StyleSeatReviews of styleseat.com

I have my ups and downs with StyleSeat. In the beginning it was great at helping me get clients then over time i was only getting clients like once a month if that. I also really dislike all the fees. I understand that the site is build for helping gain new clients and its only a one time fee for new clients but that fee can really take a toll on you. Especially when you have bills and other things you need to pay for and hair is your full-time job. It can also make you feel like you’re working for free. I have gain some loyal clients from StyleSeat and i wont take that away from them but the fees overtime be came to much and from getting new clients every week to only once a month if that, also made me start to turn away and look else where.

I am enjoying the updates and notifications. As you roll out new initiatives, please also provide a 2-3 minute video tutorial. I don’t understand why a fee is still being charged per client when I pay the monthly fee. Most of the clients I am directing to StyleSeat from my social media platforms. But is being charged a new client fee. Also paid members should be allowed to accept cash payments and customer not be forced to pay via card on the site. Many people are hesitant due to the scamming that’s taking place in this environment we live in. I personally think the client should have flexibility with payment especially with the paid subscribers. ***UPDATE *** Thank you for your response. If I turn off the new client fee, will Styleseat not show my profile as a top performer? That will feel like an unfair punishment to save on the fees. I've been with StyleSeat for years and it just comes to a point with the fees. The fees should really be void after a year, especially with the paid subscriptions. More business owners would likely use the paid subscriptions if they wouldn't get charged double. Let me add StyleSeat is helpful for those looking to grow, but in all fairness the fees are prohibiting business owners from signing up.

I pay monthly to have an available and bookable profile … but for some reason you also charge my clients to book. Seems like double dipping. Also you try to charge me for client booking as well. Most are referrals from other people so I have to dispute it. Also a suggestion is to hold the funds on cards when clients schedule. There shouldn’t be a declined charge but I have experienced this.

My biggest issue happened this summer, and this is where my frustration with StyleSeat reached another level. For approximately 6–8 weeks, my calendar on the professional side was substantially open, yet my clients were being shown that I had no availability or that I was completely booked. And I am not talking only about potential new clients discovering me through the StyleSeat marketplace. These were my established, existing clients who already knew me, were specifically searching for me, and were actively trying to book appointments with me. More than a dozen existing clients eventually called me, contacted me directly, or came into the salon and told me they had been trying to schedule appointments but StyleSeat was showing that I had nothing available. My assistant tested my booking page and experienced the same issue. I even had a client sitting in my chair pull up my StyleSeat page while I had my professional calendar open. She was not being shown the same availability I could see on my end. Meanwhile, I was looking at an unusually empty appointment book wondering why business had slowed down so drastically. That is the part that bothers me the most. I initially blamed myself and assumed it was simply my normal summer slowdown. I’ve been in this business long enough to understand that every season isn’t equally busy. But eventually my own clients started telling me, “I’ve been trying to book you, but you don’t have anything available.” Except I DID have availability. A lot of it. These weren’t customers StyleSeat needed to market me to or acquire for my business. They were already my clients and were specifically trying to give my business their money, but the platform I pay to manage my appointments was showing them that they couldn’t book me. I have repeatedly reported the problem to StyleSeat. Their response has essentially been that they troubleshoot my account, see available appointments when they check it, and therefore cannot identify a problem. But that doesn’t explain why so many unrelated clients experienced the same thing over several weeks. An intermittent issue isn’t disproven simply because it isn’t happening at the exact moment customer service checks the account. And here’s the part I can never quantify: How many clients didn’t call me? My longtime clients knew something wasn’t right and contacted me. But how many occasional clients simply assumed I was booked? How many people went somewhere else? How many potential clients saw no availability and never came back? I’ll never know. For a platform that charges professionals subscription and marketing fees and earns additional money from certain bookings, that is unacceptable to me. I am paying for a booking system so that people can book me when I am available — especially clients I already earned myself.

StyleSeat has been a great platform for me and my business overall, and I truly appreciate the opportunities and convenience it has provided throughout the years. My biggest concerns, however, are the increasing cost, the lack of immediate support when emergencies or urgent business issues arise, and the frequent technical issues with the app. I also feel that there are too many fees placed on professionals who have been loyal, long-term users of the platform. Additionally, I have been experiencing an increase in scammers and fraudulent activity, which can be especially concerning for small business owners who rely on online platforms to manage their businesses and income. I would love to see more affordable pricing, stronger and more accessible customer support, improved app reliability, and increased protection against scammers and fraudulent activity. Providing greater security and support for professionals would make StyleSeat an even stronger platform for both stylists and their clients.

It’s a great platform, I enjoy it definitely. It’s a few things I think should be easier or better updated. I’d definitely like the time options for the promotional services be updated so I can personalize the specific timeslots I’d like to use. It’s very confusing for my clients having open timeslots that they cannot book and have to be corrected for promotional use. And some people cancel because of it. The new client referral is getting a little frustrating because I promote my personal link and people think that they’re using my personal link to book and it’s transferring them over to a new client referral and since they’re on my social media platforms getting my personal link I don’t have a contact number and can’t always get the new client referral removed. I definitely enjoy the new clients referred from StyleSeat. But not every new client is a new client referral from you. There’s a new client from my social media platforms that I promote on a daily basis. This is very frustrating.

Overall, I believe StyleSeat is a good platform with valuable tools for beauty professionals, especially for online booking, client management, visibility, and attracting new clients. However, there are several areas where I believe the platform could improve. My biggest concern is the cost. The monthly fees feel high, especially when considering that there are also fees associated with credit card transactions. During challenging economic times, independent stylists have many business expenses, and there are several social media platforms available that allow us to market our businesses for free. I also wish more marketing and promotional opportunities were included with the basic plan. The Premium Plan is more expensive, and I do not feel that all professionals can easily justify the additional cost when there are so many other free or low-cost ways to promote their businesses. Another major concern is client list management. I do not like that outdated clients have to be deleted one at a time. There should be an option to select and delete or archive multiple clients at once. Over time, clients move, change phone numbers, stop receiving services, or change salons, and the client list can become cluttered with outdated information. The ability to export client information is helpful, but I would also like the ability to clean up and update the exported list and then import it back into StyleSeat. Having to manually re-enter clients one by one is extremely time-consuming. A bulk import option would be a major improvement. I also believe there should be an easier way to update client information annually and identify or archive inactive clients. Finally, as a long-time and top-rated professional on the platform, I would like to see more opportunities for professionals like myself to be recognized, featured, sponsored, or promoted by StyleSeat and its affiliates. I have consistently contributed to the platform by maintaining a strong professional reputation and providing quality service, yet I have not had the opportunity to be featured or sponsored. I believe top-rated and loyal professionals who contribute positively to the success and reputation of the platform should have more opportunities for recognition and promotional partnerships. Overall, I appreciate what StyleSeat offers, but I believe the platform would be much stronger if it provided more affordable options, additional marketing opportunities, better client database management, easier bulk editing and importing, and more recognition for top-rated professionals who have consistently contributed to the platform's success.

Honestly, I haven’t had too many issues with StyleSeat overall, but there are a few things I really don’t like. The first is all of the fees. There are just too many, and I’ve actually been considering switching to a different booking platform because of how much money is taken out in fees. I’ve also had an ongoing issue with my phone number. For months, I haven’t been able to properly log into my account using my number or receive notifications from StyleSeat through my phone. Most recently, I had my first dispute after using StyleSeat for years. StyleSeat took the disputed amount out of my account before the dispute was even settled. I really don’t like that process, especially since a final decision hadn’t been made yet. Overall, I think StyleSeat is decent, and I’ve used it for years, but I do believe there are better booking platforms available with fewer fees, less money being taken from professionals, and a more user-friendly experience.