Why send a calendar invite?

Call to Action emails don't get on calendars

May 25, 2025

The Calendar Invite Debate

The calendar invite debate centers on the lack of infrastructure for sending calendar invites with brand integrity, security, workflows, list management, testing, and tracking.

There is no commercial software for the digital marketer.

Sending Calendar Invite Questions

•How would I test the calendar invite before sending it?

•How would I upload an email list to send a calendar invite?

•How would I use my domain for RSVP branding?

•How could I repeat the process by using templates?

•How could I gather Yes, No and Maybe’s receipts and compare the data with other calendar invite campaigns?

•How would I Update the Calendar Invite to notify customers of event changes and last-minute promotion offers?

So, let’s say for this post, we have figured out how to do this with the AWS Calendar Invite Server we built. But we won’t get into specifics here.

See our YouTube channel - https://www.youtube.com/@calendarinvite/videos

Getting past No

The two Calendar Invite workflows.

Send the calendar invite with the details inside the message body, track a calendar receipt for Y, N, and M, and use the calendar client's built-in Update feature.

We recommend embedding Calendar Invites on your website and directly sending calendar invites for marketing and transactional purposes where appropriate.

Web

Embed the Upcoming calendar invite events into a web page for your customer to select and send to an email address of choice to receive the calendar invite.

Track Y, N, M.

Email

Send the calendar invite directly to the customer for the event or the promotion.

Track Y, N, M.

Update

Use the built-in Update feature in the Calendar Invite specification as the organizer to push information.

Getting to Y or M

There is still a chance if your customer has not said No.

If the Calendar Invite you sent is now a Y or an M on the customer's Calendar Client, you can Update the calendar invite for event changes and add last-minute offers and reminders to enhance the outsome. In a transactional use case it likely is for a service that was purchased and a reminder is sent in a calendar invite for the bill due or the appointment time that was set.

Update Once

C. Use the built-in UPDATE feature of the Calendar Invite specification to send data for tickets, merchandise offers, product promotions, and events for that specific calendar invite call to action.

Update Forever

Now that trust has been established with the particular event title; you can use the same Calendar Invite and Update for an extended period based on your relationship with your customer.

D. Use the same workflow to update the calendar invite topic for future events or promotions by changing the date and message components of the calendar invite, simplifying customer communications.

This is particularly useful in certain use cases where the relationship is based on a particular product, web, or in-person event structure.

Millions of RSVP Fails…

1. Substack Events

Call to Action outcome. This request did not involve automation, so why would I manually add it to my calendar?

These do not work.

The Solve. Send the post-registration information to your customer in a direct calendar invite with event specifics in the calendar invite message body. Track Y, N, and M.

If they do not want to come, they will click NO on the calendar client, and the invite will not appear on their calendar. If they say Y or M, then consider them registered. It saves one step.

Contrarian Point of View. If you have paying customers and you have their email addresses, why would you make them register repeatedly for free events? You already have all their data.

2. Retail Email Promotion

Call to Action outcome. I get a promotion email with a time constraint that gets lost in my email inbox.

The Solve. Send the promotion to your customer in a direct calendar invite with QR information in the calendar invite or embed the calendar invite into your product page for self-signup. Track Y, N, M.

3. Event Website Add to Calendar

Call to Action Outcome. Add to Calendar Button in Websites. They do not work correctly.

The Solve. Send the promotion to your subscribed customer list in a direct calendar invite. If they click Y or M, they are automatically signed up. Track Y, N, M. Use the Upcoming Event Pages with embedded Calendar Invite on your website.

4. Concert Series Promotions

Call to Action Outcome. This page clicks through directly to Ticketmaster. There is no option to get a calendar invite to remind me about the event if I am not ready to purchase.

The Solve. Embed the Calendar Invite into the Web Page. Track Y, N, M. Use the Update Feature to communicate promotion options directly to the calendar invite.

5. Sign Up and Add this event to your calendar

Call to Action Outcome: Another registration routed to this webpage to use the Add to Calendar Widget went to the wrong calendar.

The Solve. Embed the Calendar Invite into the web page. Customers can pick up the upcoming event, insert their email address, and click once for a calendar invite. Track Y, N, M.

6. Register and Add it to your calendar

Call to Action Outcome. Another registration was routed to this webpage to use the Add to Calendar Widget, which did not work.

The Solve. Embed the Calendar Invite into the web page, allowing customers to enter their email address and send the calendar invite. Track Y, N, M.

7. Today Only Promotions

Call to Action Outcome. Email for a "Today Only". I missed the promotion.

The Solve. Embed the Calendar Invite into the Upcoming Events splash webpage. Track Y, N, M.

7. Presale Notification of Sneaker Merch and Event Tickets

Call to Action Outcome. I did not manually add the calendar event to my calendar.

The Solve. Embed the Calendar Invite into the web page. Track Y, N, M.

7. Extending Sales with second Email

Call to Action Outcome: I received a notification from a major brand in a "today only" email. I missed the promotion, but then it showed up again with an extended promotion, and I missed it again.

The Solve. Send the Direct Calendar Invite from the Email list and then UPDATE the Calendar Invite for one more day. Track Y, N, M.