Best Online Appointment Scheduling Options for B2B Businesses

When it comes to booking appointments, navigating the complexities of different schedules, time zones, and software can be a pain. 

Perhaps you’ve tried different tools, only to have them be more confusing than the original process. Or, you manage all of your appointment booking in-house, but this is time-consuming and expensive.

Fortunately, there are many more effective and efficient ways to book appointments with prospects that don’t require overly complicated CRMs or hiring a dedicated team member.

So, if you want to book more appointments and streamline your pipeline management, it might be time to look into these appointment scheduling options. 

What is an Appointment Scheduler?

An appointment scheduler can refer to a human representative who books appointments on behalf of a company or organization, or a digital software that helps facilitate the booking process. Sometimes, these two resources work together, with the representative conducting the outreach while utilizing software to save lead data, automate follow up, and track sales.

Many B2B companies rely on one or the other, depending on Sales Development Representatives (SDRs) to do all the appointment scheduling, or on apps to encourage users to book appointments. But these methods, when used separately, can be ineffective at truly streamlining the appointment process.

Why Use Appointment Schedulers?

There are many reasons for using human appointment schedulers alongside online software. 

For one, people are better positioned to build a genuine connection with a prospect, increasing the likelihood that they will convert into a client. Second, human setters can respond to a prospect’s objections in real-time; this is not the case with software, which leaves prospects likely to cancel or no-show if they are no longer interested. 

Besides these primary benefits, here are a few more reasons why you might consider using appointment schedulers:

• Complex decision-making: Humans can handle complex scheduling situations that require negotiation and judgment, such as rescheduling due to unforeseen circumstances or prioritizing certain appointments over others based on business needs.
• Flexibility: While software follows set rules, a human can adapt to unique situations, providing flexibility in accommodating last-minute changes.
• Understanding nuances: Humans are better at understanding and acting upon non-verbal cues during phone or video calls, which can be important for gauging client preferences or concerns.
• Client retention: The personalized service provided by a human scheduler can increase client satisfaction and retention, as clients feel their needs are being attended to by a caring professional.
• Integration of feedback: Human schedulers can gather and integrate feedback from clients directly into the scheduling process, allowing for continuous improvement of the scheduling experience.

While appointment scheduling software can help reduce manual errors, it lacks the level of personalization needed to connect with prospects and articulate the value of your offer in accordance with their needs. That’s why we recommend working with human setters alongside your appointment booking tools.

The Best B2B Appointment Scheduling Options

We shouldn’t underestimate the value of human connection in the B2B selling process. 

Prospects are constantly inundated with AI-generated pitches, intrusive ad campaigns, and spammy email sales tactics. As Superhuman Prospect, we’re all about leveraging the power of 1:1 interaction to build genuine relationships with prospects, which in turn increases the likelihood of conversion. 

That said, there are a few go-to tools and appointment scheduling options that we recommend if you want to optimize your appointment setting process from start to finish. 

1. ​​Google Calendar
2. Calendly
3. Acuity Scheduling
4. Zoho Bookings
5. Square Appointments
6. SimplyBook.me
7. HubSpot Meetings
8. Superhuman

1. Google Calendar

Google Calendar is a widely used time-management and scheduling tool hosted by Google. For B2B companies, Google Calendar allows for the creation, management, and sharing of appointments and events, which can be fully integrated with other Google Workspace services.

Google Calendar is completely free and offers a range of helpful features. For example, you can add a Secondary Timezone to compare times with your team in another part of the world, and grant visibility into your own calendar. You can even add colored tags to help you categorize team meetings, lead meetings, personal events, and more. 

Pros:

• Seamless integration with other Google services, allowing for collaboration across platforms.
• The ability to share calendars and events makes it easy to find shared times for appointments.

Cons:

• Limited customization options for the appearance and functionality of the calendar.
• May not offer sufficient features for complex appointment scheduling needs, such as payment processing or multiple location coordination.

2. Calendly

Calendly is an appointment scheduling platform that allows individuals and businesses to set availability preferences, share their calendars, and let others book appointments during open times. Businesses love Calendly because they don’t have to manually book appointments; they can just set their open slots and allow prospects to book a time. 

The free version offers simple features suitable to many businesses, but the paid subscription offers even more in terms of payment processing, automated reminders, and third-party tool integrations. 

Pros:

• User-friendly interface that simplifies the process of finding and booking appointments.
• A large array of integration capabilities with various calendars, video conferencing tools, and CRM systems.

Cons:

• The free version has limited features. A paid subscription is needed in order to access the full benefits.
• It can be less flexible for organizations with highly complex scheduling needs.

3. Acuity Scheduling

Acuity Scheduling is a cloud-based appointment scheduling software that makes it easy to automate your workflows and bookings. You’re able to share your available hours, allow people to book and reschedule appointments, and even accept appointment bookings directly in Google Search and Google Maps.

Pros:

• Provides a customizable client booking site that allows clients to book their own appointments.
• Offers advanced features such as payment processing, multiple calendars, and appointment packages.

Cons:

• The interface can sometimes be overwhelming for new users.
• It is higher cost compared to some other scheduling solutions.

4. Zoho Bookings

If you’ve been in the B2B space for a while, then you’ve likely heard of Zoho. Zoho Bookings is an online scheduling and appointment booking tool that integrates with the full suite of Zoho products, including its CRM, email platform, and accounting tools.

Pros:

• Zoho offers a comprehensive set of features that cater to various business sizes and industries.
• Integration with Zoho CRM enables a seamless flow of customer data for appointment management.

Cons:

• May require a learning curve to fully utilize all features effectively.
• The pricing can be on the higher side for the full suite of Zoho services.

5. Square Appointments

Square Appointments is an all-in-one point of sale (POS) and appointment scheduling platform. It is particularly suited for businesses that sell services. Allow people to book appointments through an app or directly on your own Square-based website — completely branded to suit your business. 

Pros:

• Combines appointment scheduling with payment processing, making it ideal for businesses that charge for services.
• Clean interface and ease of use, with a free version available for individuals.

Cons:

• The cost can add up with additional features and higher processing fees.
• It may be more than what’s needed for businesses that don’t require integrated payment processing.

6. SimplyBook.me

SimplyBook.me is a lesser-known online booking system tailored toward service-based businesses. It offers a customizable booking website for your brand, plus a variety of helpful plug-ins, such as website widgets, sales tools, and social media integration. 

Pros:

• Offers a wide range of features including a booking website, automated notifications, and marketing tools.
• Flexibility with a multitude of integrations and customization options.

Cons:

• The setup can be complex due to the number of features and options.
• The system’s extensive capabilities might be more than what’s necessary for smaller businesses.

7. HubSpot Meetings

HubSpot is another well-known business management, CRM, and appointment scheduling tool. HubSpot Meetings is a feature within the CRM platform that enables sales teams to easily schedule appointments with prospects. Many B2B businesses love HubSpot because they can manage their marketing, sales, and client management all in one place. 

Pros:

• Direct integration with HubSpot CRM allows for efficient tracking of customer interactions and appointments.
• Automated scheduling links can reduce the back-and-forth typically associated with booking meetings.

Cons:

• To get the most out of HubSpot Meetings, your company would ideally need to use the other HubSpot services.
• It may not offer as much scheduling-specific flexibility as standalone scheduling tools.

8. Superhuman

Unlike online appointment scheduling tools, Superhuman Prospecting is a done-for-you lead generation, cold outreach, and B2B appointment scheduling service operated by real humans! Now, we may sound a bit biased, but we really believe that the key to effective call scheduling (and more sales) is adding that human element. 

We have an experienced team of SDR’s, plus our proprietary Human-to-Human Sales Script Methodology, that work together to generate qualified sales leads and appointments for your business. 

We’ll provide you with your own dedicated Strategist and SDR Manager to develop the right process for you. And we’ll work within your existing CRM for seamless lead gen to sales call to client management.

Pros:

• Leverages human-to-human interactions to better qualify leads, garner genuine interest from prospects, and increase close rates.
• Conducts outreach on your behalf, cutting down on the time and costs of operating your own lead generation and sales pipeline completely in house.
• Works alongside your preferred CRM to avoid any bottlenecks in the lead handoff process. 

Cons:

• Superhuman Prospecting is not a software or a tool. That means it runs as an independent, outsourced sales system. However, this is done in close collaboration with your business.
• Our system can be higher cost than solely using online tools. However, the return on investment is much higher because we help qualify your leads and book high-quality appointments. 

Should You Hire an Appointment Scheduler?

A human appointment scheduler can do far more than what is possible with an online app or software. Yes, online tools bring the efficiency and convenience of automation, but they are void of the human connection needed to nurture valuable relationships with prospects. Hiring an appointment scheduler, alongside the use of your scheduling tools, is a great way to qualify your best prospects, increase genuine interests, and generate better results for your business.

Superhuman Prospecting is a trusted provider of lead generation, cold outreach, and appointment booking services. Learn more about our outreach process and see how SDR-managed appointment scheduling can benefit your business.