MidDevon Digital builds custom online booking and reservation systems for businesses in Devon and across the UK. Your availability, your pricing, your rules about who can book what and when, with customer accounts, deposits, confirmations and reminders built in. Connected to your website and your calendar, and yours to keep.
Booking systems that follow your rules, not a generic calendar's
When an off-the-shelf booking tool stops being enough
A booking system lets customers book a slot, a resource or a service online, checks availability against your rules, takes a deposit or payment if you want one, and confirms and reminds automatically. Off-the-shelf tools do this well for a simple diary. A custom system handles the rules a generic tool can't: multiple resources, staff skills, pricing that changes, trade accounts and anything else that makes your bookings yours.
There are good booking products for a hairdresser or a single meeting room. The moment the rules get specific, they start to creak: this service needs two staff and a bay, that customer gets trade rates, this slot can't be booked within 48 hours, that course has a maximum of eight and a waiting list. Workarounds pile up and the office ends up taking bookings by phone anyway.
Availability that understands your business
Staff, rooms, vehicles, equipment, courses. The system knows what each booking needs and only offers slots that actually work.
Pricing and deposits your way
Seasonal rates, member and trade pricing, deposits on some services and not others, cancellation rules that match your terms. Taken through Stripe or your card provider.
Confirmations, reminders and no-shows
Automatic email and SMS confirmations and reminders cut no-shows. Changes and cancellations handled by the customer within the rules you set.
Part of your website, not a widget
Booking lives on your own site and domain, in your branding, rather than a third-party pop-up that takes a fee from each booking.
We build booking systems for businesses in Cullompton, Tiverton, Exeter, Taunton and across Devon and Somerset, and for clients across the UK over Zoom. Web design and software in Exeter →
Who needs a custom booking system
Usually a business whose bookings depend on more than a free slot in a diary.
Services with more than one resource per booking
Workshops, clinics, studios and venues where a booking needs the right person, room and kit at the same time.
Training providers and course organisers
Courses with capacity, waiting lists, prerequisites and group bookings, with certificates issued afterwards.
Hire and rental businesses
Equipment, vehicles, rooms or pitches booked for a period, with availability checked against what's already out.
Trades and services that work by appointment
Surveys, installations, inspections and callouts booked around staff skills, travel areas and existing jobs.
What a custom booking system can include
Built around your rules, so this is a starting point rather than a feature sheet.
Real-time availability
Checked against staff, resources, opening hours and your rules, so double bookings can't happen.
Customer accounts
Customers see their bookings, rebook, change within your rules and keep their details and preferences.
Payments and deposits
Full payment, deposit or pay-on-the-day, per service, through Stripe or your existing provider.
Automatic confirmations and reminders
Email and SMS at the times you choose, with calendar invites and your own wording.
Staff and admin views
Each staff member sees their own diary; the office sees everything, adjusts bookings and runs reports.
Connected to your calendar and accounts
Google or Outlook calendars kept in step, payments pushed to Xero or Sage.
What every booking system we build includes
The foundations that make a booking system safe to rely on, in every build.
- Built on a widely used open-source framework, so any developer can maintain it
- Secure customer, staff and admin logins
- Hosted on its own dedicated server in your name, with a daily database backup
- Mobile-first booking flow, works in any browser
- No platform fee per booking; only your payment provider's processing fee
- Connections to calendars, payment providers and accounts
- Training for your team before go-live
- Hosting, backups and support on a monthly plan after launch
How a booking system gets built
Four stages, a fixed price and a timeline agreed in writing before we start.
Step 1
Discovery
How bookings work today, what the rules really are, and where the phone calls and no-shows come from. At your place or on Zoom.
Step 2
Scope and fixed quote
Every rule, service and user type written down, with a fixed price. If an off-the-shelf tool would do it, we say so.
Step 3
Build in stages
Availability and the booking flow first, then payments, reminders and the staff view. You test it with real services and real rules.
Step 4
Launch and support
Connected to your website and calendar, team trained, go live. Then hosting, backups and support on a monthly plan, with new features quoted as you need them.
How it fits
Bookings as part of a bigger system
Booking is often one part of a wider build: a customer portal where clients book and see their history, or a job management system where a booking becomes a job and lands on the right person's schedule. We build booking systems on their own, or as part of one of those, so you're not running two things that don't talk to each other.
Booking system questions
Can't see yours?
Give us a ring on
01392 346700.
What is the best online booking system for a small business?
For a simple diary with one person and standard slots, an off-the-shelf booking tool is usually the right answer and we'll say so. A custom booking system makes sense when your bookings depend on rules a generic tool can't handle: multiple resources, staff skills, pricing that varies, deposits on some services, capacity and waiting lists, or trade accounts. It also makes sense when you don't want a third party taking a fee from every booking.
How much does a custom booking system cost?
It depends on how complex the rules are, whether payments and deposits are involved, and what it connects to. A straightforward system for one type of service is at the lower end; multi-resource availability with payments, reminders and calendar sync is at the upper end. You get a fixed quote in writing after a free discovery call.
How long does it take to build?
It depends on how complex the booking rules are, what it connects to and our workload at the time, so the timeline is set in your quote rather than quoted as a standard figure. The booking rules are usually what takes the time, which is why we pin them down in writing before building.
Can customers pay or leave a deposit when they book?
Yes. Full payment, a deposit or pay-later can be set per service, taken through Stripe or your existing card provider. There is no platform fee per booking from us; your payment provider's processing fee applies as it would anywhere.
Does it send reminders?
Yes. Email and SMS confirmations and reminders go out at the times you choose, in your wording, with calendar invites. Reminders are the single biggest thing that cuts no-shows.
Will it work with my Google or Outlook calendar?
Yes. Bookings can be pushed to Google or Outlook calendars and busy time read back, so staff diaries stay in step without double entry.
Can it be added to my existing website?
Usually, yes. The booking flow lives on its own pages in your branding and links from your existing site, whatever it was built on. If we built your website, it's integrated directly.
Other systems we build
Still taking bookings by phone?
Tell us how bookings work today and we'll tell you honestly whether a custom system is worth it, and what it would cost.
