What's the difference?
With automatic booking, the system offers the free slots in your calendar, and the guest's choice becomes final immediately — with no human approval. With approval-based requests, the guest signals when they'd like to come, but the time only becomes final once you accept it. The difference isn't the technology — it's who makes the final decision, and when.
Automatic booking
The guest books a free slot on their own, and it becomes final at once. Fast and self-service — in exchange, your calendar and capacity must always be accurate.
Automatic booking works better when:
- appointments are standardised, in predefined slots
- service durations are stable and predictable
- no case-by-case judgement is needed per booking
- instant confirmation matters to the guest
- your calendar and capacity are always fully up to date
Approval-based requests
The guest signals when they'd like to come, and you confirm what's feasible. One extra step — in exchange, you stay in control of what you take on and when.
Approval-based requests work better when:
- service durations vary from one appointment to the next
- travel, preparation or sourcing materials is required
- guests often have individual needs
- several factors have to be coordinated for one appointment
- you don't want to commit automatically without a look first
Which one is for you?
If your work is predictable and made of standard slots, automatic booking is faster and lighter on admin. If every guest is a little different and you'd rather look at a request before committing, the approval model gives you more control. Many providers use a mix: automatic for simple services, approval for complex ones.
How does Bokko do it?
Bokko is built on the approval model: the guest requests a time, and you confirm what's feasible. The decision stays with you, while the guest can reach you through a single link, with no phone tag. If you're curious how this looks in practice: