What Is Cascade Rebooking?
What Is Cascade Rebooking?
When a waitlisted client claims an open slot, FullSlot checks if they already have a booking on the same schedule. If they do, their old appointment is cancelled automatically — and that newly freed slot gets broadcast to the rest of your waitlist.
One cancellation can fill two slots. That's the cascade.
How it works, step by step
1. A client cancels. FullSlot detects it and notifies your waitlist. Standard flow — everyone on the waitlist gets the notification at the same time.
2. A client who already has a booking claims the open slot. Say Sarah is booked for April 28th, and she claims the April 22nd opening. She wants the earlier date.
3. FullSlot automatically frees Sarah's April 28th appointment. If her scheduler connection supports automatic cancellation, FullSlot handles it in the background. If not, your team cancels that original booking manually.
4. That freed slot — April 28th — gets broadcast to your waitlist immediately. Everyone who was waiting for that appointment type gets notified, just like a normal cancellation.
5. A second client claims April 28th. Your waitlist filled two slots from one cancellation, and you never had to touch anything.
Why this matters
Most appointment businesses treat cancellations as a one-time event: one slot opens, one person fills it (if you're lucky). FullSlot treats each cancellation as the start of a chain.
The clients who want to move earlier are already on your waitlist. Every time someone upgrades their date, they free a slot for the person behind them. In a busy practice, one cancellation can trigger two, three, or four fills in a row.
What you'll see in the dashboard
When a slot was filled through a cascade, it shows a Cascade badge on the Open Slots list. Open the slot and you'll see a purple card at the top explaining that it opened because a prior client was moved to an earlier appointment.
Cascade slots look and behave exactly like any other slot — the badge is just context so you understand why it appeared.
Does my client know their old booking was cancelled?
If the original booking is cancelled automatically through the connected scheduler, the client receives that scheduler's normal cancellation confirmation. FullSlot does not send a separate cancellation message about the old booking.
Does this happen automatically?
Yes. There's nothing to enable. Every time a client claims a slot, FullSlot checks whether they have an existing booking on the same schedule. If they do, the rebook flow starts automatically.
Automatic cancellation of the original booking depends on your scheduler integration. When FullSlot can cancel it directly, the cascade is fully automatic. Otherwise, FullSlot still moves the client and your team cancels the original booking manually.
What if the client doesn't have an existing booking?
Nothing extra happens. They claim the slot, get a booking confirmation, and the flow ends there. Cascade only triggers when the claimant already has a future appointment to free up.