Automate Appointment Reminder SMS with Pabbly Connect and Google Calendar

Learn how to send automated SMS reminders for Google Calendar events using Pabbly Connect. Step-by-step guide for seamless integration. Follow this definitive guide to creating powerful automated workflows with straightforward, efficiency-focused solutions that save valuable time.

Watch Step By Step Video Tutorial Below

1. Accessing Pabbly Connect for SMS Reminders

To send automated appointment reminder SMS from Google Calendar, you need to start by accessing Pabbly Connect. First, visit the Pabbly website and navigate to the Connect product. You can sign up for a free account or log in if you already have one.

Once logged in, click on the ‘Create Workflow’ button at the top right corner. When prompted, name your workflow something relevant, like ‘Google Calendar to Twilio SMS’. This naming helps in identifying your integration later. After naming, click on the ‘Create’ button to proceed.

2. Setting Up Google Calendar Trigger in Pabbly Connect

In this section, you will set up the trigger for your workflow using Pabbly Connect. Select Google Calendar as the app for your trigger. Choose the ‘New Event Created’ trigger event to capture new events from your calendar.

• Select ‘Google Calendar’ from the list of apps.
• Choose the trigger event: ‘New Event Created’.
• Connect with your Google account and allow necessary permissions.

Once connected, select the specific calendar where you will create events. After this setup, every new event added to this calendar will trigger the workflow in Pabbly Connect.

3. Isolating Phone Numbers and Formatting SMS

After setting up the Google Calendar trigger, the next step involves isolating the phone number from the event details. Use Pabbly Connect to extract the phone number from the incoming data. This is crucial for sending SMS reminders.

• Add a Text Formatter action to isolate the phone number.
• Choose ‘Extract Phone Number’ as the action event.
• Map the phone number field to ensure accurate extraction.

This action will ensure that only the necessary phone number is passed on for the SMS sending process. After isolating the number, you will be ready to format the SMS content.

4. Sending SMS with Twilio via Pabbly Connect

With the phone number isolated, the next step is to send the SMS reminder using Twilio through Pabbly Connect. Select Twilio as the application for the action event and choose ‘Send SMS’ as the action event.

Connect your Twilio account by entering your Account SID and Auth Token. Then, fill in the SMS details:

Recipient Number: Map the isolated phone number. Sender Number: Use your Twilio number. Body of the SMS: Write the reminder message.

After entering the details, click on ‘Save and Send Test Request’ to test the SMS functionality. If configured correctly, the SMS will be sent to the specified phone number, confirming that the integration works seamlessly with Pabbly Connect.

5. Delaying SMS for Appointment Reminders

To ensure that the SMS reminder is sent a day before the scheduled event, you will need to implement a delay using Pabbly Connect. This can be done by adding a delay action after the SMS setup.

Choose the ‘Delay’ action in Pabbly Connect and set it to trigger until the day before the event. For example, if the event is on July 16, set the delay to July 15. This ensures that the SMS is sent at the correct time:

Set the delay date to be one day before the event date. Confirm the delay is active in your workflow.

This final step guarantees that your automated reminders are sent precisely when needed, showcasing the powerful capabilities of Pabbly Connect in managing event reminders effectively.

Conclusion

By following this tutorial, you can effectively set up automated appointment reminder SMS using Pabbly Connect with Google Calendar and Twilio. This integration simplifies the reminder process, ensuring timely notifications for your events.