How clients book meetings

Esqase gives every firm a public booking page where prospective and existing clients can pick a date and time to meet with you, much like Calendly. When someone books, Esqase automatically creates a new contact, a new lead, and a tentative meeting on your calendar, so a request for a consultation turns into a tracked piece of work without any manual data entry.

This page is written from your (the firm's) point of view. It explains what your clients see and do on the booking page, and how the choices you make when you set up an event type shape that experience.

Before you begin

The booking page is generated from an event type (a bookable meeting type such as "Initial consult"). Before clients can book, make sure you have:

• At least one active event type with a host, a duration, and a booking link. See Event types (scheduling).
• A host with a working schedule. Available times come from the host's weekly availability, or, if the host has none, from your firm's availability. See Setting firm availability.
• A connected Google account on the host (recommended). For Google Meet event types, Esqase needs the host's Google connection to generate a meeting link and to read the host's busy times. See Connecting Google (Gmail, Calendar, Meet).

What clients see on your booking page

Each event type has its own public booking page. You share it by copying the booking link.

1. In the sidebar, click Event types.
2. Find the event type you want to share and click Copy link in its row. (You can also open the More actions menu, the ... button, for archive and other options.)
3. Esqase copies the full booking URL to your clipboard. The link looks like your-booking-domain/your-firm/your-meeting, where the last part is the event type's Booking link slug. Paste it into an email, your website, or a text message.

When a client opens the link, they see a clean, single-purpose page with no sign-in required:

• Your firm name at the top, then the event type name (for example, "Initial consult") and its description.
• A short summary line showing the host, the duration (for example, "30 min"), and the location (for example, "Google Meet" or "Phone call").
• A monthly calendar for picking a date, with unavailable days greyed out.
• A time zone indicator below the calendar.

How you control what appears

Everything on the booking page comes from the event type's settings:

• Name and Description become the page heading and subheading.
• Host is the member the meeting is with. Their name appears in the summary line.
• Duration sets the meeting length and the summary "min" value.
• Location sets the location label. Options include In person, Phone call, Google Meet, Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Ask customer (the client chooses from options you provide), and Custom (your own label). For Custom, you can also choose Show on booking page or Only after booking confirmation, which controls whether the location appears while the client is choosing a time or only after they finish booking.

To edit any of these, open Event types, click Edit on the row, change the fields, and save. The booking page updates immediately.

Booking a meeting

Booking is a two-step flow: the client picks a time, then fills in their contact details.

1. The client opens your booking link.
2. On the calendar, the client clicks an available date. Days with no open times are disabled and cannot be selected.
3. A list of time slots for that day appears beside the calendar. Each slot is a button showing the start time (for example, "9:00 AM").
4. The client clicks a slot. The slot expands to reveal a Next button next to it.
5. The client clicks Next to move to the contact form.

If the client picks a day with no open times, the page shows "No times are available on this day." They can pick a different day or use the month arrows to look ahead.

Providing details and an optional note

After clicking Next, the client sees a short contact form. The selected date and time stay visible at the top of the page so the client always knows what they are booking.

1. The client fills in their name. First name and Last name are required. Prefix (for example, "Mr."), Middle name, and Suffix (for example, "Jr.") are optional.
2. The client provides at least one way to reach them: Email, Phone, or both. If they leave both blank, the form asks for "an email or phone number." This contact detail is how the firm and the confirmation reach them.
3. In the Anything to share? box, the client can add an optional note (for example, the nature of their legal matter). The helper text reads "Please share anything that will help prepare for our meeting." This note is saved with the lead so you have context before the meeting.
4. The client clicks Schedule event. While it submits, the button shows "Scheduling...".

A line of fine print under the button notes that, by proceeding, the client agrees to Esqase's Invitee Terms and Privacy Notice.

What stops a booking at the last second

To prevent double-bookings, Esqase re-checks availability the instant the client clicks Schedule event. If the chosen slot was taken by someone else (or filled by another calendar event) in the moments since they picked it, the booking is rejected with a message like "That time was just taken." The client simply chooses another open slot and tries again. This is normal and means the calendar stayed accurate.

Choosing or locking the booking time zone

Times on the booking page are always shown in a specific time zone, and the booking page makes the active time zone clear so there is never confusion about, say, whether "2:00 PM" is the client's time or yours.

You decide how the time zone behaves with the event type's Time zone display setting:

• Automatically detect and show the times in my invitee's time zone (the default). The booking page detects the client's own time zone and shows all slots in it. The client can also open the time-zone control under the calendar and pick a different zone if they are traveling or booking on someone else's behalf.
• Lock the time zone (best for in-person events). The page pins every time to the host's (or firm's) time zone, and the client cannot change it. Use this for in-person meetings, where "3:00 PM" only makes sense in the office's local time.

On the booking page itself, the client sees a small globe and the current zone below the calendar. When the zone is not locked, that control is a searchable dropdown labeled by zone name; the client can type to filter and select a different zone.

How available slots are computed

You do not pick the open times by hand. Esqase calculates them from your settings each time the page loads, so the booking page always reflects reality. In plain terms, a slot is offered only when all of these are true:

• It falls inside a working window. Esqase uses the host's weekly schedule. If the host has not set one, it falls back to the firm's weekly schedule. A specific date can override the weekly pattern (for example, a one-off closure or extended hours).
• The full meeting plus buffers fits. Esqase reserves the meeting length and any Before event and After event buffer time you configured on the event type, so back-to-back meetings keep breathing room.
• The slot is in the future. Past times and times earlier today are never offered.
• It does not overlap the host's busy time. Esqase reads the host's existing meetings and calendar events (including their connected Google calendar) and hides any slot that would collide, buffers included.
• The meeting limit is not reached. If you set a cap such as "3 meetings per Day," days that already hit the cap show no slots. Limits can be per Day, Week, or Month.

Whole days that end up with zero open slots appear greyed out on the calendar, so clients only ever click into days that can actually be booked.

To adjust the inputs:

• Change working hours in Setting firm availability (firm-wide) or on the host member's own schedule.
• Change Buffer times and Meeting limits on the event type. See Event types (scheduling).

What happens after booking

When the client clicks Schedule event and the slot is still open, Esqase confirms the booking and shows a confirmation page.

The confirmation page

The client lands on a "You are scheduled" page with a check icon and the message "A confirmation has been sent to the contact you provided." It lists:

• Your firm name and the event type name.
• The host, the date, the start and end time, and the time zone.
• The location, and, when applicable, a meeting link (for example, the Google Meet URL).
• A reference identifier for the meeting.

Two buttons appear:

• View or manage this meeting, which opens the stable per-event page (described below).
• Schedule another meeting, which returns to the booking page.

What your firm receives

Behind the scenes, a single booking populates several places in your dashboard automatically:

• A new contact is created from the name and email or phone the client entered. See Working with contacts.
• A new lead is created and assigned the next lead number. If the client wrote a note, it is saved with the lead. A Booking source (plus a source named after the event type) is attached so you can see where the lead came from. See Managing leads and Lead sources.
• A tentative event is added to your calendar with the host and the client as guests. See Calendar and events.
• A workflow is attached, if you assigned one. If the event type has an assigned workflow, its steps are copied onto the new lead as to-do items for your team to work through. The steps are attached but not run automatically. See Workflows and the builder.

Auto-confirmed vs pending bookings

Whether a booking is instantly confirmed or waits for your approval depends on the event type's Auto-confirm bookings toggle.

• Auto-confirm bookings on. The meeting is confirmed the moment the client books. The host is marked as attending, and the meeting is live on the calendar right away.
• Auto-confirm bookings off (the default). The booking is recorded as tentative and waits for a member to approve it from the dashboard. The client still gets a confirmation page and can manage the meeting, but the host's attendance is pending until someone on your team accepts the request. The helper text on the setting reads "When off, new bookings are tentative until you approve them."

To change this, open Event types, click Edit on the row, toggle Auto-confirm bookings, and save.

Approving and managing tentative bookings happens on your side, on the firm calendar. See Calendar and events.

Viewing and managing a meeting (the per-event page)

Every booked meeting has a stable, durable page the client can return to at any time. It is where they confirm attendance and request changes. The client reaches it from the View or manage this meeting button on the confirmation page, or from a link in their confirmation email.

Because this page can expose meeting details, it is protected by a sign-in step (covered in the next section). Once signed in, the client sees:

• The firm name, meeting title, date, time, time zone, location, and, when present, a meeting link with a Join meeting button.
• An About this event section, if the meeting has a description.
• A Participants list, showing each guest, who the Host is, and each person's RSVP status (Going, Not going, Maybe, or No response).
• Controls to RSVP and to request a different time.

RSVP yes or no

Under the participant list, the client sees "Are you coming to the meet?" with three buttons:

1. The client clicks Going, Not going, or Maybe.
2. The choice saves immediately and updates the client's badge in the participant list.

The client can change their RSVP as many times as they like before the meeting. Their response is visible to your team on the firm calendar.

Proposing a new time (rescheduling) and the negotiation

If the meeting time no longer works, the client can ask for a different one without canceling. Esqase handles this as a back-and-forth negotiation, so both sides agree before anything moves.

To propose a new time:

1. On the per-event page, the client clicks Request time change (the wording is Request schedule change for an unconfirmed invite).
2. The familiar date-and-time picker appears, showing the host's currently open slots. The client picks a date, then a slot, then clicks Next.
3. The client can add an optional note for the firm, then clicks Request this time (or Propose this schedule).
4. The page returns to the overview and shows the proposed time as Pending, with the message "Waiting for the firm to confirm your requested time."

While a client proposal is pending, the client can:

• Choose a different time, which replaces the pending proposal with a new one.
• Cancel request (or Cancel proposal), which withdraws their proposed time and leaves the meeting as it was.

The negotiation can also go the other way. When your team proposes a new time from the dashboard, the client sees it on this page as "The firm proposed [date] at [time]," and can:

• Accept, which confirms the new time and updates the meeting.
• Reject (or Propose new schedule), which declines the firm's proposal so the client can request a different time instead.

A Proposed dates & times history lists each offer, who made it (Firm proposed or You proposed), the time, any note, and its status (Pending, Accepted, Declined, or Withdrawn), so both sides can follow the conversation.

Signing in to a meeting via a passwordless email link

The per-event page is gated so that only people on the meeting can open it. There are no passwords; clients sign in with a one-time link sent to their email.

1. When a client opens the per-event link without being signed in, they see a sign-in screen that asks them to "Enter the email the firm has on file and we will send you a secure sign-in link to view this meeting."
2. The client types their email and clicks Email me a sign-in link.
3. The page confirms with "Check your email," noting that if that address is on the meeting, a secure sign-in link was sent. (The client can click Use a different email if they entered the wrong one.)
4. The client opens the email and clicks the link on the same device. Esqase verifies it ("Signing you in"), then shows the meeting.

Common questions

Do clients need an Esqase account to book or manage a meeting? No. Booking requires nothing but the public link, and managing a meeting only requires access to the email the firm has on file. Clients never create a password.

Can a client cancel a meeting from this page? The per-event page is for confirming attendance (RSVP) and proposing a different time. To cancel outright, the client should RSVP Not going or contact your firm. Removing or canceling the event itself is done by your team from the firm calendar.

The booking link shows "We could not find that booking page." Why? The event type is archived or paused, or the link is mistyped. Restore the event type, or copy a fresh link from Event types and resend it.

A client says no times are available. What should I check? Confirm the host has a weekly schedule (or that your firm availability is set), that the event type's buffers and meeting limits are not too tight, and that the host's connected calendar is not blocking the whole window as busy.

Related

• Event types (scheduling)
• Calendar and events
• Setting firm availability
• Managing leads
• Connecting Google (Gmail, Calendar, Meet)
• How clients fill intake forms