Yoga Bookings: Group Places and Private Appointment Times

A private yoga appointment reserves the teacher's time. A group booking reserves one place in a particular class. Mixing the two can turn “Could I come on Thursday?” into an assumed booking, or an available hour into a promise of another group place.

This workflow is for an independent teacher running a small group alongside private sessions. It includes two service cards, a capacity ledger and messages for a full class or a venue change. Every person, address, price and situation below is fictional.

Give group classes and private sessions different booking routes

A group card needs a date, level, teacher, capacity, duration, venue, equipment and confirmation process. A private-session card describes the service and leads to a separate appointment time. Check changing class details before each acceptance: a description does not count remaining places.

Example group-class card

Beginner yoga — 12 November 2026. Anna teaches from 7 pm to 8:15 pm, Europe/London time. Eight places in Room A, 12 River Street. Drop-in price: GBP 15. Mats are provided; arrive by 6:50 pm. Message “Group 12 November” to the bot to request a place. The teacher will check availability and send confirmation with payment instructions. An enquiry does not hold a place. Cancellation without a class charge is available until 3 pm that day; the agreed late-cancellation terms apply afterwards.

Write those late-cancellation terms in full before accepting bookings, including what happens to a payment or class-pass credit. This example is not a universal studio policy. Do not collect payment for an unconfirmed place or adopt another studio's conditions without checking their fit for your practice and market.

Example private-session card

Private yoga with Anna. A 60-minute session, GBP 60, at the same venue. Before your first session, we will discuss your experience and an appropriate format. Where Mini App booking is available, select a time and wait for the teacher's confirmation. Only the agreed appointment is confirmed; further dates are booked separately. Mats are provided. Payment, cancellation and rescheduling terms are supplied before confirmation.

BotMarketing service cards can describe these conditions. Private booking requires an active service with booking enabled and an available schedule. The Mini App creates an order and a booking request: selecting a slot should not be presented as the teacher's final acceptance.

The current scheduler excludes overlapping reservations within one schedule. It does not manage an eight-person class capacity or an automatic waitlist. For groups, use a service description and an enquiry to the bot, then check places in a separate ledger or the studio's dedicated booking system. Ordinary appointment slots should not replace group-place accounting.

Count places in one authoritative class ledger

Choose one person to confirm places and one list they check before every reply. Each entry needs the student's contact, class date, place status, any hold deadline and a separate payment note under your terms. Restrict access to the ledger; capacity counting does not require medical information.

Here is a fictional snapshot for 12 November: eight places in total, one temporary offer still valid, and two people who have asked to hear about an opening.

The check is 6 confirmed + 1 held + 1 available = 8. Waiting requests do not add attendees. Confirm the next enquiry and there will be seven confirmed places and one hold, with none available. When a hold expires, release it in the ledger before offering that place again.

Avoid promising the last place to several students at once. State the response deadline and hold conditions, then update the ledger and send confirmation after acceptance. Payment, a request and entitlement to attend must follow the published rules, rather than depend on whether a chat message exists.

A cancellation opens a place, but does not confirm a waiting student

After a cancellation, update the student's entry, settle payment under the agreed terms and check availability. Offer one place to the first suitable waiting student. Until they respond, it remains an offer; do not send an attendance reminder as though they are confirmed.

Example message for a later point when all eight places have been confirmed:

All eight places for 12 November, 7 pm–8:15 pm, are confirmed. I can put you on the waiting list for this class and contact you if a place opens. This is not a booking, and no payment is due. Would you like that offer? If your plans change, let me know and I will remove you from the list.

The teacher maintains this list manually. Permission to wait for one class is not permission for ongoing marketing. Close the list after that class; ask again before carrying a request over to another date.

Protect the teacher's time before opening private appointments

Exclude group teaching, preparation, clearing up and travel from private availability. Check every schedule used by the teacher: overlap protection within one schedule does not guarantee conflict prevention across different services or venues.

For example, a private session on 13 November from 5 pm to 6 pm can need 15 minutes either side for setup and finishing. That is your working allowance, not a promise of an automatic buffer. If a class at another venue starts at 6 pm, resolve the timing or venue before confirming either commitment.

Discuss class level and practical needs before the visit. A bot does not assess medical suitability or promise treatment outcomes. Questions outside the teacher's competence need an appropriate professional response; an automated reply or a request for diagnoses in a public chat is not a substitute.

When the room changes, update the details and ask for acknowledgement

Check the replacement room's capacity and equipment first. Update the class description, ledger and messages for confirmed students, students with a hold and waiting students, respecting each person's status. If capacity falls from eight to six, you need individual arrangements with affected students; announcing a room change does not resolve the missing places.

Fictional example where eight places, the time and price remain available:

Your confirmed class on 12 November, 7 pm–8:15 pm, will take place in Room B instead of Room A at 12 River Street. The new entrance is to the right of reception. Please arrive by 6:50 pm; mats will be in the room. Your time, price and place remain the same. Please reply to confirm you have seen the change. If the new room does not work for you, let me know so we can agree a cancellation and payment arrangement.

Scheduled BotMarketing messages require access to automatic messages, Telegram features and a connected chat. Check the company time zone and exact recipients. Amend or stop the old send separately after a change. An existing scenario's audience cannot be changed; a different recipient list needs a new scenario. Messages are not automatically reconciled with the manual class ledger.

Before launch, use test contacts to try the last available place, a waiting student's refusal and a room change after confirmation. Each case should make clear who will attend, what still needs a reply and which old message must stop. For instructor, room and equipment coordination, see the Pilates studio workflow. For a separate invitation to another practice, see the meditation facilitator article.