How Do I Book Tours and Viewings Automatically?

Propel automatically books tours and showings for prospects based on your calendar availability. This feature saves time by handling scheduling requests, checking your availability, and confirming appointments without manual intervention. This guide explains how automatic booking works and how to manage your scheduled appointments.

What Is Automatic Booking?

Automatic booking allows Propel to:

• Check your calendar - Verify your available time slots in real-time
• Suggest available times - Offer prospects times that work for you
• Book appointments - Confirm bookings when prospects select a time
• Send confirmations - Provide booking details and reminders automatically
• Handle rescheduling - Manage changes and cancellations

Use Case Examples:

• Property Management: Rental tours are scheduled automatically when prospects request viewings
• Real Estate: Buyer showings are booked when requested, with calendar integration
• Short-Term Rentals: Reservations are confirmed and managed automatically
• Commercial Real Estate: Complex showing schedules are coordinated across multiple properties

How Automatic Booking Works

The Booking Process

When a prospect requests a tour or showing:

1. Prospect requests viewing - Prospect emails asking to see a property
2. Propel checks availability - System checks your calendar for available time slots
3. Propel suggests times - Offers prospects available times that work for you
4. Prospect selects time - Prospect chooses from available options
5. Booking confirmed - Propel creates a calendar event and sends confirmations
6. Reminders sent - Automatic reminders are sent before the appointment

Calendar Integration Required

Automatic booking requires calendar integration. If you haven't connected your calendar:

• Booking requests are handed off - Propel will notify you instead of booking automatically
• Manual booking required - You'll need to schedule appointments manually
• Setup needed - Connect your calendar to enable automatic booking

See Calendar Integration for setup instructions.

Booking Capabilities

Booking capabilities are controlled in mailbox settings:

• Enabled by default - Booking is enabled for new mailboxes
• Can be disabled - You can disable booking if you want manual control
• Per-mailbox setting - Each mailbox can have different booking settings

See Configuring Mailbox Settings to enable or disable booking.

Booking Rules and Constraints

Propel enforces several important rules when booking:

24-Hour Minimum Notice

Critical Rule: Bookings can only be scheduled with at least 24 hours notice. This ensures:

• Preparation time - You have time to prepare for the showing
• Proper confirmation - Prospects receive adequate notice
• Calendar management - Avoids last-minute conflicts

If a prospect requests same-day or next-day viewing, Propel will offer the earliest available time that meets the 24-hour requirement.

Multi-Unit Bookings

When prospects want to see multiple properties:

• Same Building: Creates a single calendar event with extended duration (25 minutes for first unit + 5 minutes per additional unit)
• Different Buildings: Creates separate calendar events for each property
• Duration Calculation: Automatically calculates the time needed based on the number of units

Example:

• 1 unit: 25 minutes
• 2 units (same building): 30 minutes (25 + 5)
• 3 units (same building): 35 minutes (25 + 10)

Time Zone Handling

Propel properly handles time zones:

• Property-Specific Time Zones: Uses each property's time zone for accurate scheduling
• Timezone Information: Includes timezone in all calendar events
• Default Timezone: Uses America/New_York if no timezone is specified for a property

Agent Availability

Propel checks agent availability:

• Time Off Management: Checks if agents have scheduled time off
• Fallback Agents: Automatically uses fallback agents when primary agents are unavailable
• Availability Validation: Only proposes bookings when agents are available

Virtual Viewing Support

Propel can schedule virtual viewings:

• Proactive Offering: Suggests virtual viewings for remote or time-constrained users
• Video Call Scheduling: Indicates "virtual" in booking details for video calls
• Teams Integration: Includes Teams URL or video call details in event location

Viewing Your Bookings

You can view all your bookings in multiple ways:

Bookings Calendar View

1. Navigate to Viewings or Bookings in the sidebar
2. You'll see a calendar view of all scheduled tours and showings
3. Month view - See all bookings for the current month
4. Day view - See detailed schedule for a specific day
5. Week view - See weekly schedule overview

The calendar view shows:

• Booking time - Start and end times for each appointment
• Property details - Address, unit number, and listing information
• Contact information - Prospect name and contact details
• Booking status - Confirmed, pending, cancelled, or completed
• Agent assignment - Which agent is scheduled to attend

Dashboard View

1. Go to Dashboard to see recent activity
2. View upcoming bookings in the dashboard widgets
3. See booking-related activity and notifications

Engagement View

1. Go to Engagements to see all conversations
2. Bookings are linked to their associated engagements
3. View booking details from the engagement detail page

Contact Detail View

1. Go to Contacts and select a contact
2. View their booking history on the contact detail page
3. See all tours, showings, or reservations for that contact

Calendar App Integration

Bookings are also visible in your connected calendar:

• Google Calendar: All bookings appear in your Google Calendar
• Outlook Calendar: All bookings appear in your Outlook Calendar
• Real-time sync: Bookings are synced immediately when created
• Two-way sync: Changes in your calendar are reflected in Propel

Booking Details

Each booking includes all the information you need:

Scheduling Information:

• Date and time of the appointment (in the property's time zone)
• Duration of the viewing
• Current booking status (confirmed, pending, cancelled, or completed)

Property Information:

• Full property address, unit number, and building name
• Link to the full listing details in Propel

Contact Information:

• Prospect name, email, and phone number
• All information needed to contact the prospect

Agent Assignment:

• Which agent is scheduled to attend
• Fallback agent information if the primary agent is unavailable

Calendar Integration:

• The booking automatically creates a calendar event in your connected calendar
• Both you and the prospect receive calendar invites with all relevant details

Managing Bookings

Viewing Booking Details

To see full booking information:

1. Navigate to Viewings or Bookings
2. Click on any booking in the calendar or list
3. View complete booking details including:
   • Property information
   • Contact details
   • Agent assignment
   • Booking status
   • Conversation history

Handling Cancellations

When prospects cancel bookings:

1. Propel processes cancellation - System updates booking status automatically
2. Calendar event updated - Calendar event is marked as cancelled
3. Notification sent - You're notified of the cancellation
4. Follow-up option - Propel can offer to reschedule

Rescheduling Bookings

When prospects request to reschedule:

1. Prospect requests new time - Prospect emails requesting a different time
2. Propel checks availability - System finds new available slots
3. New time offered - Propel suggests alternative times
4. Booking updated - Original booking is updated or new booking created
5. Calendar synced - Calendar events are updated automatically

Manual Booking Adjustments

If you need to adjust bookings manually:

1. Edit in calendar app - Make changes in Google Calendar or Outlook
2. Changes sync to Propel - Updates are reflected in Propel automatically
3. Or edit in Propel - Some booking details can be edited directly in Propel

Booking Statuses

Bookings can have different statuses:

Confirmed

• Meaning: Booking is confirmed and scheduled
• Calendar Event: Created and synced
• Notifications: Confirmations sent to all parties
• Next Steps: Wait for appointment time

Pending

• Meaning: Booking request received but not yet confirmed
• Calendar Event: May not be created yet
• Notifications: Initial response sent, waiting for confirmation
• Next Steps: Prospect needs to confirm time selection

Cancelled

• Meaning: Booking was cancelled
• Calendar Event: Marked as cancelled in calendar
• Notifications: Cancellation notices sent
• Next Steps: Can offer to reschedule

Completed

• Meaning: Booking appointment has passed
• Calendar Event: Remains in calendar for record-keeping
• Notifications: No active notifications
• Next Steps: Follow up with prospect about their experience

Best Practices

Keep Calendar Updated

• Block unavailable times - Add events to your calendar for times you're not available
• Update time off - Mark time off in your calendar so Propel knows you're unavailable
• Sync regularly - Ensure calendar sync is working properly

Review Bookings Regularly

• Check daily schedule - Review upcoming bookings each day
• Verify details - Ensure property and contact information is correct
• Prepare in advance - Use booking details to prepare for showings

Use Booking Confirmations

• Let Propel send confirmations - Automatic confirmations reduce no-shows
• Review confirmation content - Ensure confirmations include necessary information
• Customize if needed - Adjust confirmation messages in mailbox settings

Monitor Booking Activity

• Check booking trends - Review which properties get the most booking requests
• Track conversion rates - See how many bookings convert to applications or sales
• Identify patterns - Notice peak booking times and days

Troubleshooting

Bookings Not Being Created

If bookings aren't being created automatically:

1. Check calendar integration - Verify your calendar is connected
2. Verify booking capability - Ensure booking is enabled in mailbox settings
3. Check calendar permissions - Ensure Propel has permission to create events
4. Review booking requests - Check if requests are being received and processed

Wrong Times Being Suggested

If suggested times don't match your availability:

1. Check calendar sync - Ensure your calendar is syncing properly
2. Verify time off - Ensure time off is marked in your calendar
3. Review time zone settings - Check that property time zones are correct
4. Check agent availability - Verify agent schedules are up to date

Calendar Events Not Appearing

If bookings aren't appearing in your calendar:

1. Check calendar connection - Verify calendar integration is active
2. Review sync status - Check if sync is working properly
3. Verify permissions - Ensure Propel has permission to create events
4. Check calendar app - Refresh your calendar app to see new events

Duplicate Bookings

If you see duplicate bookings:

1. Check for manual creation - Verify you didn't create the booking manually
2. Review booking process - Check if the booking was created multiple times
3. Contact support - If duplicates persist, contact support for assistance

Next Steps

Now that you understand automatic booking:

• Learn about managing follow-ups to ensure prospects don't fall through the cracks
• Set up calendar integration if you haven't already
• Configure mailbox settings to control booking behavior
• Understand engagements to see how bookings relate to conversations

Related Articles

• Calendar Integration - Set up calendar connection for automatic booking
• Configuring Mailbox Settings - Enable or disable booking capabilities
• Managing Follow-ups - Ensure prospects receive timely follow-ups
• Understanding Engagements - Learn how bookings relate to conversations
• Managing Contacts - View contact booking history