Create Appointment Service from Prompt

When to Use

• User wants to create an appointment-based service: "set up consultations", "create a 1-on-1 session", "add a personal training appointment", "create a meeting service"
• The service type is APPOINTMENT — customer picks an available time slot during staff working hours
• For general service creation where the type is ambiguous, see Create Booking Service from Prompt

Prerequisites

• For full API field definitions, validation rules, and troubleshooting, see Create and Update Booking Services

Step 1: Gather Business Context

Run these queries to collect site data for informed defaults.

1a. Query Staff Members (CRITICAL for Appointments)

Save each staff member's resourceId (not id). Note which one has default: true.

APPOINTMENT services REQUIRE at least one staff member. If no staff members exist, create one first using Bookings Staff Setup.

1b. Query Service Categories

1c. Query Existing Services (Duplicate Check)

Warn the user if a service with a similar name already exists.

Step 2: Apply Appointment Defaults

For any fields the user did not explicitly specify:

Pricing (if not specified)

• If user specifies a price → rateType: "FIXED"
• If user says "free" → rateType: "NO_FEE", options.inPerson: true, options.online: false
• If no price mentioned → infer from context (consultations ~$50-100, sessions ~$30-60) or default to free

Staff Assignment

• 1 staff member → auto-assign using their resourceId
• Multiple staff members → use the one with default: true, or the first one
• No staff members → create one first using Bookings Staff Setup, then proceed

Category

• If categories exist → assign the most relevant one
• If no categories exist → create a "General" category:

Service Name & Description

• Use the user's wording for the service name
• Generate a brief, professional description (1-2 sentences)

Step 3: Create the Appointment Service

Paid appointment:

Free appointment:

APPOINTMENT-Specific Reminders

• staffMemberIds is required — uses resourceId values, not staff member id
• schedule.availabilityConstraints.sessionDurations sets the appointment length
• Availability is based on the assigned staff member's working hours schedule

Save the serviceId from the response: results[0].item.service.id

Step 4: Summary Message

Provide a summary including:

1. What was created — service name, price, duration, assigned staff member
2. Assumptions made — list defaults used (e.g., "I set the duration to 60 minutes since you didn't specify")
3. Next steps — "Click Save to finalize, then set up your availability"
4. Offer to adjust — "Want me to change the price, duration, or staff assignment?"

Example:

Error Handling

Payment Validation Quick Reference

What This Skill Does NOT Cover

• Schedule/availability setup — staff working hours need separate configuration. See Bookings Staff Setup
• Pricing plans — memberships and session packs are separate. See Create and Update Pricing Plans
• Service images — requires Media Manager API (see create-and-update-booking-services.md)

API Documentation Reference

• Bulk Create Services
• Query Services
• Query Categories
• Create Category
• Query Staff Members
• Create Staff Member
• About Service Types
• About Service Payments