Watch battery and strap appointments: short slots done right

Put quick jobs such as battery changes, strap fitting and bracelet sizing on short bookable appointments, and use the few minutes at the counter to check what a rushed job would miss: the gasket, the case back, the state of the movement. Clients choose the job and a time online, you know what's coming and have the right battery or strap width ready, and anything more serious turns into a proper service estimate instead of a promise made across the counter.

A battery change looks like five minutes. But opening a case back with the client waiting, finding the right cell, checking the seal, closing it properly and resetting the time and date takes attention. Done between two service jobs, with someone leaning on the counter, it's where scratched case backs and pinched gaskets happen.

A short slot gives the job its time, lets you finish what you're doing on the bench first, and tells the client exactly when to come.

On Book, each service has a name, a price and an optional description shown on your public page. You open slots for each service at the length it takes; clients pick a service, then a free slot. One place per slot: one watch on the bench at a time.

Durations and prices are examples: set your own. In the description of each service, say what's included and what isn't: a battery change is not a service, and a water resistance test needs the right equipment and time.

If the watch needs more than the booked job, say so, give an estimate and, if the client agrees, take it in for a service with a written receipt describing the watch and its condition.

A watch left for a service needs a clear trail. Write a receipt with the brand, model, serial number if visible, the strap or bracelet, the condition you both noted, the work agreed and the estimated ready date. Photograph the dial and case back. Store it in a labelled pouch, not loose in a tray. When it's ready, send the client your booking page link for a collection slot, so you have time to hand it back properly: explain what was done, set the time together and, for a mechanical watch, remind them how to wind it.

The public booking form asks for first name, last name, email and phone, plus an optional note you read in your new-booking email. Ask for the brand and model, or a description: "quartz, steel bracelet, bought in the 2000s". For straps, ask for the lug width if they know it. You can check you have the battery or strap before they arrive. The note can't be edited once the booking exists, so put the questions in the description.

Service and restoration work needs long, uninterrupted stretches. One option is to open quick-job slots at the start and end of the day, repeated each week on chosen weekdays until a date, and keep the middle for the bench. When someone walks in, serve them in a gap or give them a slot; to book it for them, create a slot and book it yourself from your calendar: first and last name are required, email and phone optional.

Clients can't move bookings online: they contact you, you reschedule or cancel from your bookings list and let them know, since Book doesn't email clients about changes. With calendar sync (Google, iPhone, Mac), quick jobs sit next to your service deadlines. Book doesn't take payments; it handles appointments. It costs €5/month, everything included: unlimited services and bookings, no commission, no contract.