Enhancement: Pre-buffer

Enhancement: Pre-buffer

Hello Bookings Community,

 

Greetings from the Bookings Team!

 

We're delighted to announce one of the most-awaited features, Pre-buffer, which allows you to add buffer time before the appointment time.

 

What is buffer time?

Buffer time is additional time added to the appointment duration, either before or after the appointment. It can be used to ensure that you have enough time to prepare or get ready for the next appointment. Pre-buffer refers specifically to the buffer time added before the appointment, and post-buffer is for after the appointment.

 

How has buffer time worked so far in Bookings?

  • Until now, you've been able to include buffer time when setting up a new service, and it was added after the appointment time.
  • If appointments were created as calendar events, the buffer time was blocked along with the appointment time by default.

 

How will buffer time work from now on?

  • Beginning 08-Dec-2023, you can add a buffer time before and after the appointment time.
  • If the appointment is created as a calendar event, you have the option to choose whether to block buffer time along with it or not.

 

Learn how to implement buffer time


While adding a new service, you can tick the Add buffer time checkbox. Then, add the time duration for Pre-buffer and Post-buffer.

 


When the customer books an appointment, slots will be made available calculating the buffer time and appointment duration. For instance, if a service is created with an appointment duration of 30 minutes, a pre-buffer of 15 minutes, and a post-buffer of 15 minutes, the time slot will only be offered if a total duration of one hour is available for the staff (i.e., pre-buffer + appointment duration + post-buffer).

 

Once the appointment is booked, staff can view the buffer time from the Appointment Summary and Calendar View.


 

Block buffer time in calendar events

In Bookings, the availability of a staff member for an appointment is decided by including the buffer time. But, there can be situations where a staff member's exact availability is needed in external calendars. This can be useful if the staff member has to attend meetings apart from the appointments in Bookings. You can then choose to block buffer time in your calendar events along with the appointment time.  


 

Notifications

You can include the pre_buffer and post_buffer variables in the email and SMS notification templates for your staff.

 

Please note that your customers will not be aware of this buffer time, but if the buffer time is added to calendar events, then the customer can view this additional time in their calendar invite.  


 

Help documentation

Explore our extensive help document designed to provide a thorough understanding of buffer time.

 

We value your feedback and are constantly working to improve and innovate based on your needs. Please don't hesitate to share your thoughts or questions with us at support@zohobookings.com or in the comments section below.

 

Thanks,

The Zoho Bookings Team

 

 



      Zoho Campaigns Resources


        • Desk Community Learning Series


        • Digest


        • Functions


        • Meetups


        • Kbase


        • Resources


        • Glossary


        • Desk Marketplace


        • MVP Corner


        • Word of the Day


        • Ask the Experts


          • Sticky Posts

          • 📣📣 Zoho Bookings Schedulathon 2025 is here!

            Hey Zoho Bookings fam, We're excited to invite you to our first-ever hackathon: Yes, Zoho Bookings Schedulathon 2025 is live now. This is a virtual event and you can participate anywhere from the world. Businesses should be able to set up meetings from
          • 📣 [Webinar] Spikra shows how businesses leverage Zoho Bookings to increase revenue

            [Webinar] Spikra shows how businesses leverage Zoho Bookings to increase revenue Hi all, Service-based businesses need to be on top of their client experience game to stay ahead. Spikra, one of our Advanced Zoho Partners, has been helping businesses deliver
          • 📣📣 Zoho Bookings - Feature Roadmap 2024

            Hi Everyone, Thank you for all the support you have been showing Zoho Bookings. We had a fabulous 2023, with a bunch of new features and over 60K new users. In 2024, our prime focus will be on user experience, and we have a few vital features coming in
          • Attention: Important updates to the payment gateway integrations

            Greetings from the Zoho Bookings team! We have a few important updates to the payment gateway integrations that allow you to collect online payments for your appointments. The following payment gateways will be updated, and we encourage you to make the
          • Attention: Scheduled Maintenance at US DC on Dec 19, 2024

            Dear Bookings users, We would like to inform you that we've scheduled maintenance activity at our US data centers on Thursday, December 19th, 2024, from 5:30 PM to 5:45 PM PT. During this period, Zoho Bookings will be completely unavailable for the accounts

          Zoho CRM Plus Resources

            Zoho Books Resources


              Zoho Subscriptions Resources

                Zoho Projects Resources


                  Zoho Sprints Resources


                    Zoho Orchestly Resources


                      Zoho Creator Resources


                        Zoho WorkDrive Resources



                          Zoho CRM Resources

                          • CRM Community Learning Series

                            CRM Community Learning Series


                          • Tips

                            Tips

                          • Functions

                            Functions

                          • Meetups

                            Meetups

                          • Kbase

                            Kbase

                          • Resources

                            Resources

                          • Digest

                            Digest

                          • CRM Marketplace

                            CRM Marketplace

                          • MVP Corner

                            MVP Corner




                            Zoho Writer Writer

                            Get Started. Write Away!

                            Writer is a powerful online word processor, designed for collaborative work.

                              Zoho CRM コンテンツ








                                ご検討中の方

                                  • Recent Topics

                                  • Zoho Commerce - Mobile Application

                                    Does Zoho Commerce have a mobile application for customers to place an order?
                                  • Register user through Phone Number by Generating OTP

                                    In zoho commerce , I am developing website on online food store Inilialy the user get verification code to their email for registering there account for login. But I need to login using phone number by generating OTP automatically rather than verification
                                  • Unable to change sales_order status form "not_invoiced" to "invoiced"

                                    I am automating process of creating of invoice from sales_orders by consolidated sales_orders of each customer and creating a single invoice per customer every month. I am doing this in workflow schedule custom function where i create invoice by getting
                                  • Custom Buttons for Mass Actions

                                    Hello everyone, We’ve just made Custom Buttons in Zoho Recruit even more powerful! You can now create Bulk Action Buttons that let you perform actions on multiple records at once, directly from the List View. What’s new? Until now, custom buttons were
                                  • Zoho Vault Passwords

                                    Is there a way to consume Zoho Vault Manager passwords using the API? Thanks in advance.
                                  • Is the ChatGPT Assistant integration capable of recognizing WhatsApp voice messages?

                                    I was wondering: if a visitor sends me a voice message on WhatsApp, would the assistant be able to transcribe it and reply to them?
                                  • Zoho Creator to Zoho CRM Images

                                    Right now, I am trying to setup a Notes form within Zoho Creator. This Notes will note the Note section under Accounts > Selected Account. Right now, I use Zoho Flow to push the notes and it works just fine, with text only. Images do not get sent (there
                                  • 【Zoho CRM】レポート機能のアップデート

                                    ユーザーの皆さま、こんにちは。コミュニティチームの藤澤です。 今回は「Zoho CRM アップデート情報」の中から、レポート機能のアップデートをご紹介します。 目次 1. レポートのエクスポート時のレコードIDの表示について 2. 通貨項目の表示について 3. レポートの削除の監査ログへの反映について 1. レポートのエクスポート時のレコードIDの表示について これまで、レポートをエクスポートするとファイルにレコードIDが必ず含まれていました。レコードIDが識別子として役立つ場合もありますが、実際には多くの企業で参照されることはありません。
                                  • Translation in zoho bookings

                                    We cant translate zoho booking emails. The general text we can change. But what about text like: ""Here a link to join the meeting online:"" and "Add to Zoho Calendar" and "Add to Google Calendar"? No professional business have mixed languages. Its looking
                                  • Is there any way to bill one client in different currencies on different invoices?

                                    I have some customers who have their currency set as USD and most of their billing is done in USD.   However, from time to time I have a need to bill them in my base currency GBP for some specific invoices, but there seems to be no way of doing this that I can see. The only workaround that I can see is to create two client records for the same client, one for USD billing and one for GBP billing, but this is not an ideal situation. Is it likely that the (hopefully!) soon to arrive multi-currency support
                                  • API name for all fields in Zoho Project (Standard or custom)

                                    Hi! I struggle to find easily all API name of all field in Zoho Project to build my API rest with other services. We can find them very fast in CRM but not in PRoject.   Could you share a function to get the list of all API Name of any field of an App
                                  • Disappearing Mouse cursor in Zoho Mail / Windows 11 (Chrome + Edge)

                                    I'm seeing an issue when writing mails with the light theme with the mouse cursor being white and the document area also being white - making it nearly impossible to see the mouse cursor. I see the problem on Windows 11 under Chrome and Edge. (Yet to
                                  • Zoho Assist not rendering NinjaTrader chart properly

                                    Hi everyone. Just installed and testing Zoho Assist. I want to display my laptop' screen (Windows 11) on a monitor connected to my Mac mini. The laptop is running a stock trading program called NinjaTrader. Basically, when running, this program displays
                                  • Dropshipping Address - Does Not Show on Invoice Correctly

                                    When a dropshipping address is used for a customer, the correct ship-to address does not seem to show on the Invoice. It shows correctly on the Sales Order, Shipment Order, and Package, just not the Invoice. This is a problem, because the company being
                                  • Best way to schedule bill payments to vendors

                                    I've integrated Forte so that I can convert POs to bills and make payments to my vendors all through Books. Is there a way to schedule the bill payments as some of my vendors are net 30, net 60 and even net 90 days. If I can't get this to work, I'll have
                                  • Link(s) between Notes

                                    Hello Everyone, It would be great if links could be created between notes. Let's say we have 5 Notes A, B, C , D, E. I would like to be able to link Note A to Note B but not in other way, so no link appears in Note B linking to Note A. An so on, linking
                                  • Option to Hide Project Overview for Client Profiles

                                    In Zoho Projects, the Project Overview section is currently visible to client profiles by default. While user profiles already have the option to restrict or hide access to the project overview, the same flexibility isn’t available for client profiles.
                                  • Zoho Books | Product updates | August 2025

                                    Hello users, We’ve rolled out new features and enhancements in Zoho Books. From the right sidebar where you can manage all your widgets, to integrating Zoho Payments feeds in Zoho Books, explore the updates designed to enhance your bookkeeping experience.
                                  • Regex in Zoho Mail custom filters is not supported - but it works!

                                    I recently asked Zoho for help using regex in Zoho Mail custom filters and was told it was NOT supported. This was surprising (and frustrating) as regex in Zoho Mail certainly works, although it does have some quirks* To encourage others, here are 3 regex
                                  • Feature Request: Assign Documents to Already Entered Bills, Expenses, Invoices, etc.

                                    Hi Zoho Team, We are regular users of the Documents module in Zoho Books and appreciate its ability to keep financial records well-organized. However, we’ve noticed a limitation: There is no way to attach a document from the "Documents > Files" section
                                  • I don't see any WITHDRAWL transaction at all

                                    Hi I manually imported my bank statement to Zoho books today and I am a complete newbie. I have been reading the knowledgebase but unable to fix this. I only see "Uncategorized 91 DEPOSIT transactions". I don't see any WITHDRAWL transaction at all. Also,
                                  • Shared inbox unable to see replies

                                    Hi we are a small company me and someone else, we have a shared inbox for our sale@ and contact@ however we have this issue where by if i reply to an email or the other person reply to the email, it does not show it to them and therefore we end up replying
                                  • Kaizen #136 - Zoho CRM Widgets using ReactJS

                                    Hey there! Welcome back to yet another insightful post in our Kaizen series! In this post, let's explore how to use ReactJS for Zoho CRM widgets. We will utilize the sample widget from one of our previous posts - Geocoding Leads' Addresses in ZOHO CRM
                                  • 404 error at checkout

                                    Our customers are getting a 404 error at checkout. Anyone else with the same problem?
                                  • FONT Sizing in Notebook

                                    Hi Kishore - What is the status of adding font sizing to the application? I have several things that I have pasted directly into Notebook and the fonts are HUGE! I would like the ability to highlight them and reduce the font to a legible size. Nothing
                                  • Can managers Upload documents to their direct rapports?

                                    Admin employees have the ability to upload documents to employees' files; however, managers do not have add/manage button - is it possible for managers to upload their direct reports' documents, such as absence documents or 121 documents. Is there something
                                  • Leave balance display for next year

                                    Is there a way to not have a rollover or not limit the leave balance depending on the date. For example an employee has 10 days leave balance and wants to apply for January leave in December. They cant because the rollover doesnt show the leave balance
                                  • Please add an “Auto-Apply Unused Credits” toggle

                                    Hello — please add a simple org-level option to automatically apply unused credits (credit notes, excess payments, retainers) to new invoices and/or bills. An ON/OFF toggle with choices “invoices”, “bills”, or “both” would save lots of manual work for
                                  • Zoho Books not working/loading

                                    Hi! I haven't been able to access/load Zoho Books for the past hours. I get a time out (and it is not due to my internet connection). Could you please check this asap? Thank you!
                                  • Custom Fields with Data Types for Expense and Payments Received in Zoho Books

                                    Hi all, We are glad to present to you, the option to create Custom Fields for the Expense and Payments received modules in Zoho Books. This also comes with an icing on top of it - Yes, the custom fields can now be created with different data types. Types like Text, Number, Decimal, Amount, Auto Number and Check Box are supported as of now. Rush to the gear icon at the top right corner, select 'More Settings', choose 'Preferences' in the left pane. Click the Expense/Payment preferences where you can
                                  • [Webinar] Automate sales and presales workflows with Writer

                                    Sales involves sharing a wide range of documents with customers across the presales, sales, and post-sales stages: NDAs, quotes, invoices, sales orders, and delivery paperwork. Generating and managing these documents manually slows down the overall sales
                                  • Zoho Cliq - Incident alert (Server outage - IN DC) | August 28

                                    We've received server down alerts and are currently investigating the issue (IN DC) to find the root cause. Our team is actively working to restore normal operations at the earliest. Status: Under investigation Start time: 09:44:21 AM IST Affected location:
                                  • Claude + MCP Server + Zoho CRM Integration – AI-Powered Sales Automation

                                    Hello Zoho Community 👋 I’m excited to share a recent integration we’ve worked on at OfficehubTech: ✅ Claude + MCP Server + Zoho CRM This integration connects Zoho CRM with Claude AI through our custom MCP Server, enabling intelligent AI-driven responses
                                  • How can I see content of system generated mails from zBooks?

                                    System generated mails for offers or invices appear in the mail tab of the designated customer. How can I view the content? It also doesn't appear in zMail sent folder.
                                  • Limitations on editing a message in Cliq

                                    Hi I've checked the documentations and there's no mention of how many times a message can be edited. When trying with code, I get various numbers such as ~1000 edits or so. Please mention if there's a limit on how many times one can change a message via
                                  • Narrative 10: Assignment Rules - Streamlining Ticket Management

                                    Behind the scenes of a successful ticketing system: BTS Series Narrative 10: Assignment Rules - Streamlining Ticket Management In the complex world of customer support, a flood of incoming tickets can hit the help desk in seconds. Businesses must do more
                                  • Free webinar! Digitize recruitment and onboarding with Zoho Sign and Zoho Recruit

                                    Hello, Tired of being buried in onboarding paperwork? With the integration between Zoho Sign and Zoho Recruit, a powerful applicant tracking system, you can digitize and streamline the entire recruitment and onboarding process, all from one platform.
                                  • Custom form - Duplicate Value Present

                                    I am new to Zoho People. I create a new form on Zoho People quite simple. A date (by default the current date) and a radio button with 3 options (Yes, No, Not applicable) I defined the date as ‘No duplicate’ as only one entry by date is allowed. I added:
                                  • Zoho API connection issues

                                    Hi, Today at around 1930 GMT our application started experiencing intermittent timeouts from the Zoho API. These intermittent timeouts are not enabling our app to work properly. The API connection was working just fine before. HTTPSConnectionPool(host='www.zohoapis.com',
                                  • Query Regarding our Partnership between AIC-JKLU and Zoho

                                    Dear Zoho Team, I am writing to raise a concern on behalf of AIC-JKLU, one of Zoho’s incubator partners. Recently, our startups have been facing difficulties while trying to get themselves onboarded on Zoho through our dedicated partner link. Unfortunately,
                                  • Next Page