Appointment Booking for a Car Dealership using Salesforce Scheduler

Salesforce scheduler helps with easy booking of appointments. It can be done by both users within the organization and their customers. In this blog, we will see how to configure Salesforce scheduler and book an appointment.

The sample use case that I have taken to demonstrate the configuration is that of a fictitious car dealership company ABC. In the showroom, there are two car salesmen, Ryan Dobsen, Car Sales Manager and Rose Larry, Car Sales Associate. ABC’s Customers need to book an appointment via online to visit the showroom and meet the salesman or to setup a test drive. We will see how “Rachel Adams” a fictitious customer books an appointment.

But before that we will setup Salesforce Scheduler on our Salesforce instance. The steps below will guide you on how to setup the Salesforce Scheduler on Salesforce.

Scheduler Setup

Step 1:
Create Users profiles for both Ryan and Rose. User profiles are unique profiles created for each individual user using the system. Profiles are assigned certain permissions that allow user to access different objects and data across the system.
→ Go to Setup
→ Type in Users in Quick find
→ Select Users
→ Select New User
Create a user for Ryan Dobsen and assign him User license Salesforce and Profile System Administrator. Do the same for Rose Larry.

Step 2:
Assign Salesforce Scheduler App to System Admin profile. This will ensure that every user assigned the role of System Administrator will have access to the Scheduler functionalities.
→ Go to Setup
→ Type in App manager in Quick find
→ Salesforce Scheduler Setup dropdown
→ Click Edit
→ App settings
→ User Profiles
→ Move the System Admin profile to Selected profiles

Step 3:
Assign the Salesforce Scheduler permission set license to Ryan and Rose. Users need to be assigned the permission set if they need to ab able to use the functionality.
→ Go to Setup
→ Type in Permission Sets in Quick find
→ Click New
→ Enter Salesforce Scheduler Resource in the label box
→ Select Salesforce Scheduler permission set license
→ Save

→ Navigate to Permission Set Overview page
→ System Permission
→ Press Edit
→ Enable the Let a user be included in appointments in Salesforce Scheduler
permission
→ Click Save twice.

→ Navigate to Permission Set Overview page
→ Manage assignments à Add Assignments
→ Select users Ryan and Rose à Click Assign.

Step 4:
Create Appointment Locations. The company or organization may have showrooms in various locations. We must be able to track this, hence we create Service territories in the system.
→ App launcher
→ Salesforce Scheduler
→ Service Territories tab
→ New
→ Enter name as HQ Branch

Add Operating hours.
→ Choose a Service territory from the Service territory tab
→ Click on New Operating Hours
→ Select (GMT+11:00) Australian Eastern Daylight Time (Australia/Sydney) for Time zone
→ Name for operating hours Australia ET
→ Save

→ Select Active
→ Enter address Level 10, 440 Collins Street Melbourne VIC 3000
→ Click Save
(Make sure address appears as Google map’s location)

→ Under Operating hours click Add Time Slots
→ Monday to Friday assign time 8 AM to 4 PM.
→ Save

Step 5:
Create Service resources. Service resources are individuals who would be assigned service appointments based on their skill, level of expertise.
→ Navigate to Service Resource tab
→ Select New
→ Enter Name as Ryan Dobsen
→ Select user Ryan Dobsen
→ Select Active checkbox
→ Resource type select Technician
→ Click Save
Do the same for Rose Larry.

Step 6: Assign Service resources to Branch locations. All Service resources must be assigned to branch locations so that we can know how many resources are available at a certain location and we are able to assign them accordingly.
→ Navigate to Ryan’s Service resource record page
→ Click Assign Service Territories button
→ Select HQ branch à Set this as Primary and Cumulus as Secondary
→ Enter start as todays date
→ Make Cumulus store as Secondary
→ Start date for this can be one week after
Do the same for Rose Larry.

Step 7: Create Skills. Every Service Resource is assigned skills. Each Service resource can have multiple skills assigned to them, this is done so that we know that the service resource would be the appropriate person to get the service appointment done at the stipulated time.
→ Go to Setup
→ Type in Skills on Quick find
→ Click New
→ Enter Car Sales Manager
Then do the same steps for Car Sales Associate.

Step 8: Assign Skills to Service resources
→ Navigate to Service resource
→ Select Ryan
→ Click on Assign Skills action
→ Select Car Sales Manager à Enter a skill level 90 à Enter today’s date as start date à Click Save.

Do the same for Rose Larry. Select Car Sales Associate and enter Skill as 50.

Step 9: Configure Appointment Topics. Appointment topics are functional domains that agents are specialized in. This helps in appointment allocation to specific agents.
→ Go to Setup
→ Object Manager
→ Work Type Group
→ Fields and Relationships
→ Additional Information
→ Click New
→ Enter Goal Setting, Planning, Budgeting, Recruiting, Selling, Generating New Business (Add these words on separate lines)
→ Click Save

Step 10: Create Appointment Topics.
→ App launcher
→ Work Type Groups
→ New
→ Buying a Car
→ Save
Then do the same and create Test Drive.

Step 11: Configure Appointment Templates. Appointment template is the nature of appointment, it’s how the appointment is going to be held whether via phone, in the store etc.
→ Go to Setup
→ Object manager
→ Work Types
→ Fields and relationships
→ Default Appointment Type
→ New
→ Phone, At a store (Add these words on separate lines)
→ Click Save

Step 12: Create Appointment Templates. Appointment templates are created to keep track of the details of an appointment for referencing back later. The appointment topics relate to what the appointment is held for whether it is for the Purchase of a car or for Test Drive
→ Work Types tab
→ New
→ For the name enter Car Purchase
→ Enter Estimate duration, Duration Type in minutes
→ Save

Add time on Operating Hours component

Do the same for Car Test Drive.

Step 13: Assign Required Skills to Appointment Templates.
→ Navigate to Work type record tab
→ Select Car Purchase
→ On Skills required related list select New
→ Select Car Sales Manager Skill
→ Enter 90 for Skill level
→ Save

Step 14: Assign Appointment Templates to Appointment Topics
→ Navigate to work type record tab.
→ Select Car Purchase
→ On the tab Work type Group Members
→ Click New
→ Select Buy Car as Work type group
→ Save

→ Navigate to work type record tab
→ Select Car Test Drive
→ On the tab Work type Group Members.
→ Click New
→ Select Buy Car as Work type group
→ Save

Scheduling an Appointment

→ Navigate to the Account tab.
→ Select an Account and click on the Schedule Appointment button.
(Before this step make sure that Schedule Appointment button is on the objects page layout.)

The Parent record automatically appears on the Select Service Resources. We select By work type group, appointment type or service territory.

Now we are prompted to select the work type group.

Next select the appointment type.

Select a service territory that you would like the appointment to take place.

Select the service resource. Since only Ryan is assigned to this Service territory only his name would show up.

Next we have an option to select a time.

The next page shows all the details entered. This is a page where you can review all the details.

After reviewing all the details and after pressing next we can see this page.

Once the appointment is set it shows up on Rachel Adams account under the Service Appointment related tab.

Hope you enjoyed the read and found this blog useful!