General
Why should I use Appointments vs another tool?
Why should I use Appointments vs another tool?
By utilizing the Appointments module, you can capture even more important student data. This means that when students schedule appointments, it becomes part of their record in Element451. By leveraging data from appointment scheduling and other student interactions, you can gain insights and engagement scores to track their progress. This holistic view of the student's activities helps you understand their overall experience and provide better support.
Appointment Settings
As an admin, can I configure Appointment settings for everyone on my team?
As an admin, can I configure Appointment settings for everyone on my team?
Admins can configure categories and appointment types, as well as edit or delete any user's existing availability. However, users must add their own availability.
For more information on getting started with appointments for admins, click here.
If you are a non-admin user, click here to get started.
Can I set up a round-robin or group meeting type?
Can I set up a round-robin or group meeting type?
Not at this time. The Appointments module is designed to help you manage your one-on-one appointments. However, the feature will continue to evolve, so stay tuned!
Can you collect fees/payments via Appointments?
Can you collect fees/payments via Appointments?
Not at this time. Payment integration is not available for appointments.
Can we hide specific appointment types from the Appointment site?
Can we hide specific appointment types from the Appointment site?
Yes, you can configure appointment types to be private. To do so, create a new appointment type specifically for faculty interviews and mark it as private. After creating the appointment type, add your availability for these interviews. Finally, share your availability link with the individuals who need to schedule appointments. This ensures that the faculty interview appointments remain hidden from the public appointment site.
Can I restrict appointments to specific days and times?
Can I restrict appointments to specific days and times?
Yes, for each of your availabilities, you can configure the weekly hours settings to determine your specific availability for each day and time.
Can I embed the appointment booking form on our website?
Can I embed the appointment booking form on our website?
No, at this time, the Appointments Site acts as its own entity. To ensure branding, we recommend setting up your external domain so that your appointments site URL will read something like appointments.fire.edu.
Can I set overlapping availability for different appointment types?
Can I set overlapping availability for different appointment types?
For example, can I be available for Advising Meetings M-F from 9-5 and also for Career Counseling M-F from 9-5?
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Yes, you can have different availabilities with overlapping times. This allows you to be available for different types of appointments during the same time slots. However, keep in mind that once an appointment is booked for one availability, that time slot will no longer be available for any other availabilities at that same time. Using your example above, if a student books a 9:00 advising appointment, you will no longer be available at 9:00 for career counseling.
Can Zoom links be generated for Appointments?
Can Zoom links be generated for Appointments?
Currently, there is no integration between Zoom and our Appointments module. We recommend creating a standard Zoom meeting link, such as your personal meeting link, and placing that URL in either the availability location or description fields.
Whatâs the difference between Appointment Categories and Types?
Whatâs the difference between Appointment Categories and Types?
Both help organize and filter appointments, but they serve different purposes:
Types are the foundation for scheduling by configuring key appointment details, including privacy settings, location, milestone creation, and the registration form students complete when booking. Each Type is assigned a Category and is used as the base when individuals add their own availability.
Categories act as top-level labels, often aligning with departments or broad use cases. They help students quickly filter and find relevant appointments.
Appointment Booking Process + Availability
Does an Appointment booking create a prospect milestone?
Does an Appointment booking create a prospect milestone?
By default, scheduling an appointment will generate a prospect milestone if the person doesnât already have a record in Element451. However, you can control this behavior with the âCreate Date of Inquiry Milestoneâ setting in Appointment Types, allowing flexibility based on your needs.
Can a non-student or community member book an appointment?
Can a non-student or community member book an appointment?
Anyone can schedule an appointment. However, for this use case, we recommend disabling the âCreate Date of Inquiry Milestoneâ setting in the relevant Appointment Type. This will prevent new records from being created for anyone who does not have an existing contact record (and you don't wish for them to have one).
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Can I share a URL that takes the invitee to schedule a specific meeting?
Can I share a URL that takes the invitee to schedule a specific meeting?
Yes, you can. Your custom URL includes a unique slug for each appointment type. When viewing the appointment type, copy the URL from your browser.
Can the invitee cancel or reschedule their appointment?
Can the invitee cancel or reschedule their appointment?
Using the links in their confirmation email/SMS, they can update their information (name, email, phone) or cancel. To reschedule, they will need to cancel and book another appointment. When canceling, they will be prompted with the option to "book again."
Are appointments automatically added to my calendar?
Are appointments automatically added to my calendar?
If you link your external calendar, the connection is read-only. This means Element451 can only check to see if you're free or busy. Your notification e-mail will contain a .ics attachment. Open that attachment to add the meeting to your calendar.
What happens if my availability changes before someone submits their form?
What happens if my availability changes before someone submits their form?
The system performs a final check on your calendar availability when the âSchedule Appointmentâ button is clicked to prevent any unexpected double bookings.
Why does a time slot show as available in Element451 when itâs already booked?
Why does a time slot show as available in Element451 when itâs already booked?
If a time slot appears open in Element451 but is actually booked, check the following:
Confirm your calendar connection: Element451 syncs with your linked calendar (Google or Outlook) to display available times. Ensure your calendar is properly connected.
Google Calendar: Set it to public with âSee only free/busy (hide details)â selected. Copy the âPublic Address in iCal Formatâ URL and paste it into Appointment Settings > My Settings > Import Calendar.
Outlook Calendar: Set permissions to âCan view when Iâm busy,â copy the ICS URL, and paste it into Appointment Settings > My Settings > Import Calendar.
How does Element451 Appointments determine my availability?
How does Element451 Appointments determine my availability?
When displaying available time slots, Element451 Appointments checks three key factors:
Configured Availability in Element451: We first verify whether the selected time slot is one that can be booked based on your configured availability. Buffer times and other settings may also impact this.
Existing Element451 Appointments: If you already have an appointment scheduled in Element451 during that time, it wonât be available for booking.
Linked Calendar Status (if applicable): If your calendar is connected, we check whether youâre marked as âbusy.â This could be due to another meeting, an out-of-office block, or another event. While Element451 does not have a two-way sync with external calendars, step 2 ensures that your Element451 appointments are considered first, and then we check your external calendar for conflicts.
Itâs important to note that the system performs a final availability check when the âSchedule Appointmentâ button is clicked. This prevents any unexpected double bookings that might occur if another appointment is scheduled in the time between searching for availability and completing the scheduling process.
Appointment Notifications
Will I receive a notification notifying me of scheduled appointments?
Will I receive a notification notifying me of scheduled appointments?
Yes, you and the invitee will receive an email when an appointment is scheduled, updated, or canceled. You can explore more on appointment notifications here.
What automatic notifications and reminders are sent to the invitee?
What automatic notifications and reminders are sent to the invitee?
The invitee is sent a confirmation email immediately after scheduling, updating, or canceling (and you will receive a similar email). The invitee is also sent a reminder email 1 hour before the appointment is scheduled to begin. You can explore more on appointment notifications here.
Can I customize the automatic notifications?
Can I customize the automatic notifications?
At this time, you are unable to customize notifications. However, you can use tokens to reference upcoming appointments in Campaign communications. You can explore more about this here.
Why is the Element451 logo being used on confirmation and reminder emails?
Why is the Element451 logo being used on confirmation and reminder emails?
To send these automated messages, a full-color logo is required. If you see the Element451 logo, it means a full-color logo hasnât been set. Weâve used our system fallback to ensure your message(s) were delivered. To fix this, go to General Settings > Branding and upload your full-color logo.
Can I add additional notifications, like a 24-hour text reminder?
Can I add additional notifications, like a 24-hour text reminder?
Yes! You can use an ongoing Campaign and Workflow to send additional reminders or notifications based on your institution's needs. Click here for more information.
Appointment Analytics
How are multiple appointments for the same person counted in Insights? If an appointment is canceled and rescheduled, how will that be counted?
How are multiple appointments for the same person counted in Insights? If an appointment is canceled and rescheduled, how will that be counted?
In Insights, each appointment is represented by one row. For instance, if one appointment is scheduled and canceled and then a new appointment is scheduled and attended, you will have two total appointments recordedâone canceled and one attended. This distinction is crucial for users analyzing appointment data.
The Appointments Module is included with the Element Engage package.