Pet owner communications are the automated messages your customers receive through their journey with your business, including appointment confirmations, reminders, receipts and service updates. They are included in Business Pro, Flex and Max.
SMS and email
Each message goes by SMS, by email, or both.
| Channel | What it carries | Suits |
|---|---|---|
| SMS | Short, time-sensitive messages delivered straight to the customer's mobile. Customers can reply STOP to opt out. With the Communications Booster add-on, customers can reply and you can hold 2-way conversations | Appointment reminders, last-minute changes, payment confirmations, urgent updates, conversations with customers |
| Full appointment and service details with your business branding, receipts and invoices, action buttons for the customer, and unsubscribe links | Appointment confirmations, detailed receipts, service summaries |
Add 2-way SMS with Communications Booster
Communications Booster is an add-on for Business Pro, Flex and Max. It gives you a dedicated Australian +61 mobile number, an inbox where customers reply directly, one thread per customer holding the automated messages (reminders, payment alerts) and your manual replies, extra SMS credits pooled with your plan allocation, and free inbound messages.
- Open Settings, then SMS.
- Select Activate Communications Booster, then Get Started with Communications Booster.
- Complete the verification form with your legal business name, ABN, street address and one registration document.
Reviews are usually approved within 1-3 business days, and the dedicated number activates automatically after approval. When the number is live, use Messages for conversations. On Trial or Calendar Lite, the card reads Communications Booster needs a Pro, Flex or Max plan and the button is See plans.
You can only message existing pet owner customers, not any phone number. Booster credits pool with your plan's included SMS allocation, top-up credit packs are there if you need more, and pack credits never expire. The full setup is in Communications Booster and 2-Way SMS.
Appointment and payment texts
Petboost's texts follow fixed templates filled in from the booking. These are examples of what the customer receives.
Appointment reminder:
Kiwi's Full Groom
Mon 12 January 2026
Drop-off: 1:45 - 2pm
-Pawfect Grooming (no-reply)
Appointment rescheduled:
Booking changed - Kiwi:
WAS: Mon 12 January 2026 2:00pm
NOW: Tue 13 January 2026 2:00pm
https://app.petboost.com/appointments/abc123
-Pawfect Grooming (no-reply)
Appointment cancelled:
Cancelled: Miso's Bath and Tidy Mon 12 January 2026
Customer requested cancellation
-Pawfect Grooming (no-reply)
Pre-authorisation payment issue:
Pre-auth payment issue for Kiwi's Full Groom.
Check funds available.
This is a hold only, not charged yet.
-Pawfect Grooming (no-reply)
Payment declined:
Payment failed: Miso's appt Mon 12 January 2026 ($85.00)
Update: app.petboost.com/payments
Call Pawfect Grooming: +61491570157
-Pawfect Grooming (no-reply)
(no-reply) is added after your business name while you have no active dedicated number. With Communications Booster, customers can reply to your texts and the tag is left off. The link in a text opens the booking in the pet owner app.
The details Petboost fills in are:
| Detail | Filled in as |
|---|---|
| The pet's first name, joined with "&" when a booking has several pets | {{PetFirstName}} |
| The pet type emoji | {{PetAnimalTypeEmoji}} |
| The service name | {{ServiceLabel}} |
| The start time | {{StartTime}} |
| The start date | {{StartDate}} |
| The start date and time, plus the end date and time for a Stay or a booking that ends on a later day | {{DateTimeRange}} |
| The start date, plus the end date for a Stay or a booking that ends on a later day | {{DateRange}} |
| The assigned team member | {{TeamMemberName}} |
| The appointment cost | {{TotalPrice}} |
| Your business name | {{BusinessName}} |
| Your business phone number | {{BusinessPhone}} |
| A link to the booking in the pet owner app | {{AppointmentLink}} |
| The service's drop-off and pick-up time windows | {{WindowRangeDescription}} |
You cannot rewrite these templates. The wording you write yourself is the Confirmation Message and the Pre-Appointment Message on Notifications, both below, and the pick-up and drop-off texts on a service's Notifications tab, where chips such as Pet Name, is / are and has / have fill in the details.
Emails Petboost sends
On Fridays at 2pm, business time, Petboost emails the pet owner about each confirmed booking from Saturday to the following Friday. Email the customer: Friday reminder controls it, and it follows the first reminder email until you change it. There is no Friday text.
| Sent when | What it holds | |
|---|---|---|
| Appointment reminder | Before the appointment, at the time you set | Service details, date, time, team member and preparation instructions |
| Appointment Friday reminder | Fridays at 2pm, business time, for each confirmed booking from Saturday to the following Friday | The week's bookings with service and team member details |
| Appointment rescheduled | When the appointment time changes | The old and new appointment details |
| Appointment accepted | When you accept a new booking request | Service details, preparation instructions and the team member |
| Appointment created | When your team creates a booking | Full service and scheduling details, and payment information |
| Appointment created by pet owner | When the customer books online | The booking confirmation, the customer's preferences and your contact details |
| Appointment declined | When you decline a booking request | Other scheduling options and your contact details |
| Appointment cancelled | When your team cancels an appointment | The cancellation, refund information and rebooking options |
| Appointment cancelled by pet owner | When the customer cancels their own appointment | Your cancellation policy and future booking options |
| Appointment payment succeeded | When a payment is processed | The payment confirmation, receipt and transaction details |
| Appointment refund issued | When a refund is processed | The refund amount, method and timeline |
| Pre-auth heads-up | 74 hours before the appointment, 2 hours before the pre-authorisation hold, when pre-hold funds is on | Notice of the pre-authorisation and the payment method |
Payment receipts go out by email automatically after a payment, with the invoice details, the payment confirmation, your business branding and a downloadable PDF receipt.
Each lesson in a course is its own appointment, so course customers receive the same reminders and change messages as other bookings. The enrolment confirmation email lists every lesson in the course with its name, date and time.
Send a customer their upcoming appointments
Send it when a customer calls to ask when their next appointment is, or to confirm their schedule ahead of time.
- Open Customers & Pets and select Manage on one of the customer's pets.
- Open Manage Owner and select Send Upcoming Appointments.
- Check the message, which opens ready to send in the conversation panel, then send it.
The message greets the customer by first name, lists their next appointments, up to six, with the date and time of each, and links to their appointments in the pet owner app. Send Upcoming Appointments needs Communications Booster and a phone number on the customer's account, and it sends nothing when the customer has no upcoming appointments. The same option is in the customer's details on a booking.
Set reminder timing and confirmation replies
Reminders go out before each appointment, at the time you choose. A reply-to-confirm line can be added to the reminder text.
- Open Settings, then Notifications.
- Under Pre-Appointment Reminders, set the Reminder Time for the First Reminder.
- Optional: under Second Reminder, switch on Email the customer: reminders (2nd) or Text the customer: reminders (2nd), and set its time.
- Optional: switch on Confirmation Reply (Y/N), then edit Confirmation Message, the text added to SMS reminders.
- Select Publish Changes, tick the box in Before You Publish, then select Publish Changes.
Reminder Time takes Weeks, Days, Hours and Minutes, with minutes in 5-minute steps. A reminder time longer than 72 hours shows This reminder may not land in time to be effective. Common settings are 2 hours for a last-minute reminder on a same-day appointment, 24 hours as the standard reminder, and 48 hours for two days' notice.
Confirmation Reply (Y/N) asks the customer to reply Y or N, and needs an active dedicated number from Communications Booster. A Y reply does not change the appointment status or the confirmation email copy. For a note on confirmation and reminder emails, and optionally texts, use the Pre-Appointment Message, below.
Automation timing
Automatic actions run at fixed points around an appointment.
| When | What happens |
|---|---|
| 74 hours before | The pre-auth heads-up email, when pre-hold funds is on |
| 72 hours before | Pre-hold funds: the pre-authorisation hold is placed on the card |
| Appointment time | Auto-start |
| End time | Auto-complete |
| 30 minutes after the scheduled end | Auto-finalise |
| The next 15-minute check after finalising | Auto-pay, with the receipt |
Override notifications for one customer
A customer can have notification and booking settings of their own that override your business defaults, such as email reminders only, or a shorter notice period for a trusted regular. A customer's setting takes precedence over your business and service settings.
- Open Customers & Pets and select Manage on one of the customer's pets.
- Open the Settings & Overrides tab.
- Change the settings you want for this customer.
- Select Save Changes.
What they receive today, at the top of the tab, shows the result for this customer. Each on/off setting starts at your business default. Change it and the row shows Different to default. Set it back to match the default and the override is removed. Timing settings have a Use business default switch. The same settings are under Personalised Booking Rules when you select Edit Owner Details, and the tab needs Business Pro or higher.
You can override per customer:
- The reminder channels, SMS or email, and the reminder timing
- The second reminder's channels and timing
- Reminders for frequent Daily and Weekly Recurring appointments
- The SMS and email appointment update notifications
- A Personal Note
- The booking notice period, Minimum Notice
- Pre-Hold Funds and Auto-Pay Invoices
Common uses are switching off SMS reminders for a customer who prefers email, shortening the notice period for a trusted regular, overriding pre-hold funds for one customer, and adding a Personal Note for a customer with special requirements.
Add a pre-appointment message
The Pre-Appointment Message is a note of your own that Petboost adds to confirmation and reminder emails and shows on the pet owner's booking card. It is on Notifications, not on SMS.
- Open Settings, then Notifications.
- If Custom Messages is not showing, switch on Advanced options.
- Under Custom Messages, type the Pre-Appointment Message.
- Optional: switch on Also add to confirmation and reminder texts to add it to the booking confirmation SMS and each reminder SMS.
- Select Publish Changes, tick the box in Before You Publish, then select Publish Changes.
With the texts switched on, the page shows how many SMS segments the confirmation and reminder texts will use, and each segment uses a credit. One emoji can switch the whole text to Unicode and increase the segment count.
Examples:
- "Please arrive 10 minutes early for check-in"
- "Bring your pet's vaccination records"
- "Park in the car park at the back"
- "Call us if you need to reschedule"
Tips for content and timing
- Keep messages short and clear, with helpful information the customer can act on, in a friendly, professional tone
- Test messages before you publish, proofread them, and update them regularly
- Avoid long paragraphs, ALL CAPS, excessive punctuation and more than one call to action
- For timing, consider the service type and preparation, the customer's travel time, how far ahead your customers plan, and your no-show pattern: earlier reminders mean fewer no-shows
- A reminder sent too early is forgotten again, one sent too late leaves no time to reschedule, and too many reminders annoy customers
Service messages and consent
Service messages are the messages about appointments, payments, changes, cancellations and other booking matters. They are how you provide the service, so marketing consent does not apply to them, and the Communication Preferences on a customer's profile do not switch them off. Under Australian privacy law, and as a condition of service, customers must be notified of material updates relating to their bookings and interactions with the business. Your notification settings decide whether these go by SMS, email, both or neither.
Trap
A customer who replies STOP to your number stops receiving texts from that number altogether, service texts included. Their emails keep going.
Bulk SMS for announcements and marketing is separate, and needs Communications Booster. Customers manage their own preferences for those from their profile in the pet owner app. See Bulk SMS, and for consent, Communication Preferences.
Troubleshooting
A customer is not receiving messages
- Check the email address and phone number on their profile
- Check the phone number is a mobile. Petboost does not send texts to a landline
- Open their Settings & Overrides tab and read What they receive today. A customer override can switch a message off for them
- Check the customer's spam or junk folder for emails
- Check the SMS notifications are switched on in Notifications
Message delivery problems
- Make sure the customer's contact details are valid
- Check your notification settings
- Check your business account is set up
- Select Get Help in your dashboard to chat with our team
Related FAQs
- Why didn't my customer receive an SMS?
- Why didn't my customer receive an email?
- Can customers opt out of SMS?
- What's the best reminder timing?
- How do I check if a customer has opted out of communications?
Related features
- Settings → Notifications: message timing and content
- Settings → Automatic Actions: automated workflows
- Settings → Branding: how your messages look
- Appointments: send manual messages to customers from a booking
- Bulk SMS: announcements and marketing messages
- Communications Booster: 2-way SMS conversations
- SMS Credits: credits and top-up packs
- Communication Preferences: consent and opt-outs