Using Google Calendar Triggers in OttoKit

We have Google Calendar integration in OttoKit, so you can create workflows by connecting Google Calendar and other apps that you use.

For example, you can set a workflow to send reminders to people before an important event or give them a survey form after an event has ended.

But to make these workflows, it’s really important for you to understand how Google Calendar triggers work.

And to help you understand, we have provided this clear and easy-to-follow documentation that explains how Google Calendar triggers work.

How Do Google Calendar Triggers Work

We have three triggers for Google Calendar and here’s how they work:

Event Start

This is a scheduled trigger that checks for upcoming events every 10 minutes.

OttoKit run this trigger every 10 minutes to see if there are new events starting in the next 10 minutes. The checking process takes less than a fraction of a second.

If there’s an event starting within the next 10 minutes, then OttoKit will run your workflow and perform the actions you’ve set up in your workflow.

And in case OttoKit doesn’t find any event that’s about to start within the next 10 minutes, then nothing will happen. Your workflow will not run.

Let’s understand this better with an example where we send an email reminder to people before a Calendar event is about to begin.

Now, imagine OttoKit runs the Event Start trigger at 9:55:00 AM and you have a calendar event starting at 10:00:00 AM, then OttoKit will immediately run your workflow at 9:55:00 AM and will send the email to the recipient.

But if there’s no Calendar event between 9:55:00 AM and 10:05:00 AM, then your workflow will not run.

Later, OttoKit will check for upcoming events at 10:05:00 AM again for the events starting in the next 10 minutes. And this process keeps repeating.

That’s how the Event Start trigger works.

Event Ended

This trigger works as the Event Started trigger. But for this trigger, OttoKit checks for the events that ended in the last 10 minutes.

For example – Let’s say you have a workflow that sends out a survey form to gather feedback from attendees who participated in your calendar event.

Now, imagine if sureTriggers checks for past events at 9:00 AM and you had an event that ended at 8:55 AM, then OttoKit will run your workflow and send the email for the survey immediately (at 9:00 AM).

If no event has ended between 8:50 AM and 9:00 AM, your workflow won’t run. OttoKit will check again at 09:10 AM for the events that ended between 9:00 AM and 9:10 AM.

That’s how the Event Ended Trigger works.

Calendar Created

This is a simple scheduled trigger.

To understand how it works, imagine you’re an HR manager at a company and you’ve created a workflow in OttoKit that automatically sends an announcement message in a channel when a new calendar is published.

In this case, OttoKit will check in every hour for new calendars created in your Google account if there’s a new Calendar, your workflow will run and send the Slack message.

It’s that simple.

Hope this document helped you understand how Google Calendar triggers work, but if you still have questions, let us know!