Owneli sends up to three automatic reminders before every appointment — a 48-hour reminder, a 24-hour reminder, and a 3-hour reminder — each switched on, re-timed, and given an SMS channel independently under Growth → Automations. Nothing is sent by hand.
How do appointment reminders work?
When a booking is made, Owneli schedules one email per enabled reminder at the configured offset before the start time. A background job sends them every few minutes, re-checking at send time that the automation is still on. Reminder emails include a calendar attachment the client can add to their phone.
| Reminder | Default timing | Adjustable? |
|---|---|---|
| 48-hour reminder | 48 hours before | Yes — 1 to 720 hours |
| 24-hour reminder | 24 hours before | Yes |
| 3-hour reminder | 3 hours before | Yes |
A reminder whose send time has already passed when the booking is made is simply skipped — a same-day booking doesn't get a 48-hour reminder.
Change what's sent
Open Automations
Go to Growth → Automations and find the Reminders group. Each reminder card shows its channels and how many were sent in the last 30 days.
Open a reminder
Click it to edit. Send this many hours before the appointment sets the timing — for example, 24 for a day-ahead reminder or 3 for a same-day nudge.
Add SMS if you use it
Tick Also send by SMS. Email is always sent; SMS requires SMS to be set up for your business, and only fires after the email sends successfully.
Edit the message
The message content is editable on the same page. Save, and every future send uses the new version.
Override reminders for one booking
Open the appointment, then the ⋮ menu → Automations. The Appointment automations panel is scoped to this booking only — turn a reminder off for one visit without touching your defaults, and Reset to default puts it back.
Quiet hours and consent
A reminder that would land overnight is held until your quiet-hours window reopens (never later than the appointment itself). Reminders are transactional, so they don't need marketing consent — but a client who has texted STOP will not receive the SMS.
See what went out
Open the appointment's ⋮ menu → View activity for the appointment's audit trail of lifecycle events.
Common questions
Why didn't my client get the SMS reminder?
Check, in order: SMS is set up for your business, Also send by SMS is on for that reminder, the client hasn't replied STOP, and their phone number is a valid mobile. The SMS also only goes out after the email for the same reminder sends.
Can I turn off reminders for just one client visit?
Yes — open the appointment, ⋮ → Automations, and switch the reminder off for that booking only.
Can I add a reminder at a different time, like one week before?
Change one of the three reminders' Send this many hours before the appointment — up to 720 hours (30 days). There are three reminder slots; you can't add a fourth.
Do reminders show the right time zone?
Yes — times are rendered in your clinic's time zone, with the zone label included. See Time zones on the calendar.