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Booking field workarounds

Learn how to use booking form fields to suit your specific needs.

Anni avatar
Written by Anni
Updated over a month ago

Sometimes, Bookwhen’s booking fields may not provide the functionality you need. This article explains some common workarounds to help you tailor your booking process to fit your requirements.

This article covers:


Conditional fields

Use the 'Yes/No' field for your initial question to create dynamic questions based on user responses:

Booking form setup with arrow pointing at the Field data type - yes or no option.

For example: "Do you have any dietary restrictions?".

Then, add a Multiple-Choice - List field with options for customers who answer "yes."

Booking field setup highlighting the field data type drop-down box, with 'multiple choice - list' option selected.

For example, “Please select your dietary restrictions from the options below. If you answered "no, "please select N/A.”

Then, double-check that the fields appear in the correct order for your customers. To do this, open your entry, select the Booking form tab, scroll down to Field options and select Select and reorder fields:

Booking form tab with arrow pointing at the 'Select & reorder fields' option.

Drag and drop the fields using the 3-line icon next to each field:

Select and reorder fields section with arrow pointing at the hamburger lines next to a field, showing users where to click and hold to drag and drop each field into the correct order.

It's a good idea to make each field mandatory to ensure each attendee fills out each question. If you do, adding a 'N/A' option or something similar is important so those who answer 'no' can skip it.

Below is an example of how it would appear for customers checking out:

Checkout example highlighting how fields are layed out.


Uploads

You can create a booking field with a link to a third-party service that supports uploads or digital signatures to collect files or digital signatures from customers.

Creating hyperlinks

To create hyperlinks within your booking form fields, use the format [text](webpage).

  • This lets you provide clickable links for more information or resources directly within the form.

For example, to hyperlink 'Cancellation & Refund Policy' to a specific URL, use the following code:

[Cancellation & Refund Policy](https://bookwhen.com/terms)

  • In this format, the text within the square brackets [] will appear to customers, while the URL within the parentheses () is the link destination.

 Field creation screen with arrow pointing in the 'Additional help text' field, showing the completed code that users need to add to create a hyperlink.

Below is how it would appear to customers during checkout:

Checkout example showing hyperlinked text underneath the attendee field.


Confirm eligibility

You can include an age restriction when setting up your event, such as "This event is suitable for ages 18 and over." However, these restrictions aren’t automatically enforced during the booking process.

To ensure customers meet the age requirement, you can add a checkbox for them to confirm their age. For example, use verification text like "I confirm that I am 18 years old or older", select Checkbox as the Data type, and set it as an Attendee field.

 Booking field edit screen with the 'Data type' option highlighted.

You can then make this field mandatory within each entry, ensuring each customer fills it out to complete their booking.

This is how it would appear to customers during checkout:

Checkout screen highlighted the mandatory checkbox that customers would need to tick to complete their booking.


Notes

You can include a free text field allowing customers to add notes when you require additional information. You (as the admin) can also edit this field as needed.

Customer notes

When creating the field, choose between the Plain text - Single-line and Plain text - Multi-line options:

 Booking field setup with the 'Plain text - multi-line' and 'Plain text - single-line' option highlighted under the 'Data type'.

Your choice will depend on how much information you need to obtain, and it's a good idea to remind customers not to include any sensitive information.

How the Plain text - Multi-line option would appear to customers during checkout:

Attendee details section of the checkout, highlighted a booking form field names 'Additional details' where bookers can enter 'free text'.

Admin notes

You may also use the booking field as a workaround for internal notes. To do this, select either the Plain text - Single-line and Plain text - Multi-line option when creating the field:

Booking field setup with the 'Plain text - multi-line' and 'Plain text - single-line' option highlighted under the 'Data type'.

You can include additional information to clarify this field. Add text like, "This field is for internal use only" or "Please leave this field blank" under the Additional details field. You can also add "For internal use only" under Placeholder text.

  • While it may seem repetitive, clarifying this field is a good practice.

Booking field setup example showing 'Additional details' and 'Placeholder text' examples.

How this field appears during checkout:

Booking details section during checkout showing the 'For internal use only' field.

You (the admin) can then add notes to the field after the booking is made.

To do this, you'll need to locate the booking by selecting Bookings from the left-hand dashboard menu, then searching for your booking using the list, or add information into the Search field and select the Search button to generate your results:

Bookings tab with arrow pointing at the 'Search' field, showing users where they can add search information.

Once you have found the booking, select the hyperlinked booking reference to open it.

The field will appear next to the area where it applies, i.e. next to the attendee (if an attendee field) etc.

In this example, the field was a booking field, meaning it will sit under the Booking fields section of the booking. To edit the field, select Edit details:

Booking page with an arrow pointing at 'Edit details', showing users what to click to edit the customers booking fields.

Add any additional information into the field before selecting Save changes:

Open settings of the booking field within the customer's booking, showing users where they can add information after a booking has been completed.

The updated information will then appear next to the field title:

Booking fields example showing how an internal note booking field with notes looks.

You can edit this field as many times as you like. On the day of the event, you may also wish to add it to the attendee list and export your lists as required.


💬 Any questions or feedback? There are two ways to get in touch:

Thank you! 🕺

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