In this tutorial, we will walk through the process of creating an AI-powered calendar booking system. This system will allow users to check availability, book appointments, and have the necessary information automatically captured and stored.

Connecting Calendars

The first step is to connect your calendar(s) to the appointment scheduling tool. This allows the system to check availability on your actual calendar.

1. Go to the "Integrations" section and select "Google Calendar" (or whichever calendar service you use).
2. Authenticate your calendar account and select the specific calendar(s) you want to use.
3. Once connected, you can create a new calendar within the tool to manage your bookings.

Checking Availability

To allow users to check availability, we'll create a flow that retrieves the next 3 available appointment slots.

1. Create a new flow and select the "Appointment Scheduling" action.
2. Choose the "Check Availability" option and select the calendar you connected earlier.
3. Create custom fields for the "Start Date" and "End Date" to define the availability window.
4. Save the availability information in a custom field called "Availability".

Formatting the Response

To provide a smooth and natural response to the user, we'll use OpenAI to format the availability information.

1. Add an "OpenAI" action to the flow.
2. Provide a prompt for the AI to generate a response that presents the availability in a conversational way.
3. Save the AI-generated response in a custom field called "AI Reply".

Booking Appointments

Now that we can check availability, let's create the functionality to allow users to book appointments.

1. Create a new function called "Book Appointment".
2. Collect the user's desired date for the appointment using a custom field.
3. Use the "Appointment Scheduling" action to book the appointment on the connected calendar.
4. Confirm the booking with the user and save the details in custom fields.

Handling Complex Data Collection

For scenarios where you need to collect a lot of information from the user, such as a rental application, we can use a JSON-based approach.

1. Create a new flow and use a "JSON Bot Agent" to guide the user through the questions.
2. Generate a structured JSON response containing all the collected information.
3. Extract the JSON data and save it to custom fields for further processing.

By following this tutorial, you'll have a robust and flexible AI-powered calendar booking system that provides a seamless user experience and captures all the necessary information for your business needs.

To connect your Google Calendar, follow these steps:

1. Go to your marketing tools and select "Appointment Scheduling".
2. Click on the "Integrations" tab and choose "Google Calendar".
3. Select the calendar you want to use and click "Continue".
4. Allow the integration to access your Google Calendar.

Once the integration is set up, you can create a new calendar within the appointment scheduling tool. This will allow you to manage your availability and bookings directly within the tool.

Remember to configure any necessary restrictions, such as minimum days in advance or daily limits, to ensure the calendar functions as desired.

The key steps are:

1. Connect your Google Calendar integration
2. Create a new calendar within the appointment scheduling tool
3. Configure any necessary restrictions on the calendar

By following these steps, you can seamlessly integrate your Google Calendar and manage appointments directly within the tool.

When setting up appointment scheduling, it's often useful to have multiple calendars connected. This allows you to manage availability and bookings across different resources, teams, or locations.

To create multiple calendars:

1. Go to the "Calendars" tab in your appointment scheduling tool.
2. Click "Add" to create a new calendar.
3. Give the calendar a name that describes its purpose, e.g. "Main Office Calendar", "Sales Team Calendar", etc.
4. Configure any restrictions or settings for the new calendar as needed, such as minimum advance booking time, daily limits, etc.
5. Repeat steps 2-4 to create additional calendars as required.

Once you have multiple calendars set up, you can then connect them to your appointment scheduling flow. When checking availability or booking appointments, you can select the appropriate calendar to use.

This multi-calendar approach provides several benefits:

• Separates availability and bookings by location, team, resource, etc.
• Allows you to apply different restrictions or settings to each calendar as needed
• Gives you more granular control and visibility over your appointment scheduling

Remember, the more calendars you add, the more complex your scheduling can become. Be strategic in how you set up and utilize multiple calendars to ensure a smooth and efficient appointment booking process for your users.

The availability flow is responsible for checking the calendar and providing the user with the next three consecutive available appointment slots. Here's how it works:

1. The flow is triggered when the user requests to check the availability for an appointment.
2. The first step is to set the end date for the availability range. This is done by taking the start date provided by the user and adding 7 days to it using a math operation.
3. With the start and end dates defined, the flow then uses the "Check Availability" action from the Appointment Scheduling tool. This checks the specified calendar for available slots within the defined date range.
4. The available slots are saved in a custom field called "Availability".
5. Next, the flow uses OpenAI to generate a smooth, natural-sounding response that presents the available slots to the user. This response is saved in the "AI Reply" custom field.
6. Finally, the "AI Reply" custom field is used to provide the user with the available appointment times.

This flow ensures that the bot always provides accurate and consistent availability information to the user, regardless of how they request it. By separating the availability check from the actual booking, the bot can handle edge cases and provide a better user experience.

To collect the necessary user details for booking an appointment, the flow will follow these steps:

1. Collect User's Full Name: The assistant will first request the user's full name to properly identify the appointment booking.

Example:

Assistant: Awesome, let's get this appointment booked for you. First, could you please provide your full name?

2. Collect Desired Appointment Date: Next, the assistant will ask the user for the desired date and time for the appointment.

Example:

Assistant: Great, and what date and time would you like to schedule the appointment for?

3. Confirm Collected Details: After gathering the user's name and preferred appointment time, the assistant will summarize the details and confirm everything looks correct before proceeding.

Example:

Assistant: Okay, let me confirm the details:
- Your name: Snoop Dog
- Appointment date and time: Friday, March 14th at 11:10am

Does this all look good to you?

4. Trigger Book Appointment Function: Once the user confirms the details are correct, the assistant will trigger the "Book Appointment" function to complete the booking process.

Example:

User: Yes, that all looks perfect!
Assistant: Wonderful, I've gone ahead and booked your appointment for this Friday at 11:10am. You're all set! Please let me know if you need anything else.

By following this structured flow, the assistant ensures all necessary information is collected in a clear and organized manner, providing a smooth booking experience for the user.

In this comprehensive guide, we have explored the powerful capabilities of appointment scheduling and data collection using advanced AI techniques. By leveraging the appointment scheduling tool, custom calendars, and the JSON data extraction method, you can now seamlessly manage your appointment bookings and gather structured information from your users.

The key takeaways from this tutorial are:

1. Appointment Scheduling: The appointment scheduling tool allows you to connect your Google Calendar, set up custom calendars, and define availability restrictions. This ensures that your appointment booking process is efficient and consistent, providing a smooth user experience.

2. Availability Flow: The availability flow is a crucial component that guarantees accurate availability information. By setting the start and end dates, checking the calendar availability, and formatting the response, you can provide users with reliable appointment options.

3. Booking Function: The booking function seamlessly integrates with the availability flow, allowing users to confirm their desired appointment date and time. This function collects the necessary user information, such as name and email, and books the appointment in your calendar.

4. JSON Data Collection: For complex data collection scenarios, the JSON data extraction method proves to be a powerful solution. By generating a structured JSON response and mapping it to custom fields, you can efficiently capture and organize the user's input, making it readily available for further processing or integration with your systems.

5. Agent-based Approach: The agent-based approach, as demonstrated in the leasing example, showcases the flexibility and control you can achieve. By defining clear instructions, examples, and variable names, the agent can effectively guide the user through the data collection process, ensuring a smooth and comprehensive information gathering experience.

By mastering these techniques, you can elevate your appointment scheduling and data collection capabilities, providing your users with a streamlined and efficient experience. Remember, the key to success lies in understanding the underlying principles, experimenting with the tools, and continuously refining your prompts and workflows to meet the unique needs of your application or business.

Embrace the power of AI-driven appointment scheduling and data collection, and unlock new levels of efficiency and customer satisfaction.