The Problem
"I spend more time chasing payments than doing what I love."
Sound familiar? Every pet business owner knows the admin burden:
- Manually sending booking confirmations
- Texting reminders one by one
- Chasing customers for payment
- Following up on failed cards
- Reconciling invoices at night
Industry research suggests pet business owners spend 10-20 hours per week on admin tasks that could be automated. That's half a working week. Every week.
The Solution: Pro Automations
Pro Automations is a chain of 6 automated workflows that handle your admin from booking to payment. Once set up, they run in the background, saving you hours every day.
Here's the automation chain:
| Step | Automation | What It Does |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Auto-Confirm | Sends confirmation SMS/email when booking is made |
| 2 | Auto-Hold | Validates card 72 hours before appointment |
| 3 | Auto-Start | Marks appointment as In Progress at start time |
| 4 | Auto-Complete | Completes appointment at scheduled end time |
| 5 | Auto-Invoice | Generates invoice from appointment details |
| 6 | Auto-Pay | Charges saved card and sends receipt |
From the moment a customer books to the moment you're paid, automation handles everything.
Who Benefits Most
| Business Type | Primary Benefit |
|---|---|
| Solo groomers | Reclaim evenings from admin |
| Growing daycares | Scale without adding office staff |
| Multi-service businesses | Consistent processes across service types |
| High-volume operations | No manual work as volume increases |
Pro Automations is available on Business Pro and Business Max plans.
Key Capabilities
Auto-Confirm: Never Miss a Confirmation
When a customer books, Auto-Confirm immediately sends a confirmation via SMS and email. The message includes:
- Appointment date and time
- Service and pet details
- Your business address
- Cancellation policy reminder
- Link to reschedule if needed
No more "Did you get my booking?" questions. Customers know instantly.
Auto-Hold: Validate Cards Before Appointments
This is where payment protection begins. 72 hours before an appointment, Auto-Hold validates the customer's saved card:
- Checks the card is valid
- Confirms sufficient funds are available
- Holds a temporary authorisation (releases if not charged)
If a card fails, you get an alert with time to contact the customer. No more "forgot my wallet" surprises at checkout.
Auto-Start: Track Appointments in Real-Time
When an appointment's scheduled start time arrives, Auto-Start automatically marks it as In Progress. This:
- Updates your Mission Control view
- Shows accurate real-time status
- Triggers any downstream workflows
Your dashboard always reflects reality.
Auto-Complete: Finish on Schedule
At the scheduled end time, Auto-Complete marks the appointment as Completed. This triggers:
- Invoice generation (Auto-Invoice)
- Payment processing (Auto-Pay)
- Customer notification
- Revenue tracking updates
If you need to adjust the completion time, you can override manually. But for most appointments, auto-complete is perfect.
Auto-Invoice: Zero Manual Data Entry
Auto-Invoice generates invoices automatically from appointment details:
- Correct service pricing
- Applied add-ons
- Package credit deductions
- GST calculated correctly
- Professional format ready to send
No typing. No spreadsheets. No errors.
Auto-Pay: Get Paid Without Asking
The final step. Auto-Pay charges the customer's saved card 30 minutes after the appointment is finalised (allowing time for any last-minute adjustments):
- Charges the invoice total
- Sends receipt to customer
- Updates your revenue tracking
- Marks invoice as paid
Money lands in your account automatically. No awkward payment conversations.
Real-World Impact
Before Pro Automations:
- Marcus spent 3 hours every evening sending invoices and chasing payments
- 15% of his grooming customers paid late or required follow-up
- Sunday nights were dedicated to Monday's reminders
After Pro Automations:
- Marcus checks his phone in the morning to see payments already processed
- Late payments dropped to under 2%
- Sundays are for rest, not admin
Multiply this across hundreds of pet businesses, and the pattern is clear: automation changes everything.
How to Get Started
- Go to Settings → Automations in your Petboost dashboard
- Enable each automation in the chain (all 6 are independent)
- Customise triggers for your business needs
- Test with a sample booking to see the chain in action
- Review automation history to verify everything is working
Each automation can be toggled on or off independently. Start with Auto-Confirm and Auto-Hold, then add the others as you get comfortable.
The Bottom Line
Pro Automations eliminates the repetitive admin that drains your energy. Confirmations, reminders, holds, invoices, payments: all handled automatically.
Set it up once. Get paid automatically, every time.
Ready to Automate Your Business?
Pro Automations is available on Business Pro and Business Max plans.
Start your free 14-day trial →
Learn more about automations or see how payments work.