes at a two-bay tyre and wheel centre. At quarter to eight Roshan, the owner in the sample business, opens Appointments to see who is coming in, who asked for a slot overnight, and what he needs to know about the first car before it rolls into bay 1 at eight o'clock.

A tyre centre runs on bays and time. A bay standing empty for an hour is lost money; two cars booked into the same bay at the same time is a queue of annoyed drivers on the forecourt. Seeing the whole day for both bays in one place, before the shutters go up, is how a small team plans around both problems.

What does the day look like at opening?

The heading of the Appointments page sums up the day in one line. In the sample:

That is enough to plan the morning: one confirmation to make, five arrivals to expect and a first job that is already in.

Step by step

1. Open Appointments. Do it before you unlock the gate. The heading tells you how many requests are waiting, how many cars are still to come and how many are in a bay now.
2. Read both bays across the day. Each booking sits in its bay at its time, whether it was made by phone, at the counter or online. Online bookings carry a "Booked online" tag so you know the customer used the booking page.
3. Spot the gaps. Empty stretches in a bay are where walk-ins can go. Tell whoever is on the counter which times are free, so they can promise a slot with confidence.
4. Open To confirm. The panel lists online requests waiting for you over the next 30 days. In the tour, a driver asked overnight for four tyres tomorrow at half past nine.
5. Check before you confirm. Is the size in stock? Is a bay free for long enough for four tyres? If yes, press Confirm and the request goes into a bay.
6. Reject when you cannot do it. If the slot clashes or the size is not available, Reject the request rather than leaving it hanging. Then ring or message the customer with an alternative time.
7. Look at the car in bay 1. The first car of the day shows its size, its past visits (two tyres last time, a puncture repair on the front left last year) and the reminders set for it.
8. Note the reminder already in place. In the sample, the car has a "Revenue licence / emission test due" reminder set from the shop's reminder rules. It was created automatically, not typed by hand.
9. Brief the fitter. Size, history and anything the customer mentioned last time. A two-minute briefing saves a ten-minute conversation at the bay.

Why does the vehicle history matter at the bay?

Because it turns a stranger's car into a returning customer's car. If the history says the front left had a puncture repair last year, the fitter knows to look at that tyre closely. If two tyres were fitted on the last visit, the other two are likely due soon, and the conversation about them is easier with the dates on screen. A customer who hears "last time we did your front pair" feels remembered, which is half of what brings people back to a small tyre centre rather than the nearest one.

How should online and phone bookings work together?

Treat them as one diary. Many tyre centres still take most bookings by phone, with a growing number coming through a booking page late in the evening when the shop is shut. If phone bookings live in a notebook and online ones live in the system, the two will clash sooner or later. Put every phone booking straight into Appointments while the caller is still on the line, in the right bay at the right time. Then the gaps you see in the morning are real, online requests can be checked against the true day, and anyone on the counter can answer "can you fit me in at eleven?" without calling the owner.

Tips for the morning at a tyre centre

• Confirm or reject online requests first thing. A customer who booked at night expects an answer by breakfast.
• Keep a little slack between bookings in each bay. Seized wheel nuts and surprise punctures always find it.
• When you confirm a request for a size that is short, put the tyres aside straight away so a walk-in does not take them.
• If a regular customer's car is in, glance at the reminders. It may be a good moment to mention an upcoming revenue licence or emission test.
• Keep the day view on a screen the fitters can see. Fewer questions shouted across the workshop.

Common mistakes

• Leaving online requests unconfirmed. The customer may turn up assuming they are booked.
• Confirming without checking stock. Booking four tyres of a size you do not have creates a very awkward morning.
• Taking phone bookings on paper. They never reach the bay view, and two cars arrive for the same slot.
• Ignoring the car's history. Missing a repeat fault on the same wheel looks careless to the customer.
• Filling every gap with walk-ins. A day with no slack runs late from the first delay onward.

What should you do next?

With the bays planned, the next tour in the day, a walk-in asks for a price, shows the counter side: a driver wants two tyres fitted and a price on the spot. Later tours follow the job card from inspection to invoice, goods in by DOT date, and a warranty claim worked out fairly. If you are still choosing software for a workshop, the how to choose a POS system guide lists questions worth asking. Keeping bays full is one half of the money picture; the cash flow guide covers the other.

How EasyTaskr helps

EasyTaskr's tyre Appointments page shows both bays across the day with every booking, including requests made from the shop's online booking page, which staff confirm into a bay or reject. The car in the bay shows its size, past visits and the reminders set for it from the shop's reminder rules.