Slotward / Venmo or text
A way of taking a deposit
A text thread does not hold the chair
Some shops ask for a deposit in a payment app such as Venmo, or in a text, and then write the time down themselves. Slotward is a booking page: the client picks a service and an open time, pays the deposit, and gets a cancel link. Slotward is not affiliated with Venmo or with any payment app.
No card to start. Create an account, then name the shop. That starts the 7-day free trial. Client deposits open only after Stripe enables charges. Then $39 a month or $390 a year from Settings if you want new bookings to stay open.
This page compares Slotward with a way of taking a deposit. It does not quote another company's price, fee, or feature list. Where a public page was checked, that write-up is linked with the date.
The message and the calendar are two jobs
A text, a DM, or a payment-app request does not by itself block that hour on a calendar. Someone still has to remember the time and keep a second person from booking it. In Slotward the open times are the calendar. Paying the deposit books one of them. This page does not describe how any payment app stores payments, holds, or refunds.
The cancellation window is saved on the visit
You write the cancellation wording and the hour count. The client reads that before paying. Cancel outside the window saved on the appointment and the deposit refunds on its own. Cancel inside it, or miss the visit and you mark the no-show after the start, and you keep the deposit. If you cancel the appointment, the deposit is refunded even inside the window. A later edit to the policy does not rewrite a booking someone already made. A text can say the same words. Slotward is what stores them on the appointment and runs that refund.
Who receives the money
The client pays the deposit on your booking page. The charge is a direct charge on your connected Stripe account. This version sets no application fee, so Slotward takes $0 of the deposit. Stripe's processing fee is between you and Stripe. The subscription is separate: $39 a month or $390 a year after the 7-day trial. A payment you ask for in a text goes to whatever account you named in that message. This page does not quote a fee for that.
Deposits stay closed until Stripe is finished
Creating the shop starts the 7-day trial. No card is required for the trial. Clients can pay a deposit only after Stripe enables charges on your connected account. Until then the booking page can be previewed and deposits stay closed. Nothing on this page says a payment app is unavailable, illegal, or more expensive. It is a different set of steps.
What Slotward does
Trial, price, and who is paid
Slotward is $39 a month or $390 a year after a 7-day trial. The trial starts when the shop is created, and no card is required to start. The client pays the deposit on your booking page. That charge is on your Stripe account. Slotward does not add a fee on top of the deposit.
The window runs itself
You write the cancellation wording and the hour count. Clients read that before they pay, and they get a manage link after they pay. Cancel outside the window and the deposit refunds. Cancel inside the window and you keep it. A no-show is kept, and you mark that after the visit was supposed to start. If you cancel the appointment, the deposit is refunded even inside the window. The window in force at booking is stored on the appointment, so a later edit does not rewrite it.
What this version does not do
- One shop and one weekly calendar. A second person needs a second shop. There is no staff roster and no waitlist.
- Every bookable service has a deposit. You cannot list a service on the booking page with the deposit turned off. The deposit is a flat amount or a percent of that service.
- The deposit is collected at booking. This version does not store a card to charge a second fee after a no-show, and it does not send reminder texts.
- No point of sale and no in-person register. Slotward books the time and takes the deposit.
Questions
Does Slotward replace Venmo?
No. Slotward takes the booking deposit on your Stripe account when the client picks a time. What you use for the rest of the bill is outside this product. This page does not list Venmo's features, limits, or prices.
Can the client cancel from a link?
Yes. After they pay they get a manage link. Outside the window saved on the appointment, that cancellation refunds the deposit. Inside the window, you keep it. If you cancel, the deposit is refunded even inside the window.
When can a client actually pay the deposit?
Only after you finish Stripe setup and charges are enabled. The trial can be running, and the page can be up, while deposits are still closed.
More
Montgomery Appworks LLC · 9905 S Pennsylvania Ave Ste A, Oklahoma City, OK 73159