When a booking is submitted through your Booking Engine, Event Temple automatically creates a booking record, contact, and event, and sends the appropriate notifications to keep your team informed. This article walks you through exactly what gets created, where to find it in the system, and the recommended next steps to take after a submission comes through.
Step 1: Notification
As soon as a guest submits a booking, an email notification is sent to every address you've added under Settings → Channels → Booking Engine → Submission Settings → Email Notification. The notification includes the guests details and the space they've requested.
If no notification email addresses are configured, submissions will still appear in Event Temple, but no alert emails will be sent. We recommend adding at least one email address here to ensure new bookings are never missed.
Step 2: A Booking Record is Created Automatically
The new submission will appear at the top of the Bookings list, sorted by creation date. Booking Engine bookings are assigned a standard reference number (e.g., BK-00205) and are easy to identify by the Booking Engine tag shown in the Additional Info section of the booking record under Origin.
The booking record is pre-populated with:
Booking title — Automatically generated from the guest's name and space name
Date and time — The start and end time the guest entered on the booking form.
Assigned team member — The assignee configured in Submission Settings.
Pipeline and stage — The pipeline and starting stage configured in Submission Settings (e.g., Main Pipeline → Inquiry).
Origin: Booking Engine — This label distinguishes the booking from manually created ones.
Step 3: Booking Status Depends on How the Guest Booked
The status of the new booking depends on whether the space has Instant Book enabled:
Instant Book — The booking is created with a Definite status immediately. No manual approval is required. The Inquiry Date and Definite Date will be the same, reflecting that confirmation happened at the time of submission.
Request to Book — The booking is created with a Lead status. Your team needs to review the inquiry, contact the guest, and move it through the pipeline manually.
Step 4: A Contact Record is Created Automatically
Event Temple creates a new contact record using the information the guest provided on the booking form:
First and last name
Email address
Phone number (if provided)
Company / organization (if provided)
This contact is automatically linked to the booking as the Primary contact. If a contact with the same email address already exists in your database, Event Temple will link the existing record rather than create a duplicate.
Step 5: An Event and Line Item are Created
Inside the booking record, under the Details tab, you will find an event automatically created with:
The space the guest selected
The date and time of the booking
The expected and guaranteed attendee count from the guest's search
A Room Rental line item under the Line Items tab, calculated from the space's hourly rate and booking duration
Any special requests the guest entered will be visible in the booking's Notes tab for your team to review.
Step 6: Recommended Next Steps for Your Team
Once you've been notified and located the booking, here's what to do:
For Instant Book (Definite): The booking is confirmed. Follow up with the guest to introduce your team, share any pre-event details or requirements, send a proposal or contract if needed, and begin moving the booking through your pipeline stages.
For Request to Book (Lead): Review the inquiry details, contact the guest to confirm availability and discuss requirements, then update the booking status and move it through the pipeline accordingly. If the space is no longer available or the booking cannot be accommodated, communicate this to the guest promptly.
In both cases, you can use the booking record to send emails, add notes, assign tasks, attach documents, create invoices, and manage the full booking lifecycle — all from within Event Temple.
Pro Tip: Set up two separate workflows for bookings generated through your Booking Engine to help streamline your process and keep things organized. You can find examples here!
The Guest Portal Link
At the top of every Booking Engine booking record, there is a Guest Portal link. This opens the guest-facing view of the booking, which you can use to check what the guest sees or share with them for reference.