Checklist of Key Features

The TimeTrade Enterprise Scheduling Application provides a rich set of features and methods to address virtually any appointment scheduling problem. You can choose what features to expose, adapt workflows, and customize the interface to carry your own brand identity.

But our capabilities don't end with scheduling. We provide a truly actionable system for connecting with your customers, driving repeat business and referrals, and gathering valuable customer intelligence.

Here are key features you should look for when implementing an appointment scheduling solution:

Key Features	TimeTrade
Self-service.  Lets you build an open system that supports self-service scheduling by your customers, or a closed system for internal use by your staff and affiliates.
24x7 Access Through Multiple Channels.  Supports 24x7 access via the Web, Interactive Voice Response and call center.
Browser-based.  Runs as a secure, browser-based application so there is no software to install for you or your customers.
Resource-selectable Appointment Scheduling.  Supports ability to schedule appointments for specific resources, including people, facilities and equipment.
Activity-selectable Appointment Scheduling.  Supports ability to schedule appointments for activities that depend on underlying resources, with multiple methods to constrain capacity.  (Rather than scheduling the resources directly.)  A very important capability!
Real-time Availability.  The system automatically evaluates availability for appointment requests, and removes availability for committed timeslots - preventing double bookings.
No Limits.  Lets you handle an unlimited number of resources, activities and appointment transactions.
Data-driven customization.  Employs a database-driven approach to customization, with dynamic administrative screens that expose thousands of configuration settings.  When requirements evolve, configuration changes governing rules, workflows, user rights, activity and resource properties, etc. can be made via admin screens – no custom programming is necessary.
Commercial Off The Shelf.  (COTS)  All customer implementations leverage a single, highly-configurable code-base that is easy to support and extend.  Not a “one-off” solution.
Appointment Search.  Supports ability for users to search for the first available timeslot for their desired appointment as well as search for availability within a particular date range.
Event Scheduling.  Supports ability to schedule events (such as classes and seminars) and manage participant registration.  Unlike appointments, events are established for a specific date, time and capacity and are governed by a different set of business rules.
Compound Appointments.  Supports ability to schedule compound appointments containing multiple services (such as a haircut and a manicure) along with the ability to independently manage and report on the master appointment and the associated sub-appointments.
Group Appointments.  Supports ability to schedule group appointments for multiple attendees along with the ability to independently manage and report on the master appointment and the associated sub-appointments.
Distributed System Administration.  Supports flexible distribution of responsibility for system administration based on roles-based rights.  For example, rights can be granted for service delivery locations to manage their own profiles in the system, such as how much capacity should be exposed on a very fluid basis, but not perform other system admin functions.  The distribution of responsibility for system administration (centralized versus decentralized) should be highly configurable and easily shifted over time.
Appointment Changes.  Supports ability to confirm, cancel, reschedule, and change properties of appointments.
E-commerce.  Provides a robust mechanism to calculate costs and assess fees for appointments based on configurable rules and rates.
Cancellation and No-show Management.  Provides a robust mechanism for reporting on cancellations and no-shows, and for assessing cancellation fees if appropriate.
Overridable Rules.  Supports ability to define rules that can be overridden by authorized users, based on the user’s “rules group” affiliation.  For example, a particular service may ordinarily be configured with a “hard rule” governing a customer’s eligibility.  The system makes it possible to allow certain users to override the rule (a “soft rule”) in order to approve an appointment even if the eligibility requirement is not met.
Sophisticated Object Model.  Supports ability to configure and manage complex implementations - with regions, districts, locations and departments; with diverse service offerings and resource dependencies; with multiple user groups and associated rights; and with tools to efficiently manage configuration changes.
Reporting.  Supports transactional and summary reporting on current and historical data.
On-demand and Batch Processing.  Reports can be run on-demand, or scheduled to run automatically in batch mode.  In addition, reports can be run automatically and dispatched to users via email at specified intervals.
Queue Integration.  Supports ability to manage and report on walk-in traffic in parallel with appointment traffic.
Appointment Workflow.  Supports logging of customer check-in and check-out, as well as logging intermediate workflow steps that can be defined in the system.
Wait Listing.  Supports ability to place customers on a wait list pending availability for their appointment.
Bulk Appointment Transfer.  Supports ability to quickly reallocate appointments from one resource to another when the primary resource becomes unavailable.  (Such as calling in sick.)
Overbooking.  Supports ability for authorized users to override capacity constraints in order to overbook activities and resources.
Setup and Recovery Time.  Supports ability to configure certain activities to automatically block off time for preparation prior to the official appointment start time (setup time), and/or block off time after the appointment ends for administrative housekeeping (recovery time).
Email Messaging.  Supports ability to send confirmation and reminder messages to customers, as well as automatic cc: and bcc: messages for other personnel as appropriate.
Email Content Management.  Supports highly-granular ability to configure the content of email messages for specific services and resources, as well as establish email distribution rules.
Standards-based Integration.  Provides standards-based mechanisms to support integration with external systems, including Web Services, HTTP redirection with query parameters, MQ Series, translation gateways, and iCalendar data interchange technology.
API Support.  Provides a large number of API methods specific to rules-based appointment scheduling that are necessary to support integration with Interactive Voice Response systems and Web front-end systems that enable customer self-service scheduling.
Resource Allocation Rules.  Supports multiple methods for allocating resources chosen from a pool of substitutable resources - including random allocation, round-robin allocation, and ranked allocation based on skill, cost, location, etc.
Recurring Appointments.  Supports a variety of appointment recurrence patterns including daily, weekly, n-weekly, monthly, and  n-monthly.
Outlook Integration.  Supports calendar integration with MS Outlook.
Performance and Scalability.  Scales to support millions of appointment transactions per month.
Roles-based Rights.  Supports highly-granular roles-based rights that control access to individual screens within the application, ability to view and/or edit screens on a field-by-field basis, and ability to perform a wide range of scheduling tasks, run reports, and perform system administrative functions.
SSL encryption.  Employs SSL encryption for secure transmission of data across the network, as well as within the application to support storage of sensitive data in an encrypted format.
Flexible Availability Scheduling.  Lets you define multiple availability schedules.  (Seasonal, vacation, etc.)
Data Collection.  Lets you collect information from customers when they schedule an appointment.
Hosting Options.  Can be hosted by customer or by software vendor.