Help & documentation
Everything you need to put session reminders on autopilot — from connecting Sessions to customizing your reminder texts. Most studios are fully set up in about a minute.
Getting started
SessionRemind automatically texts your clients a reminder before every photo session, so your calendar actually shows up. Setup takes three steps: create an account, pick a plan, and connect your booking tool.
- 01
Create your account
Register with your studio name, email, and a password. You can do this from any device. - 02
Pick a plan
Every plan includes SMS & email reminders, automatic syncing, a two-way client reply inbox, per-message delivery status, session-wide broadcasts, post-session follow-ups, and your own message templates — pick by how many texts you send each month. Checkout is handled securely by Stripe, and you can change or cancel anytime. - 03
Connect Sessions
A one-time, ~60-second step from a computer (see Connect Sessions below). After that, reminders run themselves.
After checkout you land back in your dashboard with your subscription active immediately. Nothing sends until you connect Sessions or import bookings — so take a minute to set your studio name and message template first if you like.
Connect Sessions
Connecting links your Sessions account to SessionRemind so bookings sync automatically. It’s a quick drag-and-click from a computer — any desktop browser works (Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge). You only ever do this once; afterwards you can manage everything from any device, including your phone.
- 01
Open the Connect page on a computer
Log in to SessionRemind and go to Connect, then click Connect Sessions. This generates your personal connect button and pairing code. - 02
Drag the button to your bookmarks bar
Drag the Connect to SessionRemind button up into your browser’s bookmarks bar. Can’t drag it? Use the “copy the link” option, create a new bookmark, and paste the link as its URL. - 03
Switch to your logged-in Sessions tab
Open app.usesession.com in another tab and make sure you’re logged in. The bookmark reads your Sessions login, so it only works on that tab — not on the SessionRemind tab. - 04
Click the bookmark once
A small Connected! confirmation appears right on the Sessions page, and the Connect tab detects it automatically. Your first sync starts immediately and reminders begin scheduling themselves.
Troubleshooting
- “Not logged in” message? Log in to Sessions first, then click the bookmark again — and make sure you’re clicking it while on the Sessions tab, not the SessionRemind tab.
- Can’t see your bookmarks bar? Press Cmd+Shift+B on Mac or Ctrl+Shift+B on Windows to show it.
- Pairing code expired? Codes are valid for 10 minutes. Just go back to Connect, click Connect Sessions again, and drag the fresh button to your bookmarks bar.
Your Sessions access is AES-256 encrypted at rest and used only to read your upcoming bookings. It’s read-only — we never change, post, or delete anything in your account — and you can disconnect anytime from the Connect page.
How reminders work
Once connected, SessionRemind syncs with Sessions about every 5 minutes. Each sync reads just what a reminder needs — client name, session title, date, and time — and reconciles your scheduled reminders against your live calendar. This information is stored so we can deliver reminders, keep your history, and apply any edits you make.
- New bookings schedule automatically. By default, every client gets a reminder 3 days before and 1 day before their session, sent mid-morning (around 10am Eastern) so it lands at a polite hour.
- Reschedules update themselves. If a session moves, every pending reminder shifts to the new date and time — no action needed.
- Cancellations cancel their reminders. If a booking is cancelled or deleted in Sessions, its pending reminders are cancelled too, so no one gets texted about a session that isn’t happening.
- Past sessions never send. A reminder whose send window has already passed is simply skipped — clients never get a late or confusing text.
- Last-minute bookings still get a heads-up. If someone books so close to their session that the usual reminder windows have already passed, we still send one reminder at the next polite morning slot — no one slips through.
Customize your messages
Reminders go out in your voice. On the Templates page — which shows a live preview and a per-message length/cost estimate as you type, so you always know it'll send as one low-cost text — you can adjust:
- Studio name — how your business signs each message.
- Reminder message template — write it however you like, using placeholders that fill in automatically per client: {name} {sessionTitle} {sessionTime} {studioName}
- Reminder timing — choose any combination of 7, 3, 2, or 1 days before the session. Messages send mid-morning (around 10am Eastern).
- Different wording per session type — set a separate template for weddings, newborns, minis, or anything else, and the right one is used based on the session title.
- Post-session follow-ups — optionally send a friendly nudge a few days after the session (a gallery's-ready or leave-a-review note). Off by default; turn it on when you want it.
There’s no save button — changes save automatically as you make them, and new reminders pick up your latest template.
Email reminders
Want clients reminded in two places? Flip on Email reminders on the Templates page. When a client has an email address on file, SessionRemind sends a branded email alongside each text — same timing as the reminder.
- It’s optional and off by default — one toggle turns it on.
- Design the email your way — edit the subject line and the body with a simple visual editor, and upload your studio logo so it sits right at the top.
- Emails send from noreply@sessionremind.com and carry your studio name, so clients know exactly who it’s from.
- Clients without an email on file simply get the text — nothing breaks, no one is skipped.
Manage scheduled reminders
The Reminders page is your control room for everything that’s queued up or already out the door:
- Grouped by session — reminders are folded into one group per session (title and date), so a mini-session day with 20 clients stays tidy.
- Filter by status — flip between Scheduled, Sent, and Failed, or see everything at once.
- Search — find any reminder by client name, session title, or phone number.
- Edit — change a reminder’s message or its exact send time before it goes out.
- Cancel — remove any individual reminder so it’s never sent. The rest of the session’s reminders are unaffected.
- Delivery status — each sent reminder shows whether it was delivered or failed, so you can follow up if a number is unreachable.
- Client replies — when a client replies to a reminder, you’re emailed and the message lands in your in-app Replies inbox. Reply right from the web and it goes back to them as a text from your studio’s number — a real two-way conversation, no separate texting app needed.
- Message everyone in a session — need to reach a whole session at once (a weather change, a location tweak)? Send one text to every client in that session in a couple of clicks.
- Cancel — or pause — a whole session — cancel every reminder for a session at once if plans change, and re-enable them later if it’s back on.
The Connect page also shows your upcoming reminders at a glance, with a one-click cancel on each.
Your texting number
Your reminders send from a shared SessionRemind toll-free number that’s already carrier-verified — so texts start delivering on day one with zero paperwork, nothing to set up, and no separate texting account.
Want a dedicated toll-free number registered to your own studio instead? Active subscribers can set one up right from the Connect page — choose “Get your own number” and we walk you through it, at no extra cost. You’ll enter your legal business name, website, and address, and you’ll need a free EIN (the form links you straight to the IRS to get one in a few minutes if you don’t have it yet). Carriers verify those details against public records, so use your real, legal information.
Import bookings with CSV
Not on Sessions, or just need a backup path? You can schedule reminders for a whole session day from a spreadsheet — right from the Connect page, and it works great on your phone.
- 01
Prepare your CSV
Any export works as long as there’s a Phone column. A name column (or First/Last columns) and an optional Email column are picked up automatically. - 02
Upload it under “Import from a CSV”
We show you exactly which rows were read and how many have usable phone numbers. - 03
Name the session and set its date & time
Enter the session title (for example, “Fall Mini Sessions”) and when it happens. - 04
Import
Reminders are scheduled for every client in the file using your template and timing settings — exactly like a synced booking.
Billing
All payments run through Stripe’s secure checkout — SessionRemind never sees or stores your card details.
- Change or cancel anytime. Go to Profile and open the Stripe billing portal to switch plans, update your payment method, download invoices, or cancel your subscription.
- Plan changes take effect right away, including your monthly text allowance.
- If your subscription lapses — whether you cancel or a payment fails — reminders stop sending and new bookings stop scheduling until you reactivate. Your settings, templates, reminder history, and Sessions connection are kept, so resubscribing picks up right where you left off.
Client experience & opt-out
Your clients receive a short, friendly text from your studio before their session — and a matching email if you’ve turned email reminders on. That’s it: these are transactional appointment reminders only, never marketing.
- STOP works instantly. If a client replies STOP to any message, the opt-out is recorded automatically and they receive no further texts — permanently, unless they text START to opt back in. You don’t need to do anything.
- HELP gets help. Replying HELP returns support information, and clients can always reach support@sessionremind.com.
- Privacy, kept. Client numbers are used only to deliver reminders — never sold, shared, or used for marketing.
For the full client-facing terms, see our SMS messaging terms and privacy policy.
Need more help?
We’re photographers’ people — ask us anything and we’ll get you sorted, usually within a day.