HelpWhat your visitors seeThe Join page
The Join page
Your visitor's first touch. They scan a QR or tap a link, fill in only what you asked for, and press Join the line. No app, no account.
You decide what to ask, and out of the box that is almost nothing. A new line asks for a name and an email, and both are optional — so a visitor can join with one tap and type nothing at all. The separate Mobile number (for calling) box is off until you switch it on. Every extra box you switch on is a reason somebody gives up.
turnda
Riverside Clinic
Join the line
No app · no account · keep this tab
LiveA-24
5
ahead of you
Estimated wait ~18 min
Now serving A-19
It’s your turn
Please head to Counter 2
A-24
Live tracking link Your turn Updates on its own — nothing to install
What they see first
The whole thing is one card on a phone, in this order — your logo and business name, then a heading, then your boxes, then the button.
Under your business name there is a small, searchable Language picker. A visitor can change the language of the page for their visit, and the emails and messages that visit triggers follow it. The lobby TV never has one. See Which language visitors see.
| What shows | What it says |
|---|---|
| The heading, left alone | The line's name, for example “Walk-ins” — or “Walk-ins · Northside Dental” when the location has a different name from the line. Only a page with no line name says “Join the line”. |
| Underneath the heading | “Add yourself to the line — we'll keep your place.” Your own welcome message replaces this if you write one. |
A custom heading replaces the line name on every line at that location. A garage running three lines would otherwise show three identical-looking pages. So whenever your heading is showing, the line's own name is printed underneath it in small capitals — so a visitor can still tell which line they scanned.
Some lines show a small note under the welcome — “Usually quieter around 3 pm”. It is worked out from that line's own arrival history, and needs 14 trading days of history before it appears at all.
When it shows Only when a later hour today is genuinely quieter than right now.
There is no setting for the quieter-hour note It switches itself on once a line has enough history. The time shown is your business's clock, in the page's language.
Every box you can ask for
Each of these is a switch in the Basic details on the Questions page, set for each line and each page separately. Name and Email are on to start with. Email is the box a visitor can be messaged on, and it is only asked while Use email on this line is on in the line's settings. Mobile number (for calling) is a separate box, off to start with. It is only for your staff to see and phone, and nothing is ever sent to it — no WhatsApp message, no text message, no marketing. A visitor still gives just one contact for messages. At a business that sends WhatsApp updates, a line under the Join button says they can start those updates in one tap after joining — the tap itself is on the confirmation screen, not on this form.
| The switch | What happens |
|---|---|
| Name | Shows as Your name. On and optional to start with. Up to 60 characters. Hint reads “Optional — helps staff greet you.”, dropping “Optional” once you make it required. |
| Party size | Shows as How many people?. Off to start with. Tap-once chips (1, 2, 3, 4); a 5+ chip appears only if your Largest party size is more than four. Cannot be made Required — 1 is already chosen, so it is never unanswered. |
| Let visitors pick who they want (Line settings → Visitor page & privacy) | Shows as Who would you like? — a row of names with First available first. Only shows when this switch is on AND the line has staff assigned. A person whose counter is closed stays on the row, greyed and marked Not in today, and can't be picked. A sign-in of salon01_marcus shows to visitors as Marcus. Their sign-in is never published. |
| What they need | Shows as What do you need? — big single-tap chips of the line's services. Only shows when the switch is on AND the line has services. |
| Vehicle / plate | Off to start with. Up to 120 characters, hinted “So we can spot your car — e.g. ‘White Corolla SGX1234’.” |
| Note for staff | Off to start with. Up to 500 characters, one free-text box. |
The tablet at your counter cannot ask for a phone or email at all. Each page — join, tablet, appointment — is configured separately, so turning a box on for the join page leaves the tablet alone.
If a Required box is left empty, nothing is sent. A red “Please fill this in to join.” appears under that exact box and clears once they start typing.
The phone-or-email box
This is one box, not two — it works out which you typed by whether it contains an “@”. It is called Phone or email when a line uses both, or plainly Phone or Email when it uses one.
| What the screen says | When |
|---|---|
| This line messages by email — please enter an email address. | The wrong kind was typed on a single-channel line. |
| Optional — so staff can reach you if they need to. | The near-the-front message has been switched off for every channel the line uses. |
| Add your country code — the bit that starts with + (for example +1, +44 or +234). | Your business has no country recorded, so a number with no country code can't be checked. Once the business has a country (asked once in Guided setup, and you can change it), a visitor may type their number the local way, for example 0412 345 678, or start it with 00 instead of +. |
A tick box appears the moment they type anything into the contact box: “WhatsApp or email me messages about my place in line”, with the promise “We'll only message you about this visit — nothing else, ever.”
Leaving it unticked The join still works — they simply rely on their tracking link.
Asking visitors to confirm with a code
Off to start with — most lines never need it. Two switches on Line settings → Visitor page & privacy make a visitor prove who they are before they get a place. With both off, the join page is exactly as described above.
| The switch | What happens |
|---|---|
| Ask visitors for an email code (Line settings → Visitor page & privacy) | The email box becomes required and the button reads Email me a code. We email a six-digit code; the visitor types it into Code from your email and then presses Join the line. A code works for ten minutes. If it does not arrive, the visitor can press Send a new code or Use a different email. The code goes by email only. A WhatsApp message would not arrive from a web page, so a phone number typed here is refused with “We can only send a code by email here. Enter an email address, or check in at the counter.” |
| Let visitors confirm with an appointment code (Line settings → Visitor page & privacy) | Adds a Appointment code box. Someone with an appointment for today on this line types its code (like ABC-DEF, printed on their appointment confirmation) and is checked in as that appointment — never as a second walk-in. With only this switch on, people without an appointment cannot join from the page — the panel tells them to check in at the counter. With both switches on, the appointment code is optional and the email code is the other way in. |
| What the screen says | When |
|---|---|
| That code isn't right. Check the email we sent and try again. | A wrong code. Each wrong try counts. |
| Too many wrong codes. Ask for a new code, or check in at the counter. | Five wrong codes in a row for that email. |
| That code has expired. Ask for a new one. | More than ten minutes after it was sent. |
| You've asked for several codes already. Check your inbox, wait a few minutes, or check in at the counter. | The same email asked for three codes on this line within fifteen minutes. It also shows when that one inbox has already been sent as many turnda emails as it may in a short time, or its 20 turnda emails for the day. That limit counts every business together, so it protects the inbox of a stranger. |
| This place can't send any more codes right now. Please check in at the counter. | Your business has sent as many code emails as it may for now, or turnda's share of the day's email allowance is used up. The visitor did nothing wrong. |
| Our email service isn't answering. Check in at the counter, or try again in a few minutes. | The code email could not be sent, or turnda's email counter could not be reached. Nobody saw a code, so nothing is counted against the address. |
| Too many wrong codes. Try again in a few minutes, or check in at the counter. | Too many wrong appointment codes from one internet connection (10 in 15 minutes), or from everyone on that line together (50 in 15 minutes). |
| You’re a little early. Check-in for this appointment opens at 09:30. Please come back then. | The appointment code is right, but check-in is not open yet. A right code never counts as a wrong try. Other versions say “Check-in opens on the day of your appointment.” or “We're not open yet, so you can't check in right now. Please try again once we open.” |
| Self check-in is off here — please see a staff member. | The location is set to check people in at the counter only. |
| That appointment code doesn't match an appointment for today on this line. Check it, or check in at the counter. | A mistyped code, an appointment for another day, or an appointment on a different line. |
- Where a reply to the code email goes. To the location's contact email. If the location has none, it goes to turnda support. Your sign-in address is never shown to visitors.
- If an inbox is over its daily limit, a visit or an appointment still goes ahead, only without the email. Nobody is turned away because of it.
Nobody is ever stuck Every one of these messages ends with the way round it — the counter. Add them from the Queue page as you would any walk-in. The tablet at your counter follows the same switches. On a line that asks for a code, a tablet paired as a screen skips the code, and a tablet that has not been paired shows staff the pairing steps instead of the join form.
Pressing Join
The button carries your accent colour, with its writing darkened or lightened automatically so it stays readable. While it works it shows a spinner and cannot be pressed again.
On success the page shows a green tick, “You're in the line at Walk-ins” and their number — then moves them straight onto their tracking link by itself, with nothing to press.
Why it moves them automatically The confirmation used to live only in that one browser tab, so a dropped tab during a long wait lost the visit entirely. The tracking page is a real address that survives that.
| What the screen says | When |
|---|---|
| You're already in the line | “We found your existing spot — no need to join again.” A double-tap, or somebody with the same contact details already waiting. A one-time marker means a second attempt never creates two spots. |
| There's no live page for this visit, so don't join again: you already have a place. | Very rarely, a join succeeds but no tracking page can be made for it. |
Coming back to a page they lost
| Where they are | What they see |
|---|---|
| Same phone | A banner: “You're still in the line”, their number, how many are ahead, and a Resume button. It only appears for a live visit. |
| Any other phone | A quiet link under the join button: “Already in the line? Enter your code”. It opens a box for the 8-character code they were shown when they joined; Find my place takes them back to their own page. |
The one thing a lost visitor must not do is fill the form in again. That gives them a brand-new number at the back while their real place ticks on. Tell them at the desk: “open the link again and tap 'Already in the line?'”.
When they can't join — exactly what they see
The join page never shows a raw error, and it checks before it shows a form — if a join would be refused, the form is not drawn at all.
“Yes, this is the right poster” The screens below name the line and the location at the top, so that is the first thing read. Everyone already waiting keeps their place.
A visitor who lost their page is never stuck behind a closed screen. Every one of the screens below — closed, full, or not taking new visitors — still carries the quiet link “Already in the line? Enter your code”, so someone already waiting can get back to their own page even while joining is paused. The reopening time is written the same way (24-hour, in your business's clock, in the page's language) on the join page and on the lobby TV.
| What the screen says | What it means | Has Check again? |
|---|---|---|
| This place is closed right now | “The line isn't open at the moment. Please check back during opening hours.” Names the reopening time when there is one in the next fortnight — for example “Opens today at 09:00” — in your business's clock. | Yes |
| The line is full right now | Your capacity cap is doing its job. New joins pause until a spot frees up. | Yes |
| Sorry, we can't add you right now | “This place isn't taking new visitors right now. Please speak to a member of staff.” One neutral screen covers a paused line, a retired line, and an account that hasn't gone live — on purpose, so a visitor never reads your billing state off a poster. | Yes |
| That link isn't valid | “Ask staff at the venue for the current QR code or link.” Prints the code from the link so it can be read out at the counter. | No — this one will not fix itself. |
| Joining from home isn't available for this line — please scan the QR code at the venue to join. | They pressed the “Join the line” button on your website, and “Show a 'Join the line' button for your website” is off. Only that button is refused — your QR code and join link are one address and always work, wherever the person is. | No |
| We couldn't add you with that phone number or email. If you're already in this line or have an appointment here, open the link we sent you or enter the code you were shown when you joined — or ask a member of staff. | That phone number or email already has a place — or an appointment — in this line today. Typing a phone number proves nothing about who you are, so the page never hands that place to whoever typed it. The real owner is sent their own link again (by email, or by WhatsApp if they turned those updates on), and the code they were shown when they joined still brings them back. If it genuinely is them on a new phone, find them on the Queue. The same sentence is shown whatever the reason, so the page never tells a stranger who is waiting. | No |
The old wording is retired on purpose An earlier version said “the team has paused new joins for a moment” for every case above — but nothing was paused for a business that had simply never gone live. The neutral sentence is true of all of them.
Diagnosing which one, and clearing it See the separate page on a line that isn't taking joins.
Slow, offline and too many taps
| What the screen says | When |
|---|---|
| Can't load this line | “We couldn't reach the line right now. Please try again in a moment.” It does not tell them to check their wi-fi, because the usual cause is on our side. |
| You're offline | “We've got your details. We'll finish this as soon as you're back.” Their phone was offline when they pressed Join. The tap is held, not lost — it completes by itself the moment the signal returns. |
| A lot of people are joining from this venue's internet connection right now. Please wait a minute, then tap Join again. | The limit counts the whole venue's connection, not one person. Waiting a minute genuinely works; tapping repeatedly makes it worse. |
| That didn't go through — your place hasn't been taken. Try again? | Something failed sending it. Nothing has been used up. |
| A lot of requests are coming from this internet connection right now. Wait a minute, then try again. | One internet connection tried 30 join links or codes that do not exist within 15 minutes, so every lookup from it waits, even a right one. Wrong tries are counted per connection, so a whole waiting room on one router shares the count. |
A visitor's typed name is shown to staff exactly as typed. Nothing is filtered for rude words — only shortened to 60 characters. If one does turn up, staff can fix it: open the person on the Queue and use Edit details to type a sensible name — their place in line does not change.
Display on public screens (Line settings)
| Setting | What the lobby TV shows |
|---|---|
| Numbers only (default) | No names reach the TV or display at all — a nasty name stays behind the counter. |
| Initials + numbers | For example “A.K.” — the middle ground. |
| Names + numbers | Whatever a stranger typed, shown on a screen the whole waiting room can read. |
A nasty name on the TV — the honest fix Set the line back to Numbers only straight away. To get the word off staff's Queue screen too, open that person and use Edit details to type a sensible name — it works while they are waiting or called, and keeps their place.
The small print at the bottom
- “No app needed. You can leave the line anytime.” — answers the commonest thing a visitor asks before scanning: “do I have to download something?”
- What their details are used for — “We use your details only to hold your place and let you know when it's your turn.”, with Privacy and Terms links. Shown even on a page that asks for no contact — see data & privacy. If you have written your own privacy notice for the location, it sits right underneath.
- “powered by turnda” — on every visitor page, on every package.
The page also asks search engines not to index it. A join link is one business's live line, not a public web page.
On a weak signal, a simpler form comes first
A stranger on one bar of signal should not watch a spinner. So the very first thing sent for a join link is a plain working form with your business's name on it, ready to type into.
- Nothing they typed is lost. When the full page arrives it takes over and carries their answers with it.
- It works with no JavaScript at all — it submits on its own, so a privacy extension blocking scripts still lets them join.
- It is deliberately plainer — the same questions, simpler buttons, and it cannot know every rule on the line until the full page loads.
Nothing to switch on Most visitors never see it. If you are testing on good office wi-fi you probably never will.
Other doors into the same line
Every one of these is the same line and the same join code — just different ways in. Find them all in the line's Share / Get found panel.
| You press | What happens |
|---|---|
| QR poster | A print-ready poster with your QR on it. The everyday one. |
| Join from a phone | Switches the “Join the line” button on your own website on or off. It does not lock your QR or join link to the venue — anyone who has that address can join from anywhere. |
| Website button | The tab with the button code (Copy button code) to paste into your own website, so a “Join the line” button there opens this line. It only works while “Show a 'Join the line' button for your website” is on. |
| Kiosk tablet | The same line as a full-screen tablet at your counter. |
There is no way in through WhatsApp any more Nobody joins the line by sending a WhatsApp message. An old WhatsApp-join poster still works, because it opens this same join page. An old join message sent to turnda's WhatsApp number puts nobody in the line and gets no reply, so ask that visitor to scan the QR code. WhatsApp updates are offered only after a visitor has joined here.
Keep it short. Every extra box is a reason to give up halfway. Turn on a phone number or a party size only when you will actually use them.
What visitors enter (the field library)
9 settings Control type Setting What it does Default Affects
Name · Toggle What to call them when it's their turn. Off = fully anonymous — the visitor is just a number. Each field that's on can also be marked Required, except Party size, which always carries an answer already. On Join page
Phone number · Toggle For a WhatsApp update when they're up. Phone and email are separate switches; the visitor sees one “Phone or email” box. Off for a line that doesn't use WhatsApp. Off Join pageTracking page
Email · Toggle For an email update instead of (or as well as) WhatsApp. On Join pageTracking page
Party size · Toggle “How many people?” — include yourself (you and two others is 3). Feeds capacity counting when the cap counts People. Off Join page
What they need · Toggle A service/reason picker when the line has services. Separately, “Who would you like?” appears on its own whenever the line has staff assigned to it — it has no switch here. Off Join page
Vehicle / plate · Toggle For drive-through, valet or click-and-collect. Off Join page
Note for staff · Toggle One free-text field — anything they'd like you to know in advance. Kept off unless you need it. Off Join page
Consent to message · Choice A visitor who gives a contact ticks “WhatsApp or email me updates about my place in line” — with the promise “We'll only message you about this visit — nothing else, ever.” No consent, no messages (they keep the tracking link). Built in Join page
Largest party size · Number The biggest group the join page and kiosk will accept. Range 1–100 (a line setting). 100 Join page
How they can join
6 settings Control type Setting What it does Default Affects
Join from a phone · Toggle “Show a 'Join the queue' button for your website” — lives in the line's Share / Get found modal. Off = the button on your website tells visitors to scan the QR at the venue instead. It does not lock the QR or join link to the venue: they are one address and work from anywhere. Off Join page
Capacity cap · Number When the line is full, the join page pauses new joins (“The line is full right now”) — everyone already waiting keeps their place. No cap Join page
Pause new joins · Toggle A staff switch for a moment's breather. Visitors see the neutral “This line isn't taking new visitors right now” — the same screen a retired or unpaid line shows, so nobody reads your account state off a poster. Off Join page
Show estimated wait on tracking links · Toggle An approximate wait time on the customer's tracking page, updated as the line moves. Off Tracking pageJoin page
Send “you’re almost up” at position · Number How early the one automatic heads-up fires. 1 = only the next person; 3 = the top three. Range 1–10. 1 Tracking page
Ask visitors to rate their visit · Toggle A completed visitor is invited to leave a 1–5★ rating on their tracking page. Off Tracking page
Your branding
3 settings Control type Setting What it does Default Affects
Logo & business name · Text Shown at the top of the join and tracking pages so visitors know it's you — from day one, on every package (branding is never a paid perk). — Join pageTracking page
“Powered by turnda” footer · Choice A small credit on every visitor page, on every package. Always shown Join pageTracking page
Accent colour · Text Tints the visitor pages to match your brand. Your colour is painted exactly as you chose it — it is the writing on the button that goes dark or white so it stays readable. Your brand Join pageTracking page
Owner & Manager can change all of these. Every row names the Line settings tab the control is on — open Locations → your line → Line settings and pick that tab. Defaults and ranges are checked against the running product on every build.
What visitors see in the unusual cases
| What happens | What it means |
|---|---|
| Email check before joining | If you switch on Ask visitors for an email code (Line settings, Visitor page & privacy), visitors type a one-time code sent to their email. The code lives a few minutes and is stored only as a one-way fingerprint. |
| A phone number without a country code | If your business has a country, the number is read the local way. If not, the form says exactly what to add (a + and the country code) before accepting it. |
| A separate mobile number for staff calls | Staff may phone it. The form says plainly that nothing is ever sent to it, and a visitor still gives just one contact for messages. |
| Asking for a person | The visitor picks someone or First available. The list shows who is in today and how many are waiting. |
| A place with several lines | Each line is shown with how many are waiting. The visitor picks one, or is told to see staff. |
| The chosen line cannot take them | They are put in another line and told to mention it to staff. |
| A quieter time | The page can say when it is usually quieter. |
| Already in the line | They see their existing place, not a second one. |
| A returning visitor | A Resume card shows their ticket and how many are ahead, with a way to add someone else. |
| They lost the page | They type the eight-character code they were shown and get straight back. Too many wrong codes pause further tries for a few minutes. |
| A join fails halfway | Trying again never creates a second ticket, even after a reload. |
| The phone goes offline while joining | The details are kept and finished when the signal returns. |
| A line only staff add people to | Visitors are told to see a staff member instead of seeing a form. |
| Many people on one internet connection | The page asks them to wait a minute rather than failing. |
| A wrong or old QR code | A clear page says the link is not valid and to ask staff. |
| A weak signal, or an update while scanning | A light version loads first, and the page reloads itself after an update so nobody is stuck. |
Related: The free tracking link · Design your visitor pages · Which language visitors see · The line isn't taking joins