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Glossary Shop business & metrics

Booking deposit

Definition

Should a shop take a booking deposit?

  • Deposit is a payment collected when a customer books, to hold the bay and commit them to the job — the money you order film against.
  • Deposits turn a hopeful maybe into a committed booking and are the single biggest lever against no-shows.

Why it matters to a shop

A deposit is the cheapest no-show insurance a shop can buy, and it converts a booking from an intention into a commitment. Taking it at the moment of approval — rather than at drop-off — is what protects the slot you just gave away. On taking it at approval, read online deposit booking.

FAQ

Deposit questions, answered

How much should a booking deposit be?

Enough that the customer has a reason to show up and enough to cover what you commit before they arrive, which for a film job is the material you order. A fixed amount for small work and a percentage for large is the usual shape. Whatever you pick, publish it: a deposit explained at booking is accepted, a deposit discovered later is a dispute.

Do booking deposits stop no-shows?

They are the single biggest lever a shop has, because they convert an intention into a commitment. They do not stop every one, which is why they work best beside timed reminders in the days before the appointment. The two together turn a calendar full of maybes into a calendar you can order film against.

Should a booking deposit be refundable?

That is a policy decision and the only wrong answer is an unwritten one. Many shops make it refundable outside a notice window and non-refundable inside it, because inside the window the bay cannot be resold and the film is already cut or ordered. Put the window and the rule on the booking page, the confirmation and the invoice.

Go deeper

Related terms

More from shop business & metrics — The owner-side numbers that decide whether a busy shop makes money.

Gross marginRevenue minus COGS, shown in dollars or as a percentage of the price. It's the number that tells you whether a busy calendar is actually profitable. A wall-menu list price is a revenue number; margin is the profit number underneath it.Live-margin quoteA quote that shows projected profit in dollars and percent as you build it, costed from the real material on your shelf — so an underpriced package gets caught before you send it, not at month-end. Service VIN's core difference from a flat estimate.Film tracked to the footInventory that counts film by the linear foot remaining on each roll, at the real cost you paid, with lot numbers and reorder points — instead of treating a four-figure roll as a single line item. It's what makes true material COGS and reorder alerts possible.Average ticketThe average revenue per completed job. Raising it with upsells (a coating over PPF, a windshield film, a maintenance plan) is often faster than chasing more leads, because it earns more from work you already booked.Close rateThe share of quotes or leads that turn into booked, paid jobs. A low close rate usually points at slow follow-up or unclear pricing more than at price itself — which is why quote follow-up and speed-to-lead move it the most.Speed-to-leadHow fast you respond to a new inquiry. The shop that answers first usually wins the job, so replying in seconds — even with an AI lead responder after hours — beats a polished reply that lands the next morning.

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