Appointment scheduling software for counsellors should offer only the times you can actually work, block times you are busy elsewhere, take payment or a commitment before the slot is held, and remind both people. Any appointment booking app that does less leaves you with admin to do by hand.
This guide covers the kinds of tool on offer, what a counselling practice needs that a general business does not, and where Leshya fits. For a head to head look at Calendly, read the separate guide linked below.
Three kinds of tool
Calendar link tools. You share a link, the client picks a time from your calendar. They are quick to set up and good at one thing. Payment, intake and a public profile are usually separate.
General booking apps. Built for salons, gyms and clinics of many kinds. They bring staff, services and payment, and they are broad. Check whether they take rupee payments and whether their reminder wording suits a counselling setting.
Practice software built for counselling. It joins booking with the rest of the practice: payment, intake, reminders, earnings and a profile where clients find you. The trade off is that it is built for one profession.
What counselling asks of a booking system
Your availability has shape. You may see online clients in the evening and in person clients on two mornings. The system should let you set different hours for each, and should not offer a slot you cannot take.
Busy time blocking. If you are already booked on your own calendar, whether Google or Outlook, a client should never be offered that time. A two way link is better than a manual copy.
Different session types. An individual session, a couple session and a first consultation differ in length and fee. A good system lets each offering carry its own duration and price.
Privacy at the first step. A client should be able to book without writing their story in a form field that others can see. Intake questions should be stored securely and shown only to you.
Payment at the moment of booking. An unpaid hold costs you the slot. Check that the tool takes rupees by UPI and card.
Reminders to both people. A missed session costs you an hour, and a reminder with the date, time, link and a way to reschedule reduces that.
A simple route for a first-time client. If a client has to create an account before they can book, some will stop. Check that guest booking is possible.
Time zones, if you see clients abroad. The client should see the time in their own zone.
Questions to ask before you choose
Can I set different hours for online and in person sessions?
What happens when a client cancels or pays and then does not turn up? Is the rule yours to set?
Where do my client's answers go, and who at the vendor can read them?
Can I use it from my phone on a day I am away from my desk?
What is the total cost: the tool, the payment gateway and any share of each booking? Ask for it in writing.
Where Leshya fits
Leshya is practice software and a directory built for counsellors in India. A client chooses an offering and a time from your availability, pays online at checkout through Razorpay, and a receipt goes to both of you. Connect Google or Outlook and times you are busy on that calendar are not offered; an online session lands on your calendar with a Google Meet link.
Intake questions go to the client at booking and are stored encrypted. Reminders go out 24 hours and 1 hour before the session, by email and push, to the client and to you. After a session, the client is nudged to book again. A client can book as a guest with a name and email.
Your booking page can be your Leshya profile, and, if your plan includes it, a practice website on a yourname.leshya.app address with a booking panel that shows your offerings and times. A person reviews every counsellor before the profile goes live. Leshya is free to start, and you can add a plan later; the pricing section lists what each plan includes.
Test it before you tell clients
Whatever you choose, book yourself twice before sharing the link. Once as a new client on your phone, paying for real, and once to cancel. Check that the email arrives, that the time is right, and that the money reaches you. If you pay clients by link today, our guide to Razorpay payment links explains what changes when payment moves into the booking.
Common questions
It depends on how you work. A calendar link tool suits a few clients with payment arranged separately. Practice software that joins booking, payment, intake and reminders suits a counsellor with regular clients.
