How HairConnect picks free slots
Updated on 2026-10-02
The slots your client gets to see are not a random list of every gap. They are ranked, and that ranking is the reason your calendar fills up better.
What counts
The search engine looks at the blocks in the calendar, not at appointments as a whole. From that follows the most important rule:
A processing block occupies only the chair, not the staff member. So another client may come in.
But it does occupy the client. If an appointment has several services — colour first, then a cut — the next service only starts once the processing time is over. The client is sitting with colour in, even if the stylist doing the cut is already free.
Beyond that it takes into account:
- the working hours from the work schedule. A day without a shift is a day off: that staff member is not offered then, even when the salon is open. Only an explicit exception in that day's roster makes them bookable after all. Someone with no work schedule at all is offered within the opening hours;
- the absences with the status Goedgekeurd (approved);
- the opening hours of the salon — a closed day is skipped;
- which services this staff member does, and how long they take for them. If their record lists no service at all, they are offered nowhere — see Services per staff member.
How the ranking works
Slots score points. Within a day the slot with the most points comes first; the days themselves stay chronological.
| What | Why |
|---|---|
| filling a gap exactly counts heaviest | a gap of precisely 45 minutes that you fill with a 45-minute cut is the perfect booking |
| joining on to an existing appointment counts heavily | the staff member keeps working instead of waiting |
| at the start or the end of the day counts too | the day is not stretched out |
| leaving an unusable remainder costs points | a ten-minute gap is one you will never fill again |
| a staff member who is working that day anyway counts lightly | a full day is better than three half days |
A slot that fits exactly between two appointments gets the label Fits neatly on the booking page.
How much is shown
Two settings steer that, under Instellingen → Online boeken (Settings → Online booking):
- Aantal vrije momenten (number of free slots) — 14 by default. A short list makes people choose, a long one makes them hesitate.
- Een dag is "druk" vanaf (a day counts as "busy" from) — 8 appointments by default. Above that the day gets the badge Busy, so the client naturally looks at a quieter day.
And how far ahead: Boeken tot (book up to), 3 months by default. Reaching further than your work schedules do makes no sense.
Why "no preference" helps
If a client searches with one particular staff member, little is left of a full week. With No preference the search engine looks at everyone who does that service, and shows the time with the name alongside.
That is the button that still gets a full week open. Allow it unless you have a good reason not to.
What gets refused
Even if a client tries to force a time, the server checks again:
- That time has already passed.
- The salon is closed that day.
- You can book at most 3 months ahead.
- That stylist doesn't work at that time. — the time falls outside their work schedule.
These messages appear in the language of the booking page: a client on /en/your-salon reads them in English, on /nl/… in Dutch.
Frequently asked questions
Why does the booking page offer nothing while there is room in my calendar? Check in this order: are any services ticked on the staff member's record (Medewerkers → the record → Wat ze kan)? Is the day open under Openingsuren (opening hours)? Does the staff member have a work schedule? Is the service set to Online boekbaar (bookable online)? Is the staff member set to Online boekbaar?
If nobody has a service ticked, HairConnect says so itself: a message appears at the top of your home screen and on Instellingen → Online boeken (settings → online booking).
Is that search engine in the salon calendar as well? No. The free-slot search engine works on the booking page and in the customer portal. In the calendar you plan yourself, with the blocks in front of you.