Connecting Gmail and Google Calendar to "Edara CRM"

A sales rep spends a big part of the day in email and the calendar: answering a customer, sending a proposal, booking a meeting. When that stays in the rep's own mailbox, a teammate doesn't know what the customer was told, a meeting booked in the calendar never makes it onto the deal, and whoever takes over the account starts by asking the customer what came before.

With email and the calendar connected, customer mail lands on their pages, and every email sent from the CRM is logged on the deal it belongs to, so the team sees the whole conversation. Customer meetings come in from the calendar as activities on their deals, and CRM appointments go out to the calendar, so a rep never types the same thing in two places.

Follow the Steps #

You connect Gmail first to read your mail and send from a deal, then sync Google Calendar so your activities show there.

Connecting Gmail and Reading Your Mail #

Each person connects their own Gmail account, then reads and answers their mail from the "Email" screen without leaving the CRM:

• Choose "Email" from the side menu, and click "Connect Gmail". Or go to "Settings → Email & Calendar" and click "Connect Gmail" under "Connect a Provider".
• A Google window opens. Choose your account and allow the access it asks for: reading and sending your mail, and your calendar events (used only if you turn on calendar sync). The window closes and you see "Gmail connected".
• Click "Sync" to bring your mail in. The first sync runs in the background and takes in your most recent messages, up to 2,000. After that, each sync fetches only what is new.
• Pick "Inbox", "Sent" or "Drafts", click a message to open it in place, then click "Reply", "Reply All" or "Forward". To find a message, type in "Search emails…"; it matches the subject.

Each synced message is linked to a contact by email address. When there is no contact with that address, one is created and owned by you, so check your "Contacts" after the first sync.

Emailing from a Deal and Using Templates #

An email you send from a deal, organization or contact goes out from your Gmail and is logged as an Email activity on that record, where your teammates see it:

• Open the record and click "Send Email" in the row of buttons above the timeline. The composer opens, with "To" filled in from the record when it has an address.
• To use a ready-made message, click "Templates" above the message and click the template's name: the "Subject" and message fill in. If you already wrote something, you are asked before it is replaced.
• To add copies, click "Show CC/BCC". Use the toolbar for bold, lists, "Insert link" and the rest.
• Click "Send". You see "Email sent ✓", and the email shows on the record's timeline.

To write a new email from the "Email" screen, click "Compose", type an address or a contact's name in "To", and pick a suggestion. To keep an email you wrote for next time, click "Save as template" and type a name. Your templates are yours alone: nobody else sees them.

Syncing Google Calendar #

Calendar sync works both ways: your meetings with customers who have an open deal come into the CRM as activities, and your upcoming CRM activities go out to your calendar. Each person turns it on for their own calendar, after connecting Gmail:

• Go to "Settings → Email & Calendar", and find the "Google Calendar" card.
• Turn on "Sync my Google Calendar". You see "Calendar sync is on. The first sync is running ✓", and two sections open below: "From Google to the CRM" and "From the CRM to Google".
• In "From Google to the CRM", choose what happens to "Private events": "Import as “Busy”" (the time is blocked, with no details), "Import with details", or "Don't import".
• In "From the CRM to Google", click the chip of each activity type you want sent to your calendar. "Call" and "Meeting" are on to begin with, and each click saves by itself.
• To sync straight away, click "Sync now". The line at the bottom of the card shows when it last synced.

Only a meeting with a guest who is a contact, or matches an organization, with an open deal comes in from Google. It becomes a "Meeting" assigned to you and linked to them, while internal meetings and personal events stay in Google. A meeting that already took place comes in as done, so it is never overdue.

Adding Guests and a Google Meet to an Activity #

You don't need calendar sync to send a single meeting or call to your calendar, or to add a Google Meet link. A connected Gmail is enough:

• Open the meeting or call from its card on the timeline or from "My Tasks".
• Under "Guests", type a teammate's name and pick them, or type the email of someone outside the company and press Enter. Only the people you add are invited: the contact isn't added by itself.
• Click "Add to Calendar". You see "Added to Google Calendar ✓", and Google sends the guests the invitation. After changing the time or guests, click "Update Calendar".
• For an online meeting, click "Add Google Meet". The meeting goes to your calendar with a Meet link, the link is saved on the activity, and a card shows the "Join" button and the "Meeting ID".

On the record's timeline, the meeting card carries a "Join Google Meet" button, so you join in one click. An activity holds up to 25 guests.

Important Things to Know #

Try It Yourself #

Sample data — it doesn't affect any real data. Open a message and reply, click "Compose" and pick a template, or go to "Settings → Email & Calendar" and turn on calendar sync.

You May Be Wondering #

If you encounter any challenges or have questions during these processes, you can contact our technical support team, who are ready to assist you at any time.

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