Send emails based on Google Calendar

Using Google Calendar to send emails can be very helpful for reminders, invitations, or follow-ups based on scheduled events. Here’s how you can send emails based on Google Calendar events through different methods:

1. Using Google Calendar’s Built-in Email Notifications

Google Calendar allows you to send email notifications for events, but this is usually limited to event reminders or invitations.

• When creating or editing an event, under Notifications, you can add an email notification for a specific time before the event.

• Guests added to the event automatically get invitation emails.

• Google Calendar sends confirmation and reminder emails to guests by default.

2. Using Google Apps Script to Send Custom Emails Based on Google Calendar Events

If you want to automate sending custom emails based on calendar events, you can use Google Apps Script with Google Calendar API and Gmail API.

Here is a basic example of how to send an email reminder before an event starts:

javascript
CopyEdit
function sendEmailReminders() {
  var calendar = CalendarApp.getDefaultCalendar();
  var now = new Date();
  var later = new Date(now.getTime() + 15 * 60 * 1000); // 15 minutes from now
  var events = calendar.getEvents(now, later);

  events.forEach(function(event) {
    var guests = event.getGuestList();
    guests.forEach(function(guest) {
      if (guest.getEmail()) {
        MailApp.sendEmail({
          to: guest.getEmail(),
          subject: 'Reminder: Upcoming Event "' + event.getTitle() + '"',
          body: 'Hi, just a reminder that the event "' + event.getTitle() + '" is starting at ' + event.getStartTime() + '.'
        });
      }
    });
  });
}

• You can set this function to run as a time-driven trigger every few minutes or hours.

• This script scans for events starting in the next 15 minutes and emails guests with a reminder.

3. Using Third-party Tools & Integrations

• Zapier / Make (formerly Integromat): Connect Google Calendar to Gmail or other email services to automate sending custom emails when events are created, updated, or about to start.

• IFTTT: Similar automation for sending emails based on Google Calendar triggers.

• These tools provide no-code automation for business workflows.

4. Sending Event Summaries via Email

You can also generate daily or weekly event summaries and email them automatically with Apps Script by retrieving events in a timeframe and sending a compiled list.

If you want a ready-to-use solution or detailed script tailored to your specific needs (like sending emails before events, after events, or custom messaging), I can help create that as well. Just let me know!