When you send a client a link to book an appointment, the calendar they land on decides everything: how long the meeting is, what meeting type is available, what they need to fill out before they hit submit. Setting it up well saves you back-and-forth later.
What a scheduling calendar is
A scheduling calendar is the booking page that opens when someone uses your appointment link. They see your available times, pick one, and book. Each calendar has its own:
- Length and buffer between meetings
- Meeting type (phone, Zoom, Google Meet, in person, or other)
- Booking window and minimum notice
- Custom invitation and confirmation messages
- Custom questions you want answered up front
- Its own unique link
If you only ever do one type of meeting, the default calendar is enough. If you do quick 15-minute intros and hour-long planning calls, you will want one calendar for each, so the right options show up at the right time.
Creating a new scheduling calendar
You can also edit an existing calendar by clicking Edit on its card, or open Show Details to see everything at a glance.
Scheduling settings
These are the controls under the Scheduling tab on a calendar.
Title. What clients see when they pick a calendar. Keep it short and specific.
Appointment length. How long the meeting lasts. Available from 15 minutes up to 12 hours.
Buffer time. A gap between back-to-back appointments so you have a minute to breathe, take notes, or set up. Most businesses pick 15 minutes.
Minimum notice. How far in advance someone has to book. If you set this to two hours, nobody can grab a slot starting in 30 minutes. Useful if you do not want to be caught off guard mid-errand.
Maximum days in future. How far ahead someone can book. Setting this to a couple of weeks keeps your calendar from filling up with appointments you will forget about. Set it longer if you do long-range planning calls.
Conflict prevention. This setting prevents new appointments during times you already have bookings.
- Assigned bookings only blocks you off only when you are on the staff list for an event. Best for teams, where you are not personally working every event.
- All bookings blocks you off whenever anything is on the company calendar. Best for solo operators.
For a deeper walk-through of how Check Cherry keeps you from being double-booked, see the guide on preventing double bookings with appointments.
Weekly appointment availability. The days and hours this calendar is open. You can reuse your standard booking availability or set custom hours just for this calendar. Helpful if, say, you only do planning sessions on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons.
Meeting location
Under Meeting Details, choose how the appointment will happen. You can offer one option or several, and the client picks at booking time.
- Phone. The client picks up at the time of the call.
- Zoom or Google Meet. A meeting link is generated automatically once you have connected your account.
- In person. List an address or instructions clients should follow.
- Custom. For anything else, like Skype, FaceTime, or Microsoft Teams.
If you only want clients to do video, select only Zoom or Google Meet and that becomes the only option on the booking page. For setup, see Integrating Appointments with Zoom or Google Meet.
Custom invitation and confirmation messages
Two messages show up around the booking, both editable under Meeting Details:
- The invitation message appears on the booking page itself. Use it to set expectations: who you are, what the call covers, anything the client should have ready.
- The confirmation message appears after the appointment is booked. A short "Looking forward to it," plus any next steps, works well.
You can drop images, links, and formatting into either message.
Questions on the booking form
Each calendar can ask for whatever information you need: company name, venue details, event date, custom dropdowns, and so on. For the full breakdown, see the guide on customizing appointment questions.
Sharing your calendars
A few ways to share:
- Scheduling link on a calendar card copies a link straight to that calendar.
- Preview opens the booking page so you can see exactly what clients see.
- QR code can be generated from the link, useful for flyers, business cards, or signage at events.
- Share scheduling link at the bottom of the Appointment Scheduling page is a single link that lists all of your calendars. Send this when you want the client to pick the meeting type themselves.
Most businesses send the specific calendar link rather than the share-all link. It keeps the path simpler for the client.