Why Every Website Needs an Embeddable Calendar embeddable calendar

Are you looking to experience the transformation an embeddable calendar can bring your business? Have you considered embedding a calendar on your website? Do you even know what an embeddable website calendar widget is or why you might need one?

In today’s fast-paced digital world, tools that streamline operations and enhance user experience are critical for success. 

The embeddable calendar is a game-changer for businesses across various sectors and has the potential to increase your revenue by 45%. 

Whether you manage events, run a service-oriented business, or want to boost user engagement, incorporating an embedded calendar into your website can transform your online presence.

What Is An Embeddable Calendar?

Great question; we’re so glad you asked! An embeddable calendar, often known as a calendar widget, is a dynamic website component that can be integrated into your website. With just a few clicks, visitors can view your events calendar and upcoming events and add events to their calendar app. 

Unlike static images or links, an interactive embeddable website calendar allows users to scroll through months, click on event details, and interact directly by registering or RSVPing to events all from your website’s event calendar widget.

To show you an example of a calendar widget, take a peek at our 2024 Marketing Calendar, which is embedded below! It is fully dynamic and will be updated as we make changes to the calendar! Better yet – if your customers hit the “subscribe” button, they will have it updated in their calendar app of choice, such as the Google Calendar App, the Apple Calendar App, or the Outlook Calendar App.

The Types of Embeddable Calendars

The spectrum of embeddable calendars ranges from simple, free versions offering basic features to advanced systems with extensive customization options that blend seamlessly with your site’s design.

There are both static and dynamic embeddable calendar widgets.

• Static calendar widgets display a fixed period, such as monthly events, without interaction or update.
  • Often, these are uploaded as images to your website or landing page and need to be re-uploaded monthly.
• Dynamic calendars, however, allow for interactive features such as reflecting new events or viewing different months.
  • Dynamic calendar widgets will update the website calendar with any changes that are made in the calendar app or calendar settings. Dynamic calendars are helpful if your event calendar changes frequently or you want to ensure you don’t forget to update the website calendar.

When choosing an embeddable calendar widget, you should opt for one that is dynamic so you don’t have to refresh your website manually!  

Be sure to consider if you want your calendar widget to visually look like a calendar, like above. Or if you’d prefer to have it as a list of upcoming events, like below.

Benefits Of Embeddable Calendars

Leveraging an embeddable calendar, also known as a calendar widget, comes with a myriad of benefits that will streamline your processes and operations. Some are more evident than others. In this section, we will review some of the core areas your business will benefit from when using an embedded calendar on your website. 

Enhancing User Experience (UX)

Calendar widgets allow site visitors to view your upcoming events calendar easily and save them to their calendar app without cumbersome .ics files, significantly improving user satisfaction.

• Benefits:
  • Streamlines the attendance process
  • Reduces event attritions
  • Keeps your business top of mind – being on someone’s calendar is one of the most intimate forms of marketing

Given the increasing use of mobile devices to access the web, ensuring your website calendar is mobile-responsive is non-negotiable. This ensures that users on any device easily access your calendar’s features, making your site more inclusive and user-friendly.

Operational Efficiency for Website Owners

Website calendars can automatically sync with your existing calendar apps, such as Google Calendar, to display the most current information on your site. This automation improves operational efficiency and ensures site visitors see the latest schedule without the need for manual updates. 

Using a website calendar does all the heavy lifting and shows customers your upcoming Q&A sessions, webinars, and any other relevant upcoming events when you are available. When someone views your calendar widget, they can save your event to their calendar with a few clicks, and, boom, it’s immediately on your customer’s calendar. 

Data Collection and Analytics

Calendar widgets on your website can be a helpful analytics tool. Website calendars can increase customer interaction and event engagement allow you to establish the best date/time practices for your customers. Pulling analytics from your embeddable calendar will help you further optimize your events strategy and operations.

Calendar widgets also allow you to see what type of events are RSVP’d to the most frequently, allowing you to see what customers are craving. 

Integration 

The best embeddable website calendars offer easy Zapier integration with your CRM systems like HubSpot or Salesforce or email marketing software such as ActiveCampaign or Constant Contact. This connectivity enhances efficiency, enabling you to sync data across your business systems. Linking your embeddable calendar to your CRM can improve the efficiency of your workforce and keep your records up to date. 

An example of using integrations in action would be when a new customer registers for your upcoming event. Instead of needing your sales team to create a new lead in your CRM manually, Zapier will automate this process for you. From here, you can follow up with this customer and effortlessly track the sales process with data sourced from the embedded calendar on your website. 

Customization

Modern embeddable calendars offer a range of customization options, allowing you to align the calendar’s look and feel with your brand. These adjustments, from editing the calendar’s color scheme to adding your logo, ensure a consistent user experience across your site. 

Customization options to look for include:

• Logo
• Colors 
• Typography 
• Size 
• Format
• Imagery
• Date picker
• View selector (such as monthly view, weekly view, or agenda view)
• Sharing Options
• Event Search

You should also be on the lookout for embeddable calendars that allow you to customize your event reminders and confirmation emails. This level of personalization will help the customer resonate with your brand. 

SEO Benefits

Interactive elements like an embedded calendar can significantly reduce your site’s bounce rate. By engaging users with your schedule of events or available appointments, you encourage them to spend more time on your site, positively impacting your SEO rankings.

Security and Reliability

Using an embeddable calendar helps protect your customers’ data and ensures that customers have a source of truth on what events you are actually hosting and attending. 

Security must be a top priority when implementing any tool that collects user data. To protect your users and reputation, opt for embeddable calendars that offer secure data handling and comply with privacy regulations.

Choosing a reliable calendar service ensures the security of your customers, maintains trust with your visitors, and prevents potential business loss and lawsuits due to data misuse.

Getting Started with Calendar Widgets

When selecting a calendar widget (again, also known as an embeddable calendar), consider your specific needs, such as the ability to manage multiple calendars, share events, or create several types of events. Look for features that align with your goals, whether enhancing user experience, streamlining operations, or boosting engagement.

Adding a calendar to your website typically involves copying an existing snippet of code and pasting it into the desired location. Most website builder platforms offer easy-to-follow instructions or plugins to simplify this process, requiring minimal coding knowledge.

Review your setup regularly to keep your calendar an asset rather than a liability. Ensure events are current, links work correctly, and the calendar remains visually appealing and aligned with your site’s design.

The Best Embeddable Calendars for Your Website

Embeddable calendars have become a staple feature for websites. They offer an array of functionalities tailored to various needs, from simple event tracking to complex scheduling and booking systems. 

Here are a few notable embeddable calendars, each distinguished by their unique features and user benefits:

1. AddEvent

Overview: AddEvent is a calendar service that focuses on simplicity and functionality. It offers tools for adding events to personal and public calendars and is recognized for its straightforward event marketing and management with a sharing approach.

AddEvent’s Key Features:

• Add to Calendar Buttons: These buttons make it easy for website visitors to add events to their calendars with a single click.
• RSVP Functionality: Collecting RSVPs through the calendar facilitates event planning and management.
• Subscription Calendars: Allow your customers or clients to subscribe to your calendar of events to get updated and new events on their calendars instead of having to check back to your website for each event.
• Time Zone Support: This feature automatically adjusts event times for the viewer’s local time zone, eliminating confusion for global events.

Ideal For: Marketers, event professionals, coaches, and businesses that organize events with participants from various time zones and need a reliable way to allow users to save events.

2. Google Calendar

Overview: Google Calendar is a widely used online calendar that easily integrates with websites to display public calendar events. It’s favored for its simplicity, reliability, and seamless synchronization across devices.

Key Features:

• Ease of Use: Familiar interface for millions of users worldwide.
• Integration: Easily embeds into web pages with customizable views (month, week, agenda).
• Sharing: Sharing calendars or specific events is simple, making it ideal for team collaborations and public event schedules.

Ideal For: Small businesses, educational institutions, bloggers, and event professionals looking for a straightforward, no-cost solution to share calendar events with website visitors.

3. Elfsight Calendar

Overview: Elfsight provides a customizable and feature-rich embedded calendar for websites. It’s designed for those needing more visual customization and advanced functionality than essential calendars.

Key Features:

• Customizable Design: Extensive options to match the calendar’s look and feel with your website’s branding.
• Event Pop-ups: Interactive event details that can include images, links, and more.
• Responsiveness: Mobile-friendly design that ensures the calendar looks great on any device.

Ideal For: Website owners seeking a visually appealing calendar that can be adjusted to fit the brand aesthetics and require more interactive elements for their visitors.

4. Teamup Calendar

Overview: Teamup Calendar is designed for groups and organizations that need to manage shared resources or events. Its strength lies in its collaborative features and the ability to manage multiple calendars.

Key Features:

• Multiple Calendars: Create and manage several calendars from a single dashboard.
• Access Control: This feature offers detailed control over who can view, add, or edit events, with different access levels for team members.
• Customizable Views: Provides various views, including daily, weekly, monthly, and agenda views, catering to different planning needs.

Ideal For: Businesses, non-profits, and educational organizations that require sophisticated scheduling and resource management capabilities.

5. Tockify

Overview: Tockify is a modern calendar option that blends functionality with design. It’s particularly noted for its aesthetic appeal and the ease with which it can be embedded into websites.

Key Features:

• Customizable Appearance: Highly customizable design options to ensure the calendar fits well with the website’s design.
• Public Submission Feature: This allows visitors to submit events, which, after review, can be added to the calendar.
• Dynamic Updates: Real-time updates ensure the calendar displays the most current information.

Ideal For: Event venues, community centers, and businesses that frequently host or promote events want a functional and image-based calendar.

Each of these embeddable calendars offers unique features catering to different needs, from essential event sharing to comprehensive event management and scheduling. 

Whether you’re a small business owner, an event planner, or part of a large organization, there’s an embeddable calendar solution that can enhance your website’s functionality and user engagement.

Final Thoughts

Ready to elevate your event management game? Discover the ease and efficiency of AddEvent. 

With the straightforward setup, you can instantly enhance your website’s functionality, offering visitors the convenience of adding your events to their personal calendars with just one click. 

From seamless time zone adjustments to collecting RSVPs directly through your site, AddEvent streamlines your event planning process like never before. 

Don’t miss out on this opportunity to connect with your audience and simplify your event management. Try AddEvent today and watch your engagement soar!

About the Author

Julian Lankstead is the founder of ClickPioneer & JulianLankstead.com. He helps businesses optimize business processes and systems. 

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FAQs

What is an embeddable calendar?

An embeddable calendar, often known as a calendar widget, is a dynamic website component that can be integrated into your website. With just a few clicks, visitors can view your events calendar and upcoming events and add events to their calendar app. 

Can I integrate a Google Calendar with an embedded calendar for my website?

Yes, AddEvent offers seamless integration with Google Calendar. This allows you to sync your Google Calendar events directly to your AddEvent calendar and onto your website, ensuring website visitors always have access to the latest calendar events and updates. It’s a straightforward way to manage and display events without duplicating efforts.

How can I customize my embedded event calendar widget to match my website's design?

Customizing your embedded event calendar widget is simple, with platforms offering a custom calendar option. These platforms typically provide settings to adjust colors, fonts, and layout to match your site’s design seamlessly. Some even offer CSS customization for more advanced design alignment, allowing you to maintain brand consistency across every page.

What are the benefits of using a free version vs. a premium version of an embeddable calendar?

The free version of an embeddable calendar typically offers basic features such as displaying events, creating a simple agenda, and providing read-only access to website visitors. Premium versions, however, unlock advanced features like the ability to collect RSVPs, attach files, customize the calendar’s appearance more extensively, and integrate with other calendars or apps. The choice between the two depends on your specific needs and budget.

How can I enable website visitors to add events to their calendars?

Many embeddable calendars include an Add to Calendar feature, allowing website visitors to save events directly to their calendars with just a click. This feature usually supports various personal calendars, including Google Calendars and other popular calendar apps, by generating an ICS file that users can download and import into their own calendar, ensuring easy access and reminders for the events they’re interested in.