=== Appointment Booking and Online Scheduling by vCita ===
Contributors: vCita
Donate link: https://www.vcita.com?invite=WP-V-SCHD
Tags: appointments, booking, appointment booking, online scheduling, appointment scheduling, client scheduling, availability, meetings, book appointment, booking form, meeting scheduler, online meeting, appointment calendar,  appointment scheduling software, calendar, scheduling, online scheduling, availability, booking, appointment, salon, nutritionist, dentist, chiropractor, fitness, coach, consultant, entrepreneurs, lawyers, yoga teacher, studios, spas, agendamento de consultas,programación de cita, cita en línea, programación en línea, contratación de cita compromisso, agenda de compromisso, compromisso online, agendamento online, reserva de compromisso, calendário de compromissos, plugin de reserva de compromisso para sites do WordPress, cita,  WordPress, calendario de citas, plugin de contratación para sitios WordPress, planning, prise de rdv wordpress, prise de rendez-vous wordpress, gestion de rdv, rendez-vous, online terminplaner, terminplanung, online terminbuchung, online kalender, terminplaner mit bezahlsystem, online buchung kalender, terminbuchung, консультация,доступность,встречайтесь с клиентами,видеоконференция,календарь,Встреча онлайн,бронирование встреч,планирование встреч,забронировать консультацию
Requires at least: 3.8
Tested up to: 5.2
Stable tag: 3.16.1
License: GPLv2 or later
License URI: http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html

Add the #1 online scheduling system to your website. Easy and flexible, vCita plugin let your customers book appointment with you 24/7.
 
== Description ==

vCita Appointment booking and online scheduling plugin for WordPress offers a self-service scheduling system for 1-on-1 appointments, group events and classes. <BR>

Appointment booking and online scheduling by vCita quickly integrates into any WordPress website, and eliminates the back-and-forth communications in appointment booking and event registration.
The system sends automatic reminders, confirmations and follow-ups. <br>


<br>
**What can <b>you do</b> with <b>Appointment Booking and Online Scheduling by vCita</b> plugin:**

* Set your availability, create services, assign meetings to specific staff members
* Send automatic reminders for future appointments, for due payments
* Accept credit card payment and Paypal payments
* Create estimates, invoices and receipts
* Send messages
* Share documents and files
* Take action - 24/7 and on any device
* And more...

<br>
**What can <b>your clients do with Appointment Booking and Online Scheduling</b> plugin:**

* Schedule appointments & meetings, book services with specific staff members
* Confirm or reschedule appointments & services via your branded client portal
* Request a callback
* Register for events, sign up for classes
* Pay for services and view their invoices / receipts
* Send messages
* Share documents and files
* Take action - 24/7 and on any device
* And more...

<br>
**Appointment Booking and Online Scheduling by vCita is a great plugin for:**

* <b>Salons and Spas</b> (hairdressers, beauty salons, spa center, massage center)
* <b>Fitness pro</b> (fitness coach, yoga instructor, personal trainers)
* <b>Studios</b> (dance, yoga, pilates)
* <b>Health</b> professionals (dentist, nutritionist, chiropractor, therapists)
* Life coach and <b>Business coach</b>
* <b>Consultants</b> (finance, tax, legal, marketing)
* <b>Private teachers & schools</b>
* and all other service providers


<br>


**Run Your Business from Anywhere** <br>
vCita appointment booking system helps you manage your schedule wherever you are. You will be able to initiate new interactions on-the-fly, respond to client requests in real-time and assign clients to staff members. <br><br>
Quickly reply to scheduling requests on-the-go with the vCita **Mobile App** for <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/app/vcita-mobile-crm/id1025423769?mt=8">iPhone</a> or <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vcita.mobileapp">Android</a>
 <BR>  <BR>
Manage your schedule and calendar, receive mobile notifications for client requests and automate confirmations and reminders sent to clients - consistently delivering amazing service to your new and existing customers!
<BR>   <BR>
vCita appointment booking & online scheduling plugin is highly customizable and will perfectly fit your business. It was designed with service oriented businesses in mind and is trusted by over 100,000 small businesses worldwide.
 


>[Homepage](https://www.vcita.com/software/online_scheduling?invite=WP-V-SCHD "vCita Online Scheduling") | [Live-Demo](https://live.vcita.com/site/janeandrews/online-scheduling "Live-Demo") | [Videos](https://www.vcita.com/education_center?invite=WP-V-SCHD "tutorials") | [FAQs](https://support.vcita.com/home "vCita support forum") | [For Web Professionals](https://www.vcita.com/partners/web-professionals?o=WP-V-SCHD&invite=o=WP-V-SCHD "partners")


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCh4EV3bNvI

= Translations =
vCita appointment booking and online scheduling is available in:

* English
* Spanish
* French
* Portuguese
* Russian
* German
* Polish
* Italian
* Ducth
 
vCita appointment booking and online scheduling plugin connects to your WordPress account. You may create a vCita account directly from the plugin, with a 14-day FREE TRIAL.

 
### Accelerate your business with vCita appointment booking & online scheduling software: ###


*       __Anytime, Anywhere Online Scheduling.__ Clients can set and reschedule appointments anytime, anywhere and from any device. 
*       __Accept Payments for Services Online.__ Get paid faster by accepting client payments for your services online.  Clients can pay with credit card or PayPayl, and funds will be deposited to your back account with no extra fee.
*       __Customize the Experience.__ Display an online list of services, fees and scheduling options. Let clients choose the type of service or how the appointment will be conducted (in person, online, over the phone or via Skype). Let clients select their desired service, staff member, and time that works for them based on your team's up-to-date availability.
*       __Streamline Admin Tasks.__ Reduce no-shows by automating booking confirmations, reminders and follow-ups. Receive automated email and text messages alerting you of appointment booking requests.
*       __Stay Up-to-Date.__ Automatically sync your online calendar with your mobile phone and existing personal calendar - Outlook, Google, iCal and more.
*       __Flexible & Scalable.__ vCita Online Scheduling WordPress Plugin is flexible and customizable as your company grows. As your team expands, you can set advanced scheduling preferences such as inviting clients to book appointments with specific staff members, assign appointments to staff and display a joint-availability team calendar.
*       __Create & Share Discount Coupons.__ Generate more sales & improve customer loyalty with discounted services. Fill up your events & classes by offering discount coupons on your website and your email campaigns.
*       __Promote Your Services with Email & SMS Campaigns.__ Easily craft and send actionable email campaigns and SMS marketing. Promote your services, events and classes with beautiful, mobile-friendly campaigns, and easily track their results in real-time.

<br>

### More of vCita online scheduling plugin exclusive features: ### 
* Mobile friendly - vCita online scheduler works great on any mobile device and allows your clients to schedule or book time with you – anywhere, anytime! 
* Appointment booking for 1-on-1 appointments.
* Registration for group events and classes with multiple attendees.
* Set appointments, services, events and classes to be one-time or recurring on a regular basis.
* A variety of services types to choose from - vCita appointment booking software lets you customize your services options: an appointment at your office or at your client's address, a phone call, a video call and even an online service.
* Automate appointment follow ups to make sure clients are engaged with your business, and customize follow-up options per service.
* Booking form customization - Collect all the information you need right when your clients schedule an appointment. Add any field or question to the scheduling form and store the information within the client card.
* Time zone adjustments - For global businesses, vCita appointment booking plugin can take care of all time zone differences, helping you and your clients stay in sync. 
* Send automatic reminders - vCita will notify both you and your clients of the upcoming appointment via SMS text messages and emails.
* Colors customization - vCita online scheduling plugin lets you customize the look-and-feel to suit your brand. Your scheduler can perfectly fit your website's colors and theme, and you can even add your business's logo.
* Track your clients on vCita online scheduling software - Track your clients with Google Analytics, and track conversion for Google Advertising.
* Staff booking options - Let clients select the staff member they wish to work with, or manually assign a contact request or an appointment to a specific staff member.
* Automatically accept appointments – You can set vCita online scheduler to automatically accept appointments for you, setting a new standard of quick response times.
* Manage your clients with vCita – Import your clients, add personal notes, edit client information, and even set follow-up reminders.
* Perform bulk operations - group clients with common attributes together using tags, and perform bulk operations such as sending a mass message or promotional offer.
* Great client experience - Clients can easily book appointments and services 247, conveniently reschedule, send a message or securely share a document before and after the meeting.
* Calendar availability management - Manage your availability and block out times when you are unavailable, so client will book appointments according to your work hours and real-time availability.
* Quick onboarding – get started by importing your existing clients into vCita online scheduler, and instantly begin managing your clients and conversations.
* Professional-looking booking page – distinguish yourself from competition with a beautiful, mobile-friendly appointment booking & online scheduling page. Build your booking page easily with a friendly editor, add your texts, images and videos along with scheduling call-to-actions. You can even host your booking page on your own domain.
* Full customization of texts, images and colors in your appointment booking page, website pop-up widget and buttons.


<a href="https://live.vcita.com/site/janeandrews/online-scheduling">See how vCita appointment booking & online scheduling works in this example. Select a service, a time and confirm in 3 clicks.</a> 

<br>
Visit vCita.com to find out more about the 
<a href="https://www.vcita.com/software/online_scheduling?o=wp-v-schd&invite=wp-v-schd">appointment booking & online scheduling</a> and <a href="https://www.vcita.com/software/event_registration?o=wp-v-schd&invite=wp-v-schd">event registration</a> options
<br>


Find out more about <a href="https://www.vcita.com?invite=WP-V-SCHD">vCita appointment booking and online scheduling plugin</a>  

== Installation ==
 

= Recommended installation for Appointment Booking and Online Scheduling by vCita =

1.  Connect to WordPress admin Panel
2.  Click the "Plugins" menu on the left and choose "Add New".
    Search for "Appointment Booking and Online Scheduling by vCita" and install it. 
3.  After the appointment booking plugin installation has finished, click "Activate".
4.  Click on the new "vCita Online Scheduling" tab that is now available on your left bar.
5.  Insert your email to which new appointment booking requests will be sent, and click "OK"
6.  Insert your first name and last name in the pop-up window and click "Submit" to continue editing your online booking preferences.


= Customize your online booking preferences  =
1.  Click on "Go to settings".
2.  Follow the "online scheduling wizard" to set all you scheduling and online booking preferences.
3.  Once done- return to your Wordpress admin panel. 
4.  Click on" test drive your online scheduling" and see what your clients will see when booking an appointment with you.

= Select your online booking widget = 
1. You can choose how to add your appointment booking service:

*  **Active Engage** - A proactive scheduling box. This option is most popular as it encourages visitors to contact you and increases your leads

*  **Scheduling Calendar** - Add a booking calendar or a service menu directly on your page

*  **Contact Form** with an appointment scheduling button

*  **Sidebar** - Show appointment scheduling buttons on the sidebar of every page on your site

*  **Links and shortcodes**

2.      Select your prefered widget, and click "Edit" to customize it.

For manual installation instructions and additional widgets - look at the FAQ section

== Frequently Asked Questions ==

= How do I set my availability for appointments, hourly rate and other preferences? =
Once you enter your email, you will receive an email from vCita to complete your registration.<br>
You will then have the option to customize your widget, add your photo, set meeting preferences and schedule.<br>
Once you are logged in to vCita, you can always change your settings from the Wordpress plugin settings page.<br>
<br>

= How do I change the size of the widget? =
Use the following code sample:<br>
To place widget horizontally - [vCitaMeetingScheduler type=widget height=200]<br>
Width is adjusted to the width of the page or frame the widget is added to.<br>
You may also customize width by adding parameter width=80% or width=150.<br>
<br>
To have a widget that only contains buttons (no image or profile text) use the following code:<br>
[vCitaMeetingScheduler type=widget height=110]<br>
<br>
NOTE: if you are integrating the widget as a sidebar, you should use the "Text" widget and put use codes above.
Do not use the vCita widget.
<br>

= I want to create my own widget format (colors, buttons etc) =
You can create your own buttons to better match your site colors or style.<br>
All you need is to maintain links for "Send a Message" and "Set a Meeting".<br>
Those links can be found at your vCita dashboard under Add To Website</a>" <br>
<br>

= Can I add the proactive contact form (Active Engage) to a specific page?  =
Visit our support forum to see how to <a href="https://support.vcita.com/forums/21650943-wordpress">Add Active Engage to specific pages</a>
<br>

= What types of services can I offer = 
  * Free or paid services
  * from 5 minutes to a whole day event
  * In-person appointment, online meeting (video, chat and more) and Phone

= How and where do I see my booking requests? = 
Once a clients sends you a booking request using one of vCita's booking widgets, the new booking request will be added to a "Require your attention" area in your vCita dashboard.
In addition, for any new or updated booking request you will receive an email notification, so you could accept, decline or reschedule from wherever you are.
Once the booking request is approved by you, the appointment will be added to your vCita calendar view, as well as to your existing calendar and your client's calendar.
A reminder for the upcoming appointment will be sent to both you and your client 15 minutes before the appointment takes place.
Once the appointment time is over, you will receive an email suggesting you to some follow-up options.
You can always see your booking requests in your email (using any device), your calendar and your vCita dashboard.



= How to manually add vCita -> I can't install vCita - how do I manually install vCita plugin ?  =

1. Click on the red "Download Version x.x" button on the right side of this page.
2. After the download has finished, extract the files.
3. Upload the "meeting-scheduler-by-vcita" folder to your server in "/wp-content/plugins" directory.
4. Back on the admin panel click the "Plugins" menu on the left. 
5. You should see the "Meeting scheduler by vCita" plugin listed in the available plugins. Click the "Activate" link below the plugin name.
6. Click "vCita Meeting Scheduler" under the "Plugins" menu.
7. Enter your e-mail address, first and last name and click "Save Settings".
8. Follow instructions sent to you by email from vCita.com to complete configuration.
<br>

= How do I create a listing of Multiple Contact and booking Widgets for different people on one page? =
You can use vCita to create multiple profile widgets on one page.<br>
All you need is the name and email of each user you wish to list.<br>

Simply have multiple lines in the following format:<br>
[vCitaMeetingScheduler type=widget height=200 email="support@vcita.com" first_name="Mike" last_name="Wright"] <br>

Now visitors can send a message or set a meeting with each of the users listed.<br>
Each user will get an email to confirm his email address and upload an image to complete his profile.<br>

= Which advanced booking options do I have? = 
  * Allow online booking based on your on-time availability
  * Reply to booking requests from anywhere - receive booking requests to your email and replay even when you're on the go.
  * Allow vCita to auto-accept booking requests when you're available.
  * Offer clients to suggest up to 3 time-slots when booking an appointment with you.
  * Set your minimum booking time - appointment intervals - prep time.
  * Create an Online Business card where clients and prospects can schedule an appointment with you and get to know your services.
  * Create services and add their prices - request or suggest payment at booking if relevant to your business.
  * Invite your clients for an appointment with or  without asking for their approval
  * Show your terms of service when booking time with you.
  * Add automatic messages and reminders - for appointment bookings and payments
  * Accept, decline and reschedule booking requests from a calendar view
  * All booking requests are added to your existing calendar
  * Booking is done in 2 simple steps

<br>
Have More questions? Need assistance? <a href="https://support.vcita.com/">Visit our Support forum and FAQ</a>
<br>

= What are vCita Terms and Conditions? =
Please visit <a href="https://www.vcita.com/about/terms_of_service?invite=wp-v-schd">Terms and Conditions</a>
<br>

= What is vCita Privacy Policy? =
Please visit <a href="https://www.vcita.com/about/privacy_policy?invite=wp-v-schd">Privacy Policy</a>
<br>

== Screenshots ==

1. **Define your availability** Customize your business hours and sync with your phone and existing calendar—Outlook, Google, iCal and more.
2. **Appointment Reminders** Send automatic reminders to reduce no-shows 
3. **Customize your scheduling** Customize your scheduling link and your client portal to match your brand.
4. **Lead Capture Widget** Encourage more visitors and potential clients to take action, and get more appointments in less time.
5. **Collect Payments** Collect online payment and accept credit card. Send estimates, payment reminders, invoices and receipts.

== Changelog == 

= Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.16.1 =
 * Updated to latest Wordpress version

= Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.16 =
 * Fixed some minor bugs
 * Updated to latest Wordpress version

= Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.15 =
 * Updated to latest Wordpress version
 * Automatic marketing campaigns added: send automatic birthday coupons to your customers, define your trigger and create beautiful email campaigns for any special occasion.
 * Client portal updated
 * New image gallery & upload function: increase your brand visibility & look as pro online as in real life

= Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.14.8 =
 * Integration with Google Reserve
 * Color code calendar
 * New "Import Contact" feature: upload your list of customers from desktop and mobile
 * New mobile Homepage

= Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.14.7 =
 * Fixed some minor bugs

= Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.14.6 =
 * Fixed some minor bugs, affecting the styling of text boxes at admin view

= Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.14.5 =
 * Security and privacy adjustments (full compliance with GDPR requirements)
 * Issue branded price estimates, let clients approve them online and turn them into invoices in a single click
 * Charge clients’ credit card directly from your backoffice
 * Accept, collect & record partial payments for upcoming or rendered services & appointments
 * New automated reminders for overdue invoices and for about-to-expire estimates
 * New "saved items" library to add pre-saved services to invoices & estimates
 * Add your business terms & conditions to estimates and invoices
 * New option to set and enforce your business cancellation & rescheduling policy
 * Two new staff permission types: Manager and Marketer (in addition to the existing roles of Administrator, Collaborator and User)
 * New option to add private documents to your client cards for internal use
 * Schedule email & SMS campaigns to be sent out at a future date & time
 * New parameters for campaigns: insert clients' names within your email & SMS campaigns
 * Brand new dashboard with a quick-view of all your business activity to gain insights and take action
 * New sticky custom fields allowing you to ask a returning client for specific information until they fill it in
 * Add, edit and manage past group events & classes
 * New & improved Zapier integrations: new triggers, new actions and new search option

= Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.14.4 =
 * Compatibility with WordPress 4.9
 * Improved invoicing & payment management
 * Full translation to Italian

= Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.14.3 =
* Coupons: create discount coupons, offer coupons on your website or during online booking, assign coupons to specific services or staff members, easily share coupons through promotional email/SMS campaigns
* Appointment/event management screen UI enhancements, additional contextual client information

= Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.14.2 =
* Easily schedule recurring appointments 
* Set date-specific availability for services and bookings
* Edit a series of events/classes in a single click, send a single calendar invite for the complete event/class series
* Payment-related enhancements: cancel a payment, filter payments due in the next 30 days
* Promote your services: send email and SMS campaigns inviting clients to book your services and appointments

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.14.1 =
* Compatibility with WordPress 4.8

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.14 =
* New module - promote services and events via email & SMS campaigns
* Enhanced export options, export by staff and service
* Automatic follow-ups
* Timezone tables update
* Mobile app performance improvements
* Option to not accept new bookings from clients marked as spam
* Clone service options 

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.13.4 =
* New – add categories and images to the online service menu
* New – add notes and tags to clients and meetings
* New payment options, including record offline payments
* Enhanced reminders, confirmations and follow-ups
* New 3rd party integrations

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.13.3 =
 * Compatibility with WordPress 4.7
 * New - Require payment during scheduling

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.13.2 =
 * New tracking and filtering options
 * Improvements to staff view of the calendar
 * Added the option to promote specific service on the LiveSite widget

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.13.1 =
 * Compatibility with WordPress 4.6

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.13.0 =
 * Fixed some minor bugs

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.12.0 =
 * Compatibility with WordPress 4.5

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.11.0 =
 * Events and classes registration option
 * Improved design for event registration page

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.10.0 =
 * New Mobile app for iPhone & Android
 * Compatibility with WordPress 4.4

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.9.0 =
 * New! Scheduling form customization per service
 * Some improvements with the calendar
 * Compatibility with WordPress 4.3

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.8.0 =
 * Compatibility with WordPress 4.2
 * New! SMS reminders to clients

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.7.0 =
 * New - collect online payments using Stripe.
 * Customize and better control the automatic email notifications sent to your clients and your business. 
 * Set Future Booking Cut-Off Date 
 * More Layouts for the LiveSite Widget

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.6.0 =
 * New "Future booking" setting which lets you set Maximum time for advance bookings, to prevent appointments from being scheduled to far in advance
 * New design for the email notifications sent from vCita to you & your clients
 * More customization for the emails including branding colors and logo
 * New! Email signature option was added
 
 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.5.0 =
 * Compatibility with WordPress 4.1
 * Added more flexibility with availability settings
 * Enabled different availability per service.
 * Added the option to set preparation time per service.

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.4.0 =
 * Compatibility with 4.0
 * Screenshots update
 * LiveSite Widget
 * Improved contact management options

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.3.2 =
 * Adjustments to WordPress version 3.9
 * Improved scheduling for multiple team members, including option to assign a contact to specific staff member
 * Improved mobile view on the scheduling process

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.3 =
 * New widget option - Scheduling Calendar

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.2 =
 * Adjustments to WordPress "Parker" version 3.8
 * Scheduling for multiple team members
 * Scheduling and contact custom fields


 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.1 =
  * Direct link to profile settings and scheduling settings
  * Demo of your scheduling experience 
  * Changed plugin name
  * Improvements to meeting invitations option
  * Improved scheduling settings screen
  * Improved client-details view.

 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version 3.0 = 
  * A new plugin management screen
  * All widgets editing can now be done directly from Wordpress
  * Fix to Contact Sidebar disconnection issue
  * New color themes options
  * More scheduling and appointment booking options 
  * New booking options to the services menu - Online service
  * New scheduling wizard to set all scheduling and booking preferences 
  * Improvement to client view of online booking requests
 
 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version Version 2.1.0 (7 Aug 2012) = 
  * Embed code is now dynamically created
 
 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version Version 2.0.0 (8 May 2012) = 
  * Settings page now directs to vCita site for much more customization options
  * Redesign of the settings page to be simpler and contain more relevant information
  * Changed to use the new API 
  * Fixed all warnings for referencing undefined array indices 
  * Updated FAQs
 
 = Appointment Booking and online Scheduling by vCita Version Version 1.0.0 (12 Feb 2012) = 
  * Initial Version

 == Upgrade Notice == 
We've updated our app with tons of new features! Update your plugin to enjoy them.
**If you have any type of question occuring our plugin contact us at our plugin [SUPPORT FORUM](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/booking-calendar).**