Booksy: A mobile app to make a barbers job easier

As a barber at Platinum Kutz Barbershop in Des Moines, Michael Fenton has nearly 250 clients that could schedule a haircut.

So he uses Booksy—a mobile app— to organize those clients.

Booksy provides users a list of barbers, hair salons, tattoo artists, spas, pet services and personal trainers along with time slots, a list of services and prices. The app is free to download.

Fenton said customers can use the app to view his schedule and book an appointment. He receives a notification when somebody schedules a time slot.

“Right now I have 250 clients and probably 150 on Booksy,” Fenton says. “We’re trying to get the stubborn people to go to Booksy, that’s a challenge. It makes sense to me because everybody has a smartphone but some people are old fashioned.”

Making work less chaotic

Fenton, 34, has been a professional barber for just over a year and says he first heard about Booksy from his mentor in barber college.

During barber college, Fenton said he scheduled his clients the, “old school” way through phone calls and walk-ins.

“It’s pretty chaotic sometimes,” Fenton says. “It reduces stress, time, it’s professional.

“And in the end it makes more money.”

He says some of the barbers at Platinum Kutz Barbershop are starting to schedule clients through Booksy.

“They’ve been doing it all by phone calls and pretty much manually, which would be stressful,” Fenton says. “A couple weeks ago a few more barbers started using it because they see the convenience and all the pro’s to it.”

Promoting through social media

Fenton connects Booksy to his Facebook and Instagram accounts so potential customers can see his work.

“Barbering is a very competitive trade, everybody takes pride in their work,” Fenton says. “I get clientele through Booksy from people I’ve never met before because they see my portfolio which is linked to Facebook and Instagram. Social media is your key to the city. As long as you stay consistent with posting, it just gets bigger and better.

“I even had a cut go viral.”

After each appointment customers can leave a review and rate their experience on Booksy using one through five stars.

“So they have options as well, if they are not satisfied, you can look at somebody else’s profile,” Fenton says.

Fenton currently has a five-star rating.

Five-star rating

Fenton says he’s been cutting friends hair since middle school.

He realized he could make money of his skillset after cutting his friends hair before a UFC fight in Kansas City.

“That moment was like, I get to do something I love and get paid for it,” Fenton says. “I just like the way people look and feel when they come in, they have a different persona but when they leave they feel refreshed and rejuvenated.”