# Connect Your Calendar

> Link your calendar to graph8 for scheduling, availability detection, and automatic meeting logging.

Source: https://docs.graph8.com/getting-started/connect-calendar/

Connect your calendar so graph8 can check your availability, create booking links, and automatically log meetings with prospects.

## Supported Calendar Providers

- **Google Calendar** (Google Workspace and personal Gmail)
- **Microsoft Outlook** (Microsoft 365 and Exchange)
- **Apple Calendar** (iCloud)

You can connect multiple calendars from different providers at the same time.

## Connecting Your Calendar

1. Go to **Settings → Calendar**
2. Click **Connect Calendar**
3. Select your provider (Google, Microsoft, or Apple)
4. Authorize graph8 to access your calendar via OAuth
5. Once connected, you'll see your calendars listed in the settings panel

### Select Calendars for Conflict Checking

After connecting, choose which calendars graph8 should check for conflicts. For example, you might select:

- Your **work calendar** — so meetings aren't booked during work events
- Your **personal calendar** — so personal appointments block availability too
- A **team calendar** — to avoid conflicts with team-wide events

graph8 aggregates busy times across all selected calendars. If any selected calendar shows you as busy during a time slot, that slot won't be offered to prospects.

### Set Your Destination Calendar

Choose which calendar receives new bookings. When a prospect books a meeting through your link, the event is automatically created in your destination calendar with all the meeting details.

## Set Your Availability

Define when you're available for meetings:

1. Go to **Settings → Calendar → Availability**
2. Set your **working hours** for each day of the week (e.g., Monday–Friday, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM)
3. Set your **timezone** — graph8 automatically converts time slots to the prospect's timezone
4. Optionally create **multiple schedules** for different event types (e.g., a "Demo" schedule with afternoon-only slots)

> **Tip:**
> Set buffer time between meetings to avoid back-to-back calls. A 15-minute buffer gives you time to prep notes and take a break.

## Create Event Types

Event types define the meetings prospects can book with you. Each event type has its own booking link.

| Setting | Description | Example |
|---------|-------------|---------|
| **Title** | Meeting name shown to prospects | "30-Minute Demo" |
| **Duration** | Length of the meeting | 15, 30, or 60 minutes |
| **Location** | Where the meeting happens | Zoom, Google Meet, phone call |
| **Description** | Details shown on the booking page | Agenda or prep instructions |
| **Availability** | Which schedule to use | "Default" or a custom schedule |
| **Buffer time** | Padding before/after meetings | 10 minutes before, 15 after |
| **Booking window** | How far in advance prospects can book | 2–30 days out |
| **Minimum notice** | Minimum lead time before a booking | 4 hours |

### Creating an Event Type

1. Go to **Settings → Calendar → Event Types**
2. Click **New Event Type**
3. Configure the settings above
4. Copy your booking link and use it in sequences, emails, or your email signature

## Booking Links in Sequences

graph8 can auto-insert your booking link into outreach sequences:

- Use the `{{booking_link}}` merge tag in any email step to insert your default booking link
- Prospects click the link, see your real-time availability, pick a slot, and the meeting is confirmed instantly
- The meeting appears in your destination calendar and is logged to the contact's record in graph8

## Round-Robin Scheduling

Distribute meetings across your team automatically:

1. Create a **team event type** in **Settings → Calendar → Event Types**
2. Add team members to the event type
3. Set the distribution method:
   - **Round-robin** — rotates evenly across team members based on availability
   - **Collective** — finds a time when all selected members are free (for group meetings)
4. Share the team booking link — graph8 checks each member's connected calendars and assigns the booking to the next available person

> **Tip:**
> Round-robin scheduling considers each team member's individual availability and connected calendars. If someone is on PTO or has a full day, they're automatically skipped.

## How Calendar Sync Works

When a prospect checks your booking page or graph8 evaluates your availability:

1. graph8 fetches busy times from all your selected calendars
2. Busy times are excluded from available slots
3. Your availability schedule is applied (working hours, buffer time, booking window)
4. Only genuinely free slots are shown to the prospect

When a booking is created:

1. An event is added to your destination calendar
2. The prospect receives a confirmation email with meeting details
3. The meeting is automatically logged to the contact's record in graph8

## Meetings Channel

Connected calendars also feed the **Meetings** channel in the Inbox. Once events are synced, graph8 can show those meetings in a review queue and enrich them with transcript summaries, participant context, and follow-up tasks when transcript data is available.

## Privacy and Permissions

graph8 uses OAuth to connect to your calendar provider. It:

- **Reads** calendar events to check for conflicts (busy/free status only)
- **Creates** events in your destination calendar when bookings are made
- Does **not** modify or delete your existing calendar events
- Does **not** share your calendar data with other users

You can disconnect your calendar at any time from **Settings → Calendar → Disconnect**.

## Troubleshooting

**Calendar not syncing?**
- Ensure you authorized the correct account (check the email address shown in Settings)
- Corporate Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 admins may block third-party calendar access — ask your IT team to allow graph8
- Try disconnecting and reconnecting the calendar

**Availability showing incorrectly?**
- Verify you selected the right calendars for conflict checking — unselected calendars won't block time slots
- Events marked as "Free" in your calendar won't block availability (only "Busy" events count)
- Check your timezone setting matches your actual timezone

**Booking link not working?**
- Make sure you have at least one event type created
- Verify your availability schedule has open hours for the days prospects are trying to book

## You're All Set

With your domain, website, and calendar connected, your graph8 workspace is fully configured. Start exploring:

- [Studio →](https://docs.graph8.com/studio/global/) — Build AI-powered campaigns
- [Data →](https://docs.graph8.com/data/prospecting/) — Search prospects and manage lists
- [Engage →](https://docs.graph8.com/engage/sequencer/) — Create outreach sequences
- [Meetings →](https://docs.graph8.com/engage/meetings/) — Review meetings and transcript context