In this article
The only test a question has to pass
Does the answer change what you do before the client walks in? Colour history changes the slot length. “First massage?” changes how you start. Allergies change the products you put out. A question whose answer you’d only use once they’re in the chair belongs in the chair, not on the form. That test alone cuts most intake forms from ten fields to three.
Copy-paste questions by trade
Hair colour: “When was your last colour, and was it box dye or salon?” · “Any allergy to hair dye?” Lashes/brows: “First time with extensions?” · “Any eye sensitivity or lens wear?” Massage/physio: “Anything I should know — injuries, pregnancy, blood pressure?” · “Where would you like the focus?” Tutoring: “Which year and which topic is giving trouble?” · “Any deadline, exam or test coming up?” Training: “Any injuries or conditions I should plan around?” · “Your goal in one sentence?” Grooming: “Breed and roughly how much coat?” · “Anything your dog is nervous about?”
The two questions that kill conversions
Date of birth and full address. Both look like a registration form, both feel like too much for a haircut, and neither changes the appointment. If you need an address for a home visit, ask for it on the home-visit service only. If you want a birthday for a discount, ask in the chair.
Where the answers should go
Into the booking itself, so they are in front of you when you open the day — not in a separate spreadsheet you have to remember exists. Good systems also put the answers in the e-mail that tells you about the booking, which is where most providers actually read them: on the phone, the evening before.
Make it per service, not per page
The colour client gets the colour questions; the trim client gets none. That is the single biggest lever: the form is short for the people booking cheap, quick services (most of your volume) and thorough for the ones where a wrong answer costs an afternoon. In TapBook you attach questions to a service, and the booking page shows them only when that service is chosen.
Who this is for
Anyone where the first visit needs preparation or has conditions: colourists, lash and brow techs, tattoo artists, massage and physio, tutors, personal trainers, groomers. A barber doing a 20-minute cut needs none of this beyond a name and a phone.
What this won’t fix
Intake answers are notes for you, not a medical record or a signed consent — if your trade needs a real consent form (tattoo, PMU, some treatments), that stays a paper or PDF you sign on site. In TapBook, intake questions are attached to your services (Pro) and the answers show up on the booking and in your notification e-mail.