SMS Appointment Reminders for Australian Lawyers and Legal Consultations

The professional conduct rules for solicitors in your state, including the duty of confidentiality, apply to how your firm uses SMS. A cautious approach: (1) Obtain the client's consent to text reminders during intake, (2) Never include confidential case details in SMS, (3) Restrict messages to logistics only (date, time, location, solicitor name), (4) Honour opt-out requests. Never discuss case strategy via SMS. Document SMS consent in the client file.

Your firm stays responsible for consent and opt-outs under the Privacy Act 1988 and the Spam Act 2003. Etisia shares client data only with the service providers it needs to run the service, such as SMS delivery, as described in its privacy policy. SMS messages should contain logistics only, never confidential details.

Etisia connects to Google Calendar only. If your practice management software can sync appointments to Google Calendar, Etisia can send reminders from those events.

Etisia sends automatic SMS appointment reminders from your Google Calendar. After a one-time setup, you keep booking in Google Calendar as usual, with the client’s mobile number in the appointment. You don’t open Etisia each time you book.

Your clients get an ordinary text message: no app and no account. Etisia isn’t a booking system, so clients keep booking with you the way they do now.

Probably not, if your booking system already texts your clients. Etisia is for businesses that keep their appointments in Google Calendar, and for those still using pen and paper.

Still using pen and paper? Etisia is an easy first step. Keep your appointments in a free Google Calendar and write the client’s full name in each one, plus their mobile number the first time. That’s all Etisia needs, and your calendar gets tidier for it: every appointment shows who’s coming. The reminders go out in the background, so there’s nothing to open or send each day.

If your booking tool copies appointments into Google Calendar with the client’s mobile number in the event title, description or location, Etisia can send reminders from those events. Switch off the tool’s own text reminders, so clients don’t get two.

There is no direct connection to booking systems: Etisia only reads Google Calendar.

We set up your reminders for you on every plan. You can also set things up yourself:

Sign up with Google, connect Google Calendar (tick both calendar permissions), pick your appointment calendar, and choose Default settings or set your own times and wording. Tick the box to say you have your clients’ permission, and you’re done.

Default settings send one reminder the day before, with recommended wording that names your business.

Then use Add test appointment: Etisia adds an appointment with your name and number to the calendar and texts you its reminder straight away, free.

Yes, if you turn on the optional cancellation link. It’s off by default and available on every plan. Reminders and the booking message then include “Cancel at https://eti.is/aB3dE9.”

Your client opens the link, sees the appointment date, enters the mobile number the text went to and confirms. Etisia deletes the appointment from Google Calendar, stops its remaining reminders and emails you. The link only cancels: to move a visit, clients contact you.

If you delete an appointment yourself, its pending reminders stop.

Yes. Etisia’s Starter plan covers one calendar, Pro three and Team as many as you need. Each calendar has its own reminder times and wording, so you can keep one per team member or service.

Team also adds staff accounts: you invite staff by email, they connect their own calendars and share the team’s SMS credits, and you can see and edit their calendars.