ApproveThis manages your Fantastical Integration approvals.

Why Your Calendar Should Care About Approvals

Let's be real - nobody gets excited about approval workflows. But when your calendar starts talking to your approval system? That's when magic happens. Fantastical (the calendar app that doesn't make you want to throw your phone) and ApproveThis (the approval system that actually gets used) team up through Zapier to turn scheduling headaches into automated handshakes. We're talking about cutting the "Who approved this?" Slack threads by 80% and finally making sense of that RSVP chaos.

The Nuts and Bolts of the Integration

Here's the deal: Fantastical handles the "when," ApproveThis handles the "who said yes," and Zapier makes sure they actually talk to each other. No API degree required. The integration works two ways:

• When stuff happens in Fantastical (new appointment requests, RSVP changes), ApproveThis automatically kicks off approval workflows
• When approvals get decided in ApproveThis, Fantastical updates events/RSVPs without human intervention

The secret sauce? Approvers don't need Fantastical licenses. They just click "Approve" in their email. Your external clients/vendors will never know you're using fancy tech - they'll just think you're really organized.

Real-World Use Cases That Don't Suck

1. The "Stop Double-Booking Me" Solution

Consulting firms and agencies love this one. When Fantastical gets a new client meeting request via Fantastical's Openings feature, ApproveThis:

• Checks if the project lead is available
• Verifies the client's budget is approved
• Conflicts with the team's PTO calendar

Example: A digital agency auto-rejects any design review meetings before 10 AM (because creatives need their coffee) using ApproveThis' time-based approval thresholds.

2. The RSVP Triage System

Event planners and executive assistants breathe easier with this combo. When someone RSVPs "maybe" to your CEO's VIP dinner in Fantastical, ApproveThis:

- Flags it for human review if the attendee is a key account
- Auto-approves standard VIP list members
- Pings the comms team to update seating charts

Bonus: Uses ApproveThis' vacation delegation to handle approvals when the event manager is OOO.

3. The Proposal Power Play

Sales teams using Fantastical's proposal features get this: When a proposal gets approved in ApproveThis, it automatically...

- Blocks calendar holds for implementation
- Triggers contract generation
- Reserves conference rooms for kickoff meetings

All without the sales rep having to leave their CRM. Real talk: One manufacturing company cut their deal-closing time from 14 days to 3 using this exact setup.

Setup That Doesn't Require an IT Guy

1. Connect Fantastical to Zapier (takes 2 minutes)
2. Pick your trigger (new appointment, RSVP change, etc.)
3. Map the important details to ApproveThis' request form

Pro tip: Use ApproveThis' calculated fields to auto-flag high-priority meetings based on attendee count or proposal values.

Who Actually Benefits From This?

HR Teams

Auto-approve interview schedules only if:
- The hiring manager is available
- The candidate passed screening
- Conference room is booked

Legal Departments

Contract review meetings only get scheduled after:
- NDA is signed
- DocuSign envelope is ready
- Secondary counsel is looped in

Field Service Managers

Technician dispatches get auto-approved when:
- Client location is within radius
- Parts are confirmed in stock
- Weather conditions permit

The Unfair Advantages

While other teams are stuck in approval purgatory, you'll be leveraging:

Email-Based Approvals: Clients approve $50k contracts from their phone during their kid's soccer game.
Approval Thresholds: Auto-approve all meetings under 60 mins with internal teams.
Real-Time Tracking: Know exactly which exec is holding up that Q2 planning offsite.

Common Objections (And Why They're Wrong)

"We already have calendar approvals in Outlook!"
Cool. Does it automatically reject conflicts with your procurement process? No? Thought so.

"Our process is too complex."
ApproveThis handles 11-step approvals with conditional branching. Your move, complexity.

How Not to Screw This Up

- Don't try to automate 100% of approvals day one - start with your biggest pain point
- Do use approval groups for cross-functional meetings
- Don't forget to set up vacation delegates (unless you like being CC'd on PTO replies)

The Bottom Line

If you're still manually forwarding calendar invites for approvals, you're basically using your inbox as a database. The Fantastical + ApproveThis integration through Zapier turns your calendar into an actual business logic machine. It's not about being fancy - it's about not wasting 3 hours every Monday chasing down signatures for meetings that should've happened last week.

Ready to stop being the approval bottleneck? Get ApproveThis set up in 15 minutes or book a demo to see how it plays with Fantastical. Your future self (and your annoyed coworkers) will thank you.