WO2008109767A1 - Spa scheduling system - Google Patents

Abstract

A scheduling system includes a call center module accommodating reception of information through an agent via telephone transmission, a consumer reservation module accommodating reservations through the Internet, a services administration module managing information of services, a system reporting module accommodating input and output to manage the information of the services, an appointment reservation server connected to and controlling the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module, and a scheduling database storing the information for the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module and managed by the appointment reservation server for output.

Description

SPA SCHEDULING SYSTEM

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001 ] The present application claims priority of United States Provisional Application for SPA SCHEDULING SYSTEM, Serial No. 60/905,047, filed on March 6, 2007, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The present invention relates generally to a scheduling system. More particularly, the present invention relates to a scheduling system for services including spas.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0003] Recently, there has been an increased demand to plan and schedule spa appointments through the Internet. Presently, the scheduling systems include methods of scheduling hotel reservations. However, as seen on the hotel reservation pages, one can schedule a certain date for a hotel stay and a certain spa treatment. However, the spa information that is reserved is limited to the date and there is no actual control of other variables within the spa. A person still has to go tot the hotel and then ask the clerk to set up the specific spa treatment desired based on the person's desired treatment, availability of spa technicians, and availability of spa treatment rooms/equipment.

[0004] For example, U.S. Patent Application No. 09/923,926 for "SYSTEM, METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FORMATTING INVENTORY DATA," by James Whitney, herein incorporated by reference in its entirety, shows a method of formatting inventory data. However, such a method does not take into account the variables that are needed in spa.scheduling.

[0005] The scheduling systems available on.the Internet lack the ability to properly reserve and manage the necessary features of spa treatments, which may take into account variable beyond just the date so the appointment or the type of appointment. [0006] There is a need within the hospitality market for a centralized appointment-level scheduling and availability application. A scheduling application has limitless applicability to many facets of the hospitality and tourism industries, especially in the spa market. In addition, the development of such an application, there is also a need for such scheduling methods in areas such as golf tee times, restaurant reservations, guided tour scheduling, and others.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0007] The present invention provides for a scheduling system for services including a plurality of variables related to the services that can be manipulated without conflicts.

[0008] A scheduling system includes a call center module accommodating reception of information through an agent via telephone transmission, a consumer reservation module accommodating reservations through the Internet, a services administration module managing information of services, a system reporting module accommodating input and output to manage the information of the services, an appointment reservation server connected to and controlling the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module, and a scheduling database storing the information for the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module and managed by the appointment reservation server for output.

[0009] The system can also include the reservations being for spa services including the variables in support of the spa services, the reservations being inputted and outputted through a network including the Internet. The system can also include the reservations including reserving a plurality of service resources and tangible resources. The system can also include the services resources including time allocation of technicians performing the spa treatment, and tangible resources including the supplies necessary for the particular spa treatment available for the particular time.

[0010] The system can also include the output of appointment reservation and the input is displayed on a screen with a video graphic representation of spa treatments and resources remotely from the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module. The system can also include the scheduling database being remote from the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module, the scheduling database being in continuous communication with the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module for performing the reservation of the spa appointment.

[0011] In another aspect of the invention, a method of scheduling system, includes receiving information, by a call center module, through an agent via telephone transmission, configuring through a consumer reservation module, reservations through the Internet, managing information of at least one of a plurality services, by a services administration module, outputting of information of the services in a certain media by a system reporting module, controlling the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module by an appointment reservation server, and storing, by a scheduling database, the information for the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module and managed by the appointment reservation server for output.

[0012] hi another aspect of disclosure, a scheduling system, includes a call center means accommodating reception of information through an agent via telephone transmission, a consumer reservation means accommodating reservations through the Internet, a services administration means managing information of at least one of a plurality services, a system reporting means accommodating the outputting of information of the services in a certain media, an appointment reservation server connected to and controlling the call center means, consumer reservation means, spa administration means and system reporting means, and a scheduling database storing the information for the call center means, consumer reservation means, spa administration means and system reporting means and managed by the appointment reservation server for output.

[0013] There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, certain embodiments of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof herein may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are, of course, additional embodiments of the invention that can be described below and which can form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.

[0014] In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of embodiments in addition to those described and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is- to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein, as well as the abstract, are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.

[0015] As such, those ski lied in the art can appreciate that the conception upon which this disclosure is based may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] FIG. 1 is a view of modules for a spa scheduling system of the present invention.

[0017] FIGS. 2 through 5 are detailed views of the user interface of the guest reservation module.

[0018] FIG. 6 is a detailed view of the user interface of the call center module.

[0019] FIGS . 7 through 9 are detailed views of the user interface of the spa administration module.

[0020] FIG. 10 is a detailed view of the user interface of the reporting module.

[0021] FIGS. 11 through 17 are detailed view of the booking process of the scheduling system of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0022] The spa scheduling system includes the selling of spa inventory on a global basis. The scheduling system is an integrated solution, which brings all three components of the spa reservation equation together: the spa consumer, the spa reservationists who are responsible for booking and managing spa appointments, and the spa managers, who are responsible for running spa operations.

[0023] The spa scheduling system can be an application service provider (ASP) that provides spas with a centralized reservation system (CRS) for displaying, booking, and managing spa appointment availability online. The system can be comprised of five major modules, but is not limited to the five modules. FIG. 1 shows the modules of the spa scheduling system 10.

[0024] The appointment reservation server 12 is the central repository for all available and booked spa appointments the consumer reservation module 14 is the reusable, customizable module spas can add to their websites to allow consumers to schedule their own appointments. The call center reservation module 16 accommodates the full featured web application call center rescrvationists and travel agents can be able to use to create and modify spa appointments for their clients. The spa administration module 18 accommodates the back end administration tool spas can use to load their personnel, treatment offerings, rooms, and available times into the system. The system reporting module 20 accommodates the back-end tool spa manager can use to analyze the financial performance of their facility.

[0025] The application can include a single screen consumer web scheduling process with a flash and Java technology platform (flash), along with a separate HTML (hypertext markup language) based high volume call center application, the present invention includes dynamic, real-time reporting capabilities, with dynamic packaging, email marketing program, book groups online, photography and video to promote up-sell, support for in house and out of house loyalty programs.

[0026] The appointment server 12 as shown in FIG. 1 is described as follows. All data concerning appointments, spas, technicians, etc., can be centrally housed in a repository called the appointment server 12. This application, which can run over a database 22, such as MS (MICROSOFT) SQL server can house all relevant spa scheduling system information and can be accessed through the various other modules whenever appointments are requested, availability is posted, reports are generated, etc.

[0027] The appointment server 12 can include tables developed to accommodate data about:

(a) the individual spas (e.g. locations, descriptions, etc...) availability;

(b) spa appointments;

(c) technicians and their capabilities;

(d) spa resource information (e.g. massage tables, etc...); and

(e) treatment types (descriptions, pricing, etc.). [0028] The architecture of the appointment server 12 includes spa appointment information being hosted in a centralized environment and exposed to consumers through a consolidated, self- service oriented tool. The scheduling algorithm accommodates the application server to detect conflicts and to suggest alternative schedules to help spas maximize the yield of their (a) technicians, (b) rooms, and (c) equipment while minimizing wasteful scheduling gaps.

[0029] The guest (consumer) reservation module 14 is described in detail as follows. The reusable, customizable consumer booking module can be added to spa client websites in order to allow online consumers to schedule their own appointments using real-time availability data.

[0030] The guest reservation module 14 can be able to book two different kinds of spa appointments: individual spa service appointments and spa packages, which can be sold at a flat rate, but can contain any number of bundled services.

[0031] Users booking individual spa service can be able to search for spa service appointments, create and manage spa service appointments; and receive customized confirmation emails.

[0032] Users booking spa packages can be able to search for spa packages, create and manage spa package appointments, receive customized confirmation emails. Finally, users of the guest module 14 can be able to purchase gift certificates online, and have those gift certificates delivered via email including customized messages.

[0033] This system makes use of a macromedia flash based interface, rich user interface, multi-language support, multi -currency support, dynamic packaging, and the call center module 16, thus accommodating compatibility.

[0034] The spa scheduling system can meet the needs of the call center agent, spa agent, and travel agent community through a specialized call center module 16. With an emphasis on maximizing the efficiency of the appointment creation process and displaying as much information at once to reservationists as possible, the call center module 16 can differ greatly from the consumer module 14, both in its user interface and in its execution.

[0035] The application can include:

(a) an advanced user interface to allow call center agent to view spa service detail and availability; (b) the ability to search for services/package across multiple properties;

(c) the ability to search for guests across multiple properties;

(d) the ability to search for appointments across multiple properties;

(e) the ability to search for appointments request across multiple properties; (1) the ability to create, modify and cancel appointment;

(g) the ability to change appointment requests to confirmed appointments;

(h) call center agent management tools; and

(i) cost override capabilities.

[0036) Referring to FIG. 1 , the spa administration module 18 is as shown below. Spas can manage the personnel, treatment offerings, rooms, and available times in the spa system through the spa administration module 18. This tool, which can operate at the spa-wide level, can be available to managers.of spa's client spas.

[0037] The spa managers can utilize the administration tool to manage all aspects of their online appointment business, from creating packages and availability to managing guest lists and appointments, the features areas can include: appointment management; guest management; spa service management; spa treatment room management; spa technician management; spa package management; online marketing/CRM (possible springboard integration); and reporting module

[0038] The full featured application of the present invention includes backend reporting tools. Spa scheduling system can be able to report on sales, revenue, forecasting, technicians, and call center performance from inception through the administrator interface. As the system matures and customers make their own requests the reporting capabilities can be enhanced, and a UI may be developed to allow for on the fly report generation. Reports available at inception can include appointment, revenue, technician, and call center.

[0039] The system 10 includes the following capabilities, single screen consumer web scheduling process, flash and Java technology platform (flash), separate html based high volume call center application, dynamic, real-time reporting capabilities, dynamic packaging, email marketing program, book groups online, photography and video to promote up-sell, and support for in house and out of house loyalty programs. [0040] The five system modules can be developed in three phases. The schedule includes the following three phases. Phase 1 includes deliverables: appointment reservation server 12, consumer reservation module 14, and spa administration module 18. Phase 2 includes deliverables: system reporting module 20. While, phase 3 includes deliverables such as the call center reservation module 16.

[0041] The appointment server 12 is as shown below with reference to FIG. 1. AU data concerning appointments, spas, technicians, etc., can be centrally housed in a repository called the appointment server 12. This application, which can run over a spa scheduling database 22 such as MS SQL server can house all relevant spa scheduling system information and can be accessed through the various other modules whenever appointments are requested, availability is posted, reports are generated, and so on.

[0042] With regard to capabilities, at a minimum, the appointment server can need to have tables developed to accommodate data about the individual spas (e.g. locations, descriptions, etc.), availability, spa appointments, technicians and their capabilities, spa resource information (e.g. massage tables, etc.), treatment types (descriptions, pricing, etc.), and the user interface.

[0043] There should be no direct user interface available for accessing the application server, except for a few setup/configuration tools. Rather, all changes to the data housed within the server shall be made using the other four modules.

[0044] The architecture of the appointment server can be of note in that, spa appointment information can be hosted in a centralized environment and exposed to consumers through a consolidated, self-service oriented tool.

[0045] The scheduling algorithm can allow the application server to detect conflicts and to suggest alternative schedules to help spas maximize the yield of their technicians, rooms, and equipment while minimizing wasteful scheduling gaps.

[0046] With regard to the guest or consumer reservation module 14, the following describes the details with regard to FIG. 1. The reusable, customizable consumer booking module can be added to the spa client websites in order to allow online consumers to schedule their own appointments using real-time availability data. [0047] With regard to the capabilities of consumer reservation module 14, the guest reservation module can be able to book two different kinds of spa appointments: individual spa service appointments and spa packages, which can be sold at a flat rate, but can contain any number of bundled services.

[0048] The users booking individual spa service can be able to: search for spa service appointments by date / time, product, treatment professional, by name, by gender, create and manage spa service appointments by making new appointments, making multiple appointments for a single guest, modifying existing appointments, canceling existing appointments, and receive customized confirmation emails. Users booking spa packages can be able to search for spa packages by package list, dale/time, create and manage spa package appointments by making new appointment, modifying existing appointment, and canceling existing appointment, receive customized confirmation emails.

[0049] Finally, users of the guest module can be able to purchase gift certificates online, and have those gift certificates delivered via email including customized messages.

[0050] The user interface includes the spa scheduling system 10 guest module 14 can be built using a one page, FLASH-based rich media UI (user interface). As illustrated in FIG. 2, the system can display treatment information 42 on the left side of a two pane screen 40, and a calendar 44 on the right.

[0051] To use the system 10, users can begin by browsing treatments/packages and filter them using the two dropdowns in the treatment pane 42: the treatment/package dropdown 42 and the technician dropdown 46. As the users make these changes, the system 10 can continuously update the calendar 44 on the right side of the screen with availability information for that treatment using that technician.

[0052] To begin scheduling an appointment the user selects a day of the month from the pane on the right 44. Selecting a treatment 42, then clicking a day of the month 44 can bring up a "day planner" 50 with the hours of the day as seen in FIG. 3. The user can select the time of the appointment by clicking on a time within the day planner 50. Existing appointments can already be in place. The user can be able to see their own appointments, or can see the times of other users as blocked and unavailable. If the user would like to add additional appointments, they can simply continue to select new services and technicians using the pane on the left, while adding those services to the calendar 44 on the right.

[0053 j The users are capable of graphically moving the scheduling items from one time area to the other, while in real-time or almost real-time, the system updates and show graphically the availability of all resources including the technician for example and the inventory for the treatment and the treatment itself.

[0054J Referring to Fig. 4, when the appointment is to the user's satisfaction, they can complete the purchase by clicking on the purchase next to the dynamically updated total. The purchase is completed through a certain process. The appointment summary 60 is displayed to the left for review, while the right hand pane contains billing and credit card forms 62.

[0055] The user completed the purchase by pushing the complete reservation button 64 after filling in the form correctly. Upon submission, the transaction is finalized, and the user receives a confirmation and thank you page 70 as seen in FIG. 5.

[0056] This system makes use of, for example, but not limited, to a macromedia flash based interface, rich user interface, multi-language support, multi-currency support, and dynamic packaging.

[0057] The call center module 16 details are as follows. The spa scheduling system 10 can meet the needs of the call center agent, spa agent, and travel agent community through a specialized call center module 16. With an emphasis on maximizing the efficiency of the appointment creation process and displaying as much information at once to reservationists as possible, the call center module 16 can differ greatly from the consumer module 14, both in its user interface and in its execution.

[0058] With regard to capabilities, the application can include an advanced user interface to allow call center agent to view spa service detail and availability, the ability to search for services/package across multiple properties, the ability to search for guests across multiple properties, the ability to search for appointments across multiple properties, the ability to search for appointments request across multiple properties, the ability to create, modify and cancel appointment, the ability to change appointment requests to confirmed appointments, call center agent management tools, and cost override capabilities. [0059] The objective of the UI for the call center is different from that of the consumer application. Rather than simplicity, intuitive ease of use and aesthetics, the call center application, as shown in FIG. 6, shall be designed to maximize the speed at which transactions can be completed by properly trained professionals in a preservationist's environment. The screens allow for batch searches and appointment making, and the application itself can be vastly more powerful than the consumer application. Since compatibility is a high priority for widespread deployment in a number of enterprises, this application uses HTML based UI, rather than FLASH.

[0060] The call center module can have the ability to easily integrate with loyalty marketing programs. Whereas similar systems might neglect this capability, because the spa scheduler system 10 concerns spas and hotels as customers, it cannot. The spa scheduler system can be able to: load loyalty program members into the system even if they don't have prior appointments. Where a hotel or spa has existing information about guests it can be imported and be made searchable even before the guest completes a scheduling.

[0061] The system 10 can also allow call center agents to access and update the loyalty program information for guests. The loyalty program comments and notes on a particular guest can be augmented through the interactions of the call center team with that guest.

[0062] The system 10 can allow agents to manually merge guest profiles: guest profiles generally accumulate scheduling information within an existing profile. In the event that an independent scheduling is made without referencing an existing profile, agents can be able to move the scheduling back into the main profile, thus avoiding data duplication.

[0063] The system 10 can retain guest data after validation for required data: after call center agents enter guest stay information, if an error is made or information omitted, the system does not retain the correct data when it validates the fields. The guest data should be retained for any acceptable data.

[0064] The system can also display costs by category as the call center main page can be rather lengthy when scheduling for multiple spas. It becomes ungainly to move around the page, as more and more costs are available for each spa. If the costs displayed can be collapsed into categories it can condense the area needed to display each spa and permit easier access to call center agents. Once the guest has been qualified as to the category, agents would be able to use drop down lists to select the costs within the selected cost category. In addition, packages should be able to be categorized, with the agents able to search for available package categories or package name across all spas.

[0065] A date sensitive marketing message includes a "message from manager" can be maintained and displayed on the main page of the call center application. Often a spa can have marketing messages or scheduling requirements, which are date specific. With the addition of "scheduling message" which is date sensitive, a free form test can be entered to share information that is only applicable to dates on which the scheduling hits.

[0066] Cost comparison displays if a user chooses a cost for a specific spa, when the screen refreshes, it should return to that spa and the cost chosen. This should actually display the selected cost for all the properties, permitting a comparison amongst the spas listed, and if other spas don't have that cost available, default to the rack cost.

[0067] Business source of business information includes spas gathering marketing information to learn more about where their business is coming from. They are not able to gather the data with the current user interface. A configurable check boxes or drop down list of reasons of how a guest heard about the spa, or other information, would assist spa to gather source of business information.

[0068] The spa administration module 18 is described in detail as follows. Spas can manage the personnel, treatment offerings, rooms, and available times in the spa direct system through the spa administration module. This tool, which can operate at the spa-wide level, can be available to managers of client spas.

[0069] Spa managers can utilize the administration tool to manage all aspects of their online appointment business, from creating packages and availability to managing guest lists and appointments. The features can include for example, but not limited to, appointment management: multiple views to display appointment list, multiple search filters to locate individual appointment, modify/cancel existing appointment, confirm a appointment request; guest management: multiple search filters to locate individual guest, modify guest profile, multiple views to display guest purchase history; spa service management: setup spa service (create, modify and disable), setup service with content rich description, setup rates for service, setup treatment room association, setup technician association, setup spa service to service/package up-sell rules; spa treatment room management: setup room with content rich description, allow date sensitive inventory setup, setup spa service association; spa technician management: setup technician (create, modify and disable), setup spa service association, setup working schedule; spa package management: setup spa package (create, modify and disable), setup spa package with content rich description, setup rates for spa package; online marketing/CRM (possible springboard integration): customizable appointment confirmation email, send marketing email to selected customers

[0070] The user interface for the spa administration tool can be for example, but not limited to HTML based. Its screens can be generally divided between a system property tree on the left and a detail screen on the right. Users can make changes to configuration information and settings, and can view and manage appointments through the various sections of the system.

[0071] The configuration screen can control calendars, tax and service rules, package offerings, etc. The appointments tab can be used to manage technicians, guest appointments and stations. The settings screen can control spa wide rules and options.

[0072] The reporting module 20 as shown in FlG. 1 is described in detail as follows. The reporting modules accommodate backend reporting tools. The spa scheduling system 10 can be able to report on sales, revenue, forecasting, technicians, and call center performance from inception through the administrator interface. As the system matures and customers make their own requests the reporting capabilities can be enhanced, and a UI may be developed to allow for on the fly report generation.

[0073] Reports available at inception can include, for example but not limited to, appointment, confirmation list, appointment request list, customer list, customer history, technician appointment list, technician daily schedule, technician information list, service list, revenue, seven- day forecast, weekly report, monthly report, reports can be group by technician, service, packages and channels (web/call center), gift certificate report, technician, top revenue producer, call center, and top revenue producer.

[0074] The reporting module can reside in the administrator system at inception in order to concentrate resources on development of the other system modules. Once the system has been in operation either, (or possibly both) a specialized UI for custom reporting, or system interfaces for uploading data into an OLAP tool can be developed, per the needs of the early spa scheduling system client base

[0075] The interface as it can exist in the UI can include for example in FIG. 10. Advanced reporting can follow the launch reporting package. The advanced and dashboard reports can include for example sales, sales for today, sales by day, sales by time of day, sales by week, sales by month, sales by spa, sales by provider, sales by provider per day, sales by provider per month, forecasts, scheduled treatments by day, scheduled treatments by week, scheduled treatments by month, lead time, treatments, yesterday's booked treatments, booked treatments per day, booked treatments per month, booked treatments spa, revenue, by country, by state or region, by zip, services , services per day, and services per month.

[0076] Concerning the system interfaces, at the outset, the spa scheduling system can be a standalone engine, and cannot directly interface with any other IHW systems.

[0077] Deploying such a system 10 can require a certain physical hardware plant. Requirements at the outset can call for a system capable of hosting up to 200 spa clients and more.

[0078] The primary user interface for the consumer booking system is outlined above and is intended to be a flash/Java UI. However, since backwards compatibility is an issue in web based applications, an HTML based booking process can also be developed to accommodate users for whom flash cannot be employed.

[0079] A typical booking process using the scheduling system 10 of present invention can follow the process illustrated in FIGS. 11-17. Referring to FIG. 11 , upon entering the scheduling system on a web page 110 of a web browser on the Internet, for example, the user can be greeted by a treatment selection page 114. By clicking on a treatment 112, the user can begin the booking process.

[0080] Referring to FIG. 12, the service selection page 114 can come up once a treatment has been selected. On this page, the user can be able to select the specific session 116 within a given treatment type.

[0081 ] Referring to FIG. 13, upon selecting a specific treatment service, the user's choice is added to their order (on the right) 118. The user can then continue to add treatments to his order, or he can move on to scheduling the appointments by clicking the schedule tab or button 120. [0082] Referring to FIG. 14, clicking the schedule button 120 can bring up a monthly calendar 122. To select a treatment day the user clicks on the area on the calendar 122.

[0083] Referring to FIG. 15, this brings the day scheduler 150 up for the selected day. The user finalizes his schedule by clicking on a time of day 152. As he hovers over a time, a bar symbolizing the length of the treatment hovers in the schedule. Clicking releases the time and sets the schedule. The user can repeat this process to add more treatments. The scheduled events can be graphically moved. When such movement is made, the screen outputs accordingly the results. Once ready to complete the purchase of the treatments, the user can click on the purchase button 154 to move on to the payment process.

[0084] Referring to FIG. 16, the payment process consists of a payment and credit card details screen and a continue button. To finalize the appointment, the user can fill in the appropriate billing details and click on continue. Upon completion of the purchase, the system can come back with a thank you page as seen in FIG. 17.

[0085] Additional controls and variables include for example inventory items that are taken into account. For example, certain supplies and other items needed for certain treatments are stored in the database for retrieval and verification when the user is entering the information for scheduling. Therefore, in real-time, one can know if all materials, and personal being available for a particular session on a particular day and on a particular time chosen by the user through the Internet or call center for example. One can also take into account the room to be used for the spa session or treatment and check immediately for conflicts from the Internet web page. The availability of technicians and how many can be ascertained for the user and/or the service provider to avoid conflicts and availability. All such information can be made available for the user customer and/or the service provider through for example the web page.

[0086] The present invention can be realized as computer-executable instructions in computer-readable media. The computer-readable media includes all possible kinds of media in which computer-readable data is stored or included or can include any type of data that can be read by a computer or a processing unit. The computer-readable media include for example and not limited to storing media, such as magnetic storing media (e.g., ROMs, floppy disks, hard disk, and the like), optical reading media (e.g., CD-ROMs (compact disc-read-only memory), DVDs (digital versatile discs), re-writable versions of the optical discs, and the like), hybrid magnetic optical disks, organic disks, system memory (read-only memory, random access memory), non-volatile memory such as flash memory or any other volatile or non-volatile memory, other semiconductor media, electronic media, electromagnetic media, infrared, and other communication media such as carrier waves (e.g., transmission via the Internet or another computer). Communication media generally embodies computer-readable instructions, data structures, program modules or other data in a modulated signal such as the carrier waves or other transportable mechanism including any information delivery media. Computer-readable media such as communication media may include wireless media such as radio frequency, infrared microwaves, and wired media such as a wired network. Also, the computer-readable media can store and execute computer-readable codes that are distributed in computers connected via a network. The computer readable medium also includes cooperating or interconnected computer readable media that are in the processing system or are distributed among multiple processing systems that may be local or remote to the processing system. The present invention can include the computer-readable medium having stored thereon a data structure including a plurality of fields containing data representing the techniques of the present invention.

[0087] An example of a computer, but not limited to this example of the computer, that can read computer readable media that includes computer-executable instructions of the present invention includes a processor that controls the computer. The processor uses the system memory and a computer readable memory device that includes certain computer readable recording media. A system bus connects the processor to a network interface , modem or other interface that accommodates a connection to another computer or network such as the Internet. The system bus may also include an input and output interface that accommodates connection to a variety of other devices.

[0088] The many features and advantages of the invention are apparent from the detailed specification, and thus, it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such features and advantages of the invention which fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and variations can readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation illustrated and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A scheduling system, comprising: a call center module accommodating reception of information through an agent via telephone transmission; a consumer reservation module accommodating reservations through the Internet; a services administration module managing information of at least one of a plurality services; a system reporting module accommodating the outputting of information of the services in a certain media; an appointment reservation server connected to and controlling the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module; and a scheduling database storing the information for the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module and managed by the appointment reservation server for output.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the reservations is for spa services including the variables in support of the spa services, the reservations being inputted and outputted through a network including the Internet.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the reservations including reserving a plurality of service resources and tangible resources.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the services resources including time allocation of technicians performing the spa treatment, and tangible resources including the supplies necessary for the particular spa treatment available for the particular time.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the output of appointment reservation and the input is displayed on a screen with a video graphic representation of spa treatments and resources remotely from the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the scheduling database is remote from the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module, the scheduling database being in continuous communication with the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module for performing the reservation of the spa appointment.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the services administration module managing information of at least one of a plurality services being a plurality spa related services and the resources connected to the spa related services.

8. A method of scheduling system, comprising: receiving information, by a call center module, through an agent via telephone transmission; configuring through a consumer reservation module, reservations through the Internet; managing information of at least one of a plurality services, by a services administration module; outputting of information of the services in a certain media by a system reporting module; controlling the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module by an appointment reservation server; and storing, by a scheduling database, the information for the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module and managed by the appointment reservation server for output.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the reservations is for spa services including the variables in support of the spa services, the reservations being inputted and outputted through a network including the Internet.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the reservations including reserving a plurality of service resources and tangible resources.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the services resources including time allocation of technicians performing the spa treatment, and tangible resources including the supplies necessary for the particular spa treatment available for the particular time.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the output of appointment reservation and the input is displayed on a screen with a video graphic representation of spa treatments and resources remotely from the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the scheduling database is remote from the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module, the scheduling database being in continuous communication with the call center module, consumer reservation module, spa administration module and system reporting module for performing the reservation of the spa appointment.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein the services administration module managing information of at least one of a plurality services being a plurality spa related-services and the resources connected to the spa related services.

15. A spa scheduling system, comprising: a call center means accommodating reception of information through an agent via telephone transmission; a consumer reservation means accommodating reservations through the Internet; a services administration means managing information of at least one of a plurality services; a system reporting means accommodating the outputting of information of the services in a certain media; an appointment reservation server connected to and controlling the call center means, consumer reservation means, spa administration means and system reporting means; and a scheduling database storing the information for the call center means, consumer reservation means, spa administration means and system reporting means and managed by the appointment reservation server for output.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the reservations is for spa services including the variables in support of the spa services, the reservations being inputted and outputted through a network including the Internet.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the reservations including reserving a plurality of service resources and tangible resources.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the services resources including time allocation of technicians performing the spa treatment, and tangible resources including the supplies necessary for the particular spa treatment available for the particular time.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the output of appointment reservation and the input is displayed on a screen with a video graphic representation of spa treatments and resources remotely from the call center means, consumer reservation means, spa administration means and system reporting means.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein the scheduling database is remote from the call center means, consumer reservation means, spa administration means and system reporting means, the scheduling database being in continuous communication with the call center means, consumer reservation means, spa administration means and system reporting means for performing the reservation of the spa appointment.