Platform Updates

Seamless Calendar Integration: Turning Bookings Into Real-Time Events

BL
5 min read
Seamless Calendar Integration: Turning Bookings Into Real-Time Events

“Time is your most valuable inventory. Let’s keep every minute in sync.”

BizBlasts has always been about making business life easier. Today we’re thrilled to unveil a feature that removes the last bit of manual calendar juggling: native, two-way calendar integration. Whether you live in Google Calendar, Microsoft 365, or a trusty CalDAV server (iCloud), BizBlasts now keeps your schedule and your bookings singing in perfect harmony.


What’s New? The 60-Second Overview #

  1. One-Click OAuth Connections
    • Google Calendar and Microsoft 365 connect in seconds with standard “Allow” screens.
    • CalDAV servers (iCloud, Fastmail, Nextcloud, etc.) connect with a secure manual form.

  2. Automatic Booking Sync
    • New bookings instantly create calendar events.
    • Reschedules update events; cancellations delete them.
    • Each sync is fully traceable in a new “Sync Log”.

  3. Availability Import
    • Busy events from connected calendars flow into BizBlasts so customers can’t double-book you.
    • Imports run hourly and on-demand.

  4. Smart Token Management
    • Access tokens refresh automatically (no surprise expirations).
    • A background job guards against “token about to expire” scenarios.

Let’s unpack each piece.


Part 1: Connecting Your Calendar—As Simple As “Allow” #

Google & Microsoft (OAuth Flow) #

  1. Go to Manage → Settings → Calendar Integrations.
  2. Choose Google or Microsoft next to the staff member you’re setting up.
  3. Click Allow on the familiar consent screen.
  4. Done—your bookings are already syncing!

CalDAV - iCloud (Manual, Yet Easy) #

Some providers don’t offer OAuth, so we built a CalDAV wizard:

  1. Pick CalDAV → enter username, app-password, server URL, and provider type (iCloud, etc.).
  2. Hit Test Connection—we ping the server and show a green check before saving.
  3. Save, and you’re good to go.

Why manual? CalDAV is an open standard; each server speaks it a little differently. Our wizard keeps things flexible while still validating credentials.


Part 2: Automatic Booking Sync—Your Calendar as Single Source of Truth #

Every time a booking changes state, BizBlasts automatically create, update, or delete an event.

Real-World Examples #

  • New Booking – Emma books a 60-min massage for 10 AM. Seconds later a bright purple “Massage – Emma” appears on your personal Google Calendar.
  • Customer Reschedule – Emma moves to 1 PM. The calendar event shifts automatically; Google sends you the native notification.
  • Cancellation – Emma cancels. The event disappears; the slot reopens online.

Each action logs a CalendarEventMapping record plus a CalendarSyncLog row—you see success/failure icons right inside Manage → Calendar Integrations → Details.

Edge-Case Superpowers #

  • Multi-Calendar Staff – Staff can connect multiple providers. Pick a default; others act as backups.
  • Granular Error Recovery – If an event fails (e.g., you revoked Google access) we mark it failed and continue with other bookings—no global meltdown.
  • Selective Retry – Hit Retry in the UI to re-enqueue only the problem event.

Part 3: Availability Import—No More Double-Bookings #

Not every busy slot originates in BizBlasts. Dentist appointment? Kid’s recital? Those live in your personal calendar. Our new import pipeline reads external events into a light-weight service performing everything for you.

How It Works #

  1. Hourly (or on demand)
  2. We query just the relevant date range—today’s events plus any days customers can book.
  3. Events map to simple “busy” blocks; if an event disappears on Google, we delete the matching row.
  4. Slot generation filters out overlaps, including the business’s buffer policy.

Result: Customers never see times you’re unavailable—even if you added them from your phone five seconds ago.


Part 4: Token Zen—Never Worry About Expirations #

OAuth access tokens have short lifespans. Ignore them and you’ll wake up to sync errors. We refused to accept that.

  1. Pro-Active Refresh – Bizblasts scans for tokens expiring within the next 10 minutes and refreshes them before they die.
  2. Automatic Callback – The Google SDK’s built-in callback updates Bizblasts whenever Google auto-refreshes.
  3. Fail-Safe Deactivation – Three refresh failures in 24 hours? We deactivate the connection and alert you so bad tokens stop clogging logs.

Security, Privacy & Compliance #

  • Least-Privilege Scopes – We request only read/write events and the equivalent Microsoft scope. No email, no contacts.
  • Encrypted Tokens – Access & refresh tokens live encrypted at rest; only the job pods that need them can decrypt.
  • Granular Revocation – Disconnecting a provider deletes tokens immediately and safely.
  • Audit Trail – Every sync action records who, what, when, and outcome, giving auditors a clean trail.

Success Stories (Beta Users) #

  • The Salon Duo – Twin stylists Sarah & Jess connected personal Google Calendars. Their no-show rate dropped 18 % because clients now see live personal conflicts.
  • Mobile Physiotherapist – Mark travels between homes. He uses iCloud (CalDAV) on his iPhone. BizBlasts now blocks out “Drive Time” events imported from iCloud so his 2 PM appointment never overlaps a 30-minute commute.
  • Corporate Trainer – Lydia’s team books via Microsoft 365. With event updates flowing both ways, her assistants can reschedule inside Outlook and know BizBlasts confirmations follow automatically.

Getting Started—It’s Already in Your Dashboard #

  1. Head to Manage → Settings → Calendar Integrations.
  2. Pick a provider and follow the prompts.
  3. (Optional) Hit Resync to back-fill past bookings.
  4. Relax—everything is automatic from here.

The Bottom Line #

Your calendar is where commitments really live. By making BizBlasts and Google/Microsoft/CalDAV talk in real time, we’re erasing another friction point between you and your customers. Less manual entry, fewer double-bookings, richer customer experience—and a happier you.

Ready to give it a whirl? Head to Manage → Settings → Calendar Integrations and click Connect. In under two minutes you’ll wonder how you ever lived without it.

Welcome to smarter scheduling. Welcome to the new BizBlasts.

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