Tips, Best Practices & Workflows

First Week Setup Checklist

Use this checklist when getting started with Goodstay:

• Complete the Setup Wizard (Facility → Space → First Owner)
• Add all your spaces (runs, suites, daycare areas) with correct capacity and rates
• Configure vaccine requirements for dogs and cats
• Set up your default tax rate
• Configure holiday pricing for upcoming holidays
• Set up deposit and cancellation policies
• Create your boarding agreement contract template
• Set up grooming services with your actual menu and prices
• Configure promo codes and discount rules if desired
• Set up daycare package pricing (if offering daycare)
• Invite your staff members
• Customize your public landing page (hero image, about, amenities, hours)
• Connect Stripe if you want to accept online payments
• Import existing data if migrating from another system
• Enable daycare reminders (if offering daycare)
• Upload your invoice logo in Facility Settings so invoices carry your branding
• Enable SMS notifications if you want to send text messages to clients (requires Twilio)

Daily Opening Workflow

1. Check the Dashboard for today's check-ins and check-outs.
2. Print or review the Boarding Roster to see who's staying, arriving, and departing today.
3. Check the Schedule for expected drop-off and pickup times.
4. Review the Daily Tasks checklist and confirm all overnight tasks are complete.
5. Review any unread Messages.
6. Check the Vaccination Alerts for any upcoming expirations.
7. Open the Daycare Board if daycare is offered today.

Check-In Workflow

When a pet owner arrives at drop-off:

1. Look up the reservation (search by owner name or pet name).
2. Open the reservation detail page.
3. Review the Pre-Check form (if submitted) for emergency contacts, drop-off time preference, and what they've brought.
4. Verify the pet's vaccination status (green badge = all clear).
5. Review feeding and medication schedules for the stay.
6. Click Check In to mark the pet as present.
7. Note which space/run the pet is in.

Check-Out Workflow

When an owner arrives to pick up:

1. Open the reservation.
2. Click Checkout Confirmation to review the summary and total.
3. Process any outstanding invoice payments.
4. Click Check Out to complete the stay.
5. Send a Report Card if any unsent ones exist for the stay.

End-of-Day Daycare Workflow

1. On the Daycare Board, click Mark Ready for Pickup for each dog that is done for the day.
2. As owners arrive, check out each dog by clicking Check Out on their reservation.
3. Go to Report Cards and use Batch Send to dispatch all unsent daycare report cards at once.
4. Any staff member closing should complete a Shift Report.

Handling a Cancellation with Waitlist

1. Open the cancelled reservation.
2. Click Cancel Reservation.
3. Navigate to Waitlist and filter by the space type and date range of the cancelled reservation.
4. Find matching waitlist entries.
5. Click Notify Client on the relevant entries.
6. When the client confirms interest, click Convert to Reservation.

Sending a Contract to a New Client

1. Go to Contract Templates and open your boarding agreement.
2. Click Send Contract.
3. Select the new pet owner from the search.
4. Click Send. The owner gets an email with a signing link.
5. Monitor signature status from the contract template's page.

Managing a Recurring Daycare Client

1. Create a Recurring Daycare Schedule for the pet with their days of the week.
2. Goodstay auto-generates reservations 4 weeks out.
3. If the client needs a week off, go to the schedule and Cancel an Occurrence for the specific dates.
4. If the client is taking an extended break, click Pause on the schedule.
5. When they return, click Resume.

Running an End-of-Month Revenue Review

1. Go to Reports → Revenue.
2. Set the date range to the previous month.
3. Review total revenue, broken down by service type.
4. Check the Daycare Revenue section to see package vs. drop-in breakdown.
5. Cross-reference with Occupancy Report to understand capacity utilization.
6. Review Customer Report for no-show rates and churn alerts.
7. Use Seasonal Report to compare month-over-month trends.

Keyboard Shortcuts & Tips

• Search anywhere in the app using the search bar in the top navigation.
• Quick-search for an owner from the New Reservation form — just start typing their name.
• The Availability grid is your fastest way to see what's open at a glance.
• Use your browser's back button freely — all forms preserve state.
• Press Cmd+K (Mac) or Ctrl+K (Windows/Linux) to open the quick documentation search from any page.
• Use the Print button on reports and the Boarding Roster to generate paper-friendly versions for posting or filing.