For many service businesses, an appointment is a commitment on both sides. You set aside time, staff and sometimes materials; the customer promises to turn up. When they do not, the cost falls entirely on you. Asking for payment around the booking, whether in full, as a deposit or at the visit, is one of the most reliable ways to protect your time and your revenue.
Cypher LM gives you several ways to do this, using Cypher S for scheduling and Cypher P for payments. This guide explains each option precisely, including what the booking page does and does not do, how to set up a deposit taken during a call, how to send a payment request or link after a booking, and how to handle cancellations and refunds. It ends with a step-by-step setup and answers to common questions.
It is written for clinics, consultants, coaches, tutors, salons, contractors and any business that sells its time by the appointment.
Three ways to get paid around a booking
Before setting anything up, it helps to be clear about how Cypher LM handles prices and payments for appointments, because there is an important distinction.
Appointment types in Cypher S can carry a price. The price is shown to customers on your booking page and is known to your agent, so it can answer "how much is it?" accurately. Bookings also uses these prices to calculate the value expected at visits. However, the booking page itself does not take payment when someone books. A price on an appointment type means "this is what the visit costs", not "pay now".
To collect money up front, you use Cypher P. There are three practical approaches, and many businesses use more than one depending on the service.
| Approach | When the customer pays | How it works | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pay at the visit | At the appointment | Price shown on the appointment type; you collect in person | Low-value or routine appointments, established customers |
| Deposit on the call | During the call that books it | Your agent books, then sends a payment request to the caller's screen | Phone and web bookings, appointments with high no-show cost |
| Request or link after booking | After booking, before the visit | You send a payment request or a payment link | Bookings from your link, custom amounts, prepaid sessions |
Each approach has different strengths. The rest of this guide explains them in turn.
Option 1: pay at the visit
The simplest approach is to show the price and collect it when the customer arrives. Set the price on the appointment type in Bookings › Appointment types, and it appears on your booking page and in the agent's knowledge of what each appointment costs. The customer knows what to expect, and you collect payment however you normally do at your front desk.
Bookings tracks the value of these appointments for you. The "Expected at visits" figure adds up the prices of upcoming bookings, so you can see what your calendar is worth. After each appointment, mark the booking as attended, or as a no-show if the customer did not come, from the booking's detail panel. Those outcomes keep your attendance and no-show statistics accurate.
Paying at the visit works well for routine appointments, low prices and customers you know. Its weakness is no-shows: if a customer does not come, there is nothing to collect. If your no-show rate in Bookings is creeping up, or the appointments involved are long or expensive, consider moving those appointment types to a deposit.
Even with payment at the visit, Cypher LM helps reduce no-shows. Customers receive a confirmation when they book and a reminder 24 hours before. An attendance check asks them to confirm a day ahead, by a confirmation call if a phone number is connected or by an email confirmation link if not, so you know in advance who is coming.
Option 2: take a deposit on the call
When a customer books by talking to your Cypher V agent, the best moment to take a deposit is during that same call. The customer has just chosen a time and is committed; asking for a deposit then is natural and quick.
This requires two skills switched on for the agent: Book appointments (Cypher S) and Take payments on calls (Cypher P). With both on, the agent can book the appointment and then send a secure payment request for the deposit. On a web call, the payment card appears on the caller's screen, and if the caller gave an email address, the link is emailed too. The caller pays by card through your Stripe account, or by bank transfer, JazzCash or Easypaisa with a reference code.
Tell the agent your deposit policy in its knowledge, in plain language, so it knows when to ask and how much: for example, "Assessments require a deposit of PKR 2,000, which is deducted from the final bill" or "New clients pay a USD 50 deposit to secure their first session". The agent then explains the policy and requests the right amount in the conversation. Keep the policy short and specific, and include what happens to the deposit if the customer cancels.
The agent never hears card numbers. It sends the request, tells the caller it is on their screen, and continues the conversation. The payment appears in Payments with the source "Call" and the agent's name, and the call's recap from Cypher N records what was agreed.
Option 3: send a payment request or link after booking
Not every booking happens on a call. Customers who book through your booking link, bookings your team adds by hand, and appointments that need a custom price are better served by a payment sent after the booking.
For a specific amount for a specific customer, use a payment request. In Payments, choose New payment request, enter the amount, describe what it is for, such as "Deposit for consultation on 14 October", add the customer's name and email, and tick the option to email them the link. They receive a secure payment page and can pay by card or transfer. Requests expire if they are not paid within 30 days.
For standard fees, use a payment link. Create a link in Payments › Payment links for each appointment type that needs payment in advance, such as "Initial consultation — PKR 5,000", and share it with customers after they book. The same link can be used by every customer who books that appointment type. Our post on payment links covers how to create and share them.
Prepaid bundles also fit here. If you sell, for example, five coaching sessions at a package price, create a fixed-amount payment link for the bundle, then book each session as a normal appointment. Cypher LM does not have a built-in package feature, but a link plus individual bookings achieves the same result clearly.
Whichever option you use, be consistent about where customers are told what they owe. If an appointment type needs a deposit, say so in its description on the booking page, in the agent's knowledge for callers, and in the payment request description. A customer who hears the same policy in every place is far less likely to dispute it later.
Setting it up, step by step
Whichever approach you choose, the setup follows the same order. It takes about an hour for most businesses.
- Create your appointment types with prices. In Bookings › Appointment types, add each service with its name, duration, price, currency, location and a description that mentions any deposit policy.
- Set your hours and rules. In Bookings › Hours, set your weekly hours, date overrides, the gap around each booking, the most bookings per day and the minimum notice.
- Set up how you get paid. In Payments › Settings, connect Stripe for card payments, add your bank, JazzCash and Easypaisa details, or both, and choose your default currency.
- Switch on your agent's skills. For each agent that should take bookings with deposits, switch on Book appointments and Take payments on calls.
- Add your payment policy to the agent's knowledge. Describe when a deposit is required, how much it is, and what happens on cancellation.
- Create payment links for standard fees. In Payments › Payment links, add a link for each service that needs advance payment from customers who book online.
- Test the whole flow. Make a test call, book an appointment, pay the deposit, and check the booking in Bookings, the payment in Payments and the emails in your inbox.
If you are using Stripe, run your first tests with a Stripe test key so no real money moves. Our guide to Cypher LM and Stripe explains test mode.
Policies: deposits, cancellations, refunds and no-shows
Taking payment around bookings works best when your policy is clear, consistent and stated up front. A few decisions are worth making before you start.
Decide which appointment types need a deposit and how much it is. A common approach is to ask for deposits on long, expensive or high-demand appointments and on first visits from new customers, while routine visits from regular customers are paid at the visit.
Decide what happens when a customer cancels. When a booking is cancelled, whether by the customer, by your agent on a call or by your team in the dashboard, the time is freed up and the customer receives an email. Any refund is your decision. For card payments through Stripe, choose Refund from the payment's menu in Payments, and the money goes back to the customer's card. Refunds for bank and wallet transfers are handled directly by you.
Decide how you treat no-shows. Mark them in Bookings so your no-show rate stays accurate. If your policy is to keep the deposit, say so clearly in the appointment type's description and in your agent's knowledge, so customers hear it before they pay.
Write the policy once and use it everywhere: in appointment type descriptions, in the agent's knowledge and in your payment request descriptions. Consistency avoids disputes and makes your business easier to trust.
Review your policy after the first month. Bookings shows your no-show rate and Payments shows how many deposit requests were paid. If deposits are reducing no-shows without putting customers off, consider extending them to more appointment types; if many requests go unpaid, the amount or the timing may need adjusting.
How this works in Cypher LM
Behind the three approaches, Cypher S and Cypher P stay connected through the customer. A booking made on a call and the payment requested in the same call both link to that call, with its recording, transcript and recap. Both also appear on the customer's timeline in Contacts, so your team can see at a glance that a customer booked and paid their deposit.
Reporting reflects each approach. Bookings shows upcoming appointments, how many were booked on calls, the value expected at visits, attendance and the no-show rate. Payments shows what was collected, what is waiting to be paid and where each payment came from: a call, a payment link or sent by you. If you connect Google Sheets, your call log spreadsheet keeps separate Bookings and Payments tabs, each updating in place as statuses change.
Confirmation and receipts are automatic. Customers receive a booking confirmation and a reminder 24 hours before, and a receipt when their payment is marked paid. You can adjust these in Automations.
Your team benefits from the same visibility. A front-desk colleague checking in a customer can open the booking, see whether a deposit was paid and how much remains, and collect the balance at the visit without searching through emails or bank statements.
Frequently asked questions
Can customers pay when they book on my booking page?
Not on the booking page itself. Prices on appointment types are shown and expected at the visit. To collect in advance, send a payment request or payment link after booking, or let your agent take a deposit during the call.
Can my agent book and take a deposit in the same call?
Yes. Switch on both Book appointments and Take payments on calls for the agent, and describe your deposit policy in its knowledge. It books the appointment, then sends a payment request to the caller's screen and email.
How do I refund a deposit?
For card payments through Stripe, choose Refund from the payment's menu in Payments. For bank and wallet transfers, refund the customer directly.
Can I sell a package of sessions?
There is no built-in package feature, but you can sell a bundle with a fixed-amount payment link, such as "5 coaching sessions", and then book each session as a normal appointment.
What if a customer does not pay the request?
The request stays Pending, and you can email the link again from the payment's menu. Unpaid requests expire after 30 days. Whether to keep the booking is your decision.
Conclusion
Getting paid around appointments does not have to mean a complicated checkout. With Cypher S and Cypher P, you can show prices and collect at the visit, take a deposit in the same call that books the appointment, or send a request or link after booking, and choose the right approach for each service.
Start with your most expensive or most frequently missed appointment type, add a clear deposit policy, and switch on payments for your agent. To try it with your own services, request a free trial or book a demo.
