So I want to meet with my big boss that has a busy schedule. I want to maximise my availability and willing to shift my scheduled lunch with my mates if he would like to meet over lunch.
I have already unlinked my calendar so Calendly only sees its owns events.
Is there a way for Calendly to ignore all events (including the ones created via Calendly) and allow my boss to book a slot during my lunch?
Thanks, A
Hey there
Because Calendly sees each account as an individual user, it will not allow overlapping Calendly events in an effort to prevent double bookings. However, we do have a Group Event Type that will allow multiple invitees to book the same time slot on one event type (this does not help with your specific need in this case but might be helpful down the line!).
You can also set up a team page that includes multiple users that are actually your alternative email addresses. Then, create a round robin event type between your accounts so invitees can continue scheduling for the same time slot as long as one account has availability. Keep in mind, you will have to pay for each additional user. Additionally, if you set up a second account and add them as a user to your organization, both users can accept bookings at the same time, to include one-on-one event bookings.
You might also be interested in our One-Off Meeting feature, so check that out!
Otherwise, you’ll ultimately not be able to send a Calendly link that includes available time slots for which you are already booked - and might want to consider sending an invite directly from your connected calendar instead.
I hope this helps!
Hello Kelsi,
There should be an option to “override my availability” for an event type. We all have very important events that, for them, we can shift or cancel less important meetings (job interviews, promotion meetings, new clients, etc). My approach with Calendly is (a) to ignore all my calendars (turn off sync in settings) and (b) to have only one event type per week, as I cannot ignore Calendly’s own calendar. ( c) cancel events from Calendly and move them into my calendar. These workarounds significantly limit the use of Calendly in my day-to-day work.
Note that none of the options you described above would be useful if I had a meeting with my company’s CEO. My mate Jonny could still book the only slot that my CEO could see me.
You have a powerful tool, but the user interface is very limited.
Thanks,
Andy
Hello Kelsi,
There should be an option to “override my availability” for an event type. We all have very important events that, for them, we can shift or cancel less important meetings (job interviews, promotion meetings, new clients, etc). My approach with Calendly is (a) to ignore all my calendars (turn off sync in settings) and (b) to have only one event type per week, as I cannot ignore Calendly’s own calendar. ( c) cancel events from Calendly and move them into my calendar. These workarounds significantly limit the use of Calendly in my day-to-day work.
Note that none of the options you described above would be useful if I had a meeting with my company’s CEO. My mate Jonny could still book the only slot that my CEO could see me.
You have a powerful tool, but the user interface is very limited.
Thanks,
Andy
Hey Andy! I totally appreciate this feedback and will 100% ensure it’s included in our monthly report for the product team to consider for future updates. Your use case is important, your feedback is valuable, and your voice will be heard.
I do want to offer some clarity, though!
At the end, you noted that your mate, Johnny, could still book the only slot that your CEO could see you using the suggestions I offered. This isn’t necessarily true, depending on how you make use of these tools!
Firstly, the One-Off Meeting that I suggested you look into is also a single-use link. This meeting takes priority over others and once the person you send that link to books, the link becomes inactive - they are the only one that can use it/book through it! If you click the “one-off meeting” link earlier in this short paragraph, you can learn about the tool in greater detail - but here’s a little overview (the third bullet point will likely be the kicker for your use case):
One-off Meetings offer a quick and flexible way to host a one-time meeting that doesn't match your regular event type configurations. When you set up a One-off Meeting, you can use key event type settings like location, hosts, timing, and more.
This type of meeting is useful when you need to:
Likewise, if you create a one-on-one meeting with your desired availability for your CEO to grab a meeting with you from, you can make that event type secret and keep it “turned on” at all times so that only the person/people you Share Your Calendly Link from that event type for can use it/book through it. You can also create a single-use link for this kind of event type when sharing it at any time.
If you were to use any of the suggestions above paired with making event types secret and using single-use links (I highly suggest the one-off meeting, however, as you can simply create one and send it to your CEO any time you need to meet with them), you would find that nobody else could book if you set it up correctly and your CEO would take precedence depending on how you move forward.
I hope this helps!
Hello Kelsi,
None of the options you suggested work. I just tried them now. In both cases, it will be a race between Jonny and the CEO to book me first.
The "one-off meeting" has the same limitations. If Jonny books a slot before my CEO using a different link/event, the slot will not be available for the big boss. Note that the "one-off meeting" is further limited because you cannot edit it later. Even if Jonny and the CEO have different links or different event types (one-off meeting, event type, etc.), Calendly finds the conflicts and blocks the CEO from booking a slot.
The only "workarounds" that I currently use are:
(a) Canel Jonny's booking (and other less critical meetings) ASAP and move the meetings into a private calendar that Calendly cannot access.
(b) Create mutually exclusive availability for Jonny and the CEO, but this defeats Calendly's purpose of maximising choice for my colleagues.
Though Calendly is still useful I am a very light user of it because of the many user-interface limitations including the above. I recently wanted a VIP customer to book a half-day meeting, and I needed to cancel all events for an entire week so I could give them the maximum choice. There is no way to bypass informal catch-ups, lunch breaks, pick-up kids, etc. A simple button "ignore other events" (for critical events) or "show as available" (for casual meetings) is sufficient. Note that I use a different platform for my clients to book & pay for online training because of this limitation.
Thanks,
Andy
Hey again,
Hey
Hello Kelsi,
that’s great! I hope the feature is released soon. It will make my life easier and I’ll be able to use Calendly as my main booking app.
Andy
Hello Kelsi,
that’s great! I hope the feature is released soon. It will make my life easier and I’ll be able to use Calendly as my main booking app.
Andy
P
Hello Kelsi,
that’s great! I hope the feature is released soon. It will make my life easier and I’ll be able to use Calendly as my main booking app.
Andy
P
Hello Kelsi,
that’s great! I hope the feature is released soon. It will make my life easier and I’ll be able to use Calendly as my main booking app.
Andy
So glad to hear you are excited about this! I hope to see it released very soon, myself. Keep checking back - we are sure to post an article when it’s up and running!
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