Using resources to limit bookings

Resources are additional scheduling restrictions on top of your existing availability and scheduling limits. They can be used to limit the number of appointments happening at one time across multiple calendars.

Note: Resources don’t work for calendars in different time zones.

Keep in mind: 

• Resources are for internal use only and are invisible to clients.
• If an appointment type requires more than one resource, all of them need to be available for clients to book.

Add a resource

To add a resource:

1. Open the Availability panel: I log in with an Acuity account | I log in with a Squarespace account. 
2. Click Rooms/Resources.
3. Click New Resource.
4. Give the resource a name and a quantity. 
5. Check the appointment types that require this resource. 
6. Click Create Resource.

Change or delete a resource

To edit a resource:

1. Open the Availability panel: I log in with an Acuity account | I log in with a Squarespace account. 
2. Click Rooms/Resources, then click Edit next to the resource you want to change.
3. Make your changes, then click Update Resource.

To add a resource to a different appointment type:

1. Open the Appointment types panel: I log in with an Acuity account | I log in with a Squarespace account.
2. Click Edit for the appointment type to which you want to add the resource.
3. Check the resource, then click Update Appointment Type.

To delete a resource:

1. Open the Availability panel: I log in with an Acuity account | I log in with a Squarespace account. 
2. Click Rooms/Resources, then click Edit next to the resource you want to delete.
3. Click Delete, then click OK.

Group classes

You can add resources to group classes, but keep in mind:

• Each group class uses only one resource for the entire group. For example, if you have a "Kayaks" resource, the whole class would only use one "kayak" resource. 
• The resource is used when the class is put on your calendar, so even empty classes use a resource.
• If you offer two different classes at the same time, resources won’t prevent clients from booking both classes.

Resources across multiple calendars

You can use resources to limit appointment types across multiple calendars. For example, if you work alone but have more than one calendar, you can use resources to avoid being booked on two calendars at the same time. 

To add resources to multiple calendars:

1. Create a resource.
2. Set the quantity to 1, because you can only be in one place at a time. 
3. Apply the resource to all your appointment types.

Now, clients can only book one appointment with you at a time across all calendars.

How resources work

Let's say you have five massage therapists, each with their own calendar, but only three massage rooms. If there are time slots that all five massage therapists are available, you need a way to limit bookings to three massage appointments at a time to match the number of rooms you have.

Resources can prevent overbooking your rooms. To set this up, you'd create a resource called "Rooms" with the quantity set to 3, and assign it to all of the appointment types that require a room. Each appointment booked will use one resource, allowing a maximum of three simultaneous appointments. When all of your resources are in use, that time slot will no longer be available to clients on your scheduling page.

When to use separate calendars vs. resources

Resources are for a shared group of interchangeable assets. They limit the total number of appointments happening at one time, but you can't use resources to schedule appointments for specific rooms or staff members. To assign appointment types to a specific person, room, or other asset, create a calendar for each asset instead.

For example, you have a meditation studio and want clients to have the option to book a specific room. Your goal isn't to match your appointments with the number of available rooms, like in the example above, but rather to offer multiple different rooms that clients can choose from. In this case, you should create a calendar for each room, but don't add resources to also represent the rooms. To prevent having more appointments than available rooms, ensure your scheduling limits are set so only one appointment can be booked at a time on each calendar.

Stacking resources

You can have more than one appointment type for the same resource, or have an appointment type that requires more than one resource. This is called stacking resources. 

If an appointment type requires more than one resource, clients can only book it if all the resources are available. 

For example:

You run a tour company that offers both van tours and walking tours. Walking tours each require one microphone, and van tours each require one microphone and one van.

Let's say your tour company has three microphones and two vans.

In this scenario, you could create a resource of "Microphones" set to 3 and assign it to both the walking tour and van tour appointment types. You could then create a resource of "Vans" set to 2, and assign that to the van tour appointment type.

Walking tours would only be available when at least one microphone was free. Van tours would only be available when at least one van and one microphone were free.

Availability and padding

Resources are considered "in use" for the duration of the appointment, plus any padding before or after the appointment. 

Keep in mind, if negative padding is used to create overlapping appointments, the resource still applies to the total duration of the appointment. For example, a 60-minute appointment with -45 minutes of padding will use the resource for the whole 60 minutes, so it won't be available for use during the overlapping appointment.