Have you ever been stood up for a meeting?
It's really frustrating, especially when you're trying to connect with someone important, like a job interviewer or a key sales lead.
Even if the meeting is on Zoom, a no-show may be less disruptive to your schedule, but it is still discouraging. Have you heard of “switching time?” Researchers found that it takes 25 minutes to shift your focus from one task to another. That is 25 minutes before the meeting to switch from what you were doing previously, and 25 minutes after the non-meeting to move on to the next task that are lost.
Email Invitations that Prevent No-shows
One of the best ways to avoid this situation is to pay more attention to crafting a meeting invitation.
You have probably been guilty of forgetting meetings, missing reminders, and scrambling to find the invitation, only to be too late.
It doesn't have to happen to you. Here's how you can reduce missed meetings—both for you and the people you want to meet.
1. Leverage the subject line.
It is easy to overlook the subject line of calendar invites, but it is what appears in the inbox of invitees and on the calendar itself. Make the calendar subject line work for you by including the details of the meeting.
- Location (phone call, video call, office, or venue name)
- Company name of the inviter
- Company name of the invitee
- Name of the inviter
- Name(s) of the invitees
- Purpose of the meeting
Having all that data upfront will help solidify the meeting in people's minds, making it easier for them to catch up if they join in at the last minute.
2. Include the Location and Communication Channel
We all occasionally accept meeting invitations at the last minute, and confusion about how to connect frequently occurs. Mistakes with locations and communication channels are major reasons people miss meetings. Include the location, time, and preferred communication method (phone, video, or in-person) in the subject line. You want to communicate:
- Who will be calling who
- What phone number will be used
- Links to video conferencing
- Any access codes
- Location of meeting venue
- Address if the meeting venue if offsite
- Directions if relevant
- Estimated time from invitee's office to venue
- Parking information if needed
Use the location field of the invitation to provide as much detail as possible to prevent misunderstandings. Your goal is to ensure that the meeting takes place. Including all these details might seem excessive, but it will also demonstrate your professionalism and show that the meeting is important.
3. Repeat the Details in the Description Field
Depending on your calendar app and the meeting location, the information may not fit in the location field. Even if the details work, repeat them all in the description window. You want to limit confusion or misunderstanding. Other information you can include:
- Your contact information should be included in case the invitee needs to reach you
- Purpose of the meeting
- Any documents to review
You are getting the message: you cannot be too thorough. The more important the meeting is to you and your business, the more detailed you should be in the invitation.
4. Include the Time Zone(s)
How often have you missed a meeting or been caught off guard when someone called you three hours early because of confusion about time zones? In this work-from-anywhere world, there is less and less certainty about peoples' physical location. Even if you know where someone works, they could be traveling in a different time zone. You can specify:
- The time zone of the meeting
- The time in the sender's time zone
- The time in the recipient's time zone
If you regularly work with people in other time zones, some calendar apps allow you to view time zones in parallel to see two or more at the same time. Side-by-side time zones can help avoid inadvertently scheduling something at 3 AM for yourself or the recipient.
Also, be aware of Daylight Saving Time. Arizona and Hawaii do not observe it. Some countries have Daylight Saving Time, while others do not. The start and end dates of Daylight Saving Time also vary from country to country.
5. Confirmation, Confirmation, Confirmation
A confirmation email is incredibly effective. It's surprising how few people confirm calls in advance. It requires little effort but has a significant impact on connection. Appointment app Apto reports that confirmations boost meeting attendance by 90 percent. The remaining 10 percent are much more likely to reschedule rather than miss the appointment. Sending confirmations also shows professionalism and enthusiasm for the meeting.
Your confirmation message should include all the details that were in the original invite and one of two messages:
- A request for a response to confirm the meeting
- A message that no response is needed as you are assuming the appointment is confirmed
Some people prefer not to request an email response because, if there is none, it can lead to confusion about whether the recipient will attend. The contact accepted the meeting, and you have sent the confirmation message. That should do it. Others want the rock-solid return confirmation.
You should also include an invitation to reschedule if needed. A rescheduled meeting is preferable to a missed one.
It is also important to remind your invitees of the meeting's purpose and any materials they should bring. When someone remembers a meeting at the last minute, they are unprepared or unfocused on the topic. You want them to be as prepared as possible.
Keeping Up with Email Invitations
If you are scheduling many meetings, keeping track of them and sending confirmation can take a lot of time. Scheduling app Doodle found that it takes 20-25 minutes to schedule a business meeting. There are many back-and-forth messages to find a time that works for everyone. Multiply those 20 minutes across multiple appointments per week, and it adds up to a lot of time. Calendar app Calendly says that executives spend 4.5 hours per week coordinating meetings. While the calls are valuable, scheduling and managing the logistics is not the best use of your time.
Delegate Meeting Invitations to a Virtual Assistants
One way to regain those 4.5 hours is by delegating your scheduling to a virtual assistant. Scheduling is usually one of the first tasks a virtual assistant handles. A good virtual assistant will help you document how and when you want your meetings scheduled, including:
- How you like to format invitations
- Type of meetings you prefer (video, phone, office, offsite)
- Where you like to hold offsite meetings (preferred restaurants, venues)
- Preferred time of day for meetings
- Blocked out times where you don't want to be disturbed
- Meeting length for different audiences (customers, employees, vendors, etc.)
- Preferred buffer time (break) between meetings
- How and when to send confirmations to invitees
- How and when to send reminders to you
- Any briefing documents you would like to have on hand for the meeting
- How to notify you about rescheduled appointments
You can see that there is a lot more to scheduling than agreeing on a meeting time. That is why managing your calendar consumes so much time.
Meeting Invitation Examples
Here is a template for a phone meeting invitation sent by a Prialto virtual assistant for a Prialto executive.
Subject: Phone call: Introduction call with <recipient name and organization> and <Prialto rep>
Hello (first name),
Your call has been scheduled as follows:
Date: (Day, Month, date)
Time: (Time AM/PM) (Time Zone)
For this call: (Sender) to call (Recipient's Name) at (Contact Number)
(Sender's) contact number is (XXX-XXX-XXX)
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Regards,
(Name and Signature)
Email
Phone
This is an example of a meeting confirmation template:
SUBJECT: Confirming your appointment on <date>, <time> <time zone> with <Prialto rep>
Good afternoon <recipient>,
I would just like to touch base and confirm your call with <Prialto rep> tomorrow, <date> <time> <time zone>.
For this call: <Prialto rep> will call you at xxx-xxx-xxxx.
Do not hesitate to get in touch with me if you have any questions or if anything changes.
Regards,
<name> - Assistant to <Prialto rep>
Email
Phone
Get More from Your Email Invitations
A successful meeting starts with a successful invitation. Too many people treat invitations casually. Get it right, and you'll secure more meetings with customers and colleagues. If you want to delegate meeting invitations and confirmation, along with other administrative tasks like travel planning, expenses, data entry, and invoicing, Prialto can assist. To find out what it's like to work with Prialto, download this guide.
About the Author: Bill is Prialto's senior content marketing manager and writes about the future of work and how businesses can be more productive and successful. His work has appeared in the World Economic Forum Agenda blog and CIO magazine.