Set up payments for your salon: it really does take two minutes
Connecting payments sounds technical, but it isn't — it's a short, guided form from Stripe. Here is exactly what you will be asked, why, and how to get from "started" to "ready to take deposits" in one sitting.
If you have started setting up payments and then quietly closed the tab, you are in good company. It is the one step that sounds technical, so it is easy to put off for "when I have a proper sit down". The truth is less scary than it looks: there is no code, no integration, and nothing to install. It is a form, run by Stripe, that asks a few questions about your business so they can pay your takings into your bank.
Why it is worth two minutes
Until payments are connected, your booking page can take bookings but not money. That means no deposits, so a no-show costs you the whole slot, and no card payments, so clients pay you another way or not at all. The moment you connect, you can ask for a deposit to hold a booking, and every payment flows into your own account — Bookatu never holds your cash and never takes a cut of your bookings.
What you will actually be asked
When you tap "Connect payments", Stripe opens a short form. It is the same secure flow used by huge companies, just sized for a one-chair business. Have these handy and you will breeze through:
- Your business basics — name, what you do, and your address. We pre-fill what we already know, so there is little to type.
- A bank account — the account where you want your takings to land. This is the part people most often skip, and the one thing Stripe truly needs.
- A photo ID — a driver licence or passport, to confirm you are you. Stripe checks it; we never see it.
Why it asks for your ID
Anyone who moves money has to confirm who they are — it is the law everywhere, and it is what keeps fraud out of the system. Stripe handles that check on your behalf so you do not have to think about it. Your ID and bank details go straight to Stripe over a secure connection; they are not stored by Bookatu and they are never visible to your clients.
The setup is not the hard part. The hard part is remembering to add your bank account before you wander off.
The bit where most people stop — and how to finish
If an account is "started but not finished", it is almost always for the same two reasons: a bank account has not been added yet, and Stripe's terms have not been accepted. Both take seconds. If you closed the tab partway, you do not lose your progress — just open your dashboard and tap "Finish setting up payments", and Stripe drops you back exactly where you left off.
How you will know it is done
When the form is complete, your account flips to "ready to take payments", your booking page can ask for deposits, and your storefront goes live to clients. From then on Stripe pays your balance out to your bank on a regular schedule, usually every couple of business days, and you handle any refunds from your own Stripe dashboard. Two minutes once, and you are getting paid your way.
