How to Send Meeting Reminders with Pipedream

Pipedream Dashboard > New > Workflow

Create new workflow in Pipedream

Log into pipedream.com and click the green New button in the top nav. Select Workflow from the dropdown menu. You'll land on the workflow builder with an empty canvas. Name your workflow 'Meeting Reminders' in the top left field.

1. 1Click the green New button
2. 2Select Workflow from dropdown
3. 3Type 'Meeting Reminders' in the workflow name field
4. 4Click Create workflow

Workflow Canvas > Trigger > Schedule

Add scheduled trigger

Click the trigger step (first gray box) to configure when this runs. Select Schedule from the trigger options. Set it to run every 1 minute - this gives you the precision needed to catch events exactly 15 minutes before they start.

1. 1Click the gray trigger box
2. 2Select Schedule from the list
3. 3Choose 'Cron scheduler' option
4. 4Enter '* * * * *' for every minute
5. 5Click Save

Workflow Canvas > + > Google Calendar > List Events

Connect Google Calendar

Click the + button below the trigger to add a new step. Search for and select Google Calendar. Choose 'List Events' as the action - this pulls upcoming events to check timing. You'll be prompted to connect your Google account with calendar read permissions.

1. 1Click the + button under the trigger
2. 2Search for 'Google Calendar'
3. 3Select 'List Events' action
4. 4Click 'Connect Account'
5. 5Authorize calendar access in the popup

Google Calendar Step > Configuration

Configure calendar query parameters

Set the calendar step to fetch events starting in the next 16-20 minutes. In the timeMin field, use the expression 'new Date(Date.now() + 15*60*1000).toISOString()' for 15 minutes from now. Set timeMax to 20 minutes out to catch events in your reminder window.

1. 1Select your primary calendar from the Calendar ID dropdown
2. 2Set timeMin to '{{new Date(Date.now() + 15*60*1000).toISOString()}}'
3. 3Set timeMax to '{{new Date(Date.now() + 20*60*1000).toISOString()}}'
4. 4Set maxResults to 10
5. 5Enable singleEvents to expand recurring meetings

Workflow Canvas > + > Code > Node.js

Add filter step for upcoming events

Click + to add a Node.js code step that filters for events needing reminders. This step checks if any events were returned from the calendar query and processes only those starting in exactly 15 minutes. Without this filter, you'd send reminders constantly.

1. 1Click + under the Google Calendar step
2. 2Select Code > Node.js
3. 3Name the step 'Filter Upcoming Events'
4. 4Paste the filtering code in the editor
5. 5Click Save

Workflow Canvas > + > Slack > Send Message to Channel

Add Slack connection

Add another step and select Slack from the apps list. Choose 'Send Message to Channel' as the action. Connect your Slack workspace by clicking the authentication button. You'll need permissions to post messages to your target channel.

1. 1Click + to add a new step
2. 2Search for and select Slack
3. 3Choose 'Send Message to Channel'
4. 4Click 'Connect Account'
5. 5Authorize your Slack workspace access

Slack Step > Message Configuration

Configure Slack message format

Select your target channel from the dropdown (like #general or #meetings). In the message text field, reference the event data from the Google Calendar step. Format it with the event title, start time, meeting link if available, and attendee list for maximum usefulness.

1. 1Select your target channel from the Channel dropdown
2. 2Set message text with event details
3. 3Reference {{steps.google_calendar.events[0].summary}} for meeting title
4. 4Add {{steps.google_calendar.events[0].hangoutLink}} for video link
5. 5Include attendee list from the events array

Workflow Canvas > Test

Test the complete workflow

Click the Test button in the top right to run your workflow manually. Check that it correctly identifies upcoming events and sends properly formatted Slack messages. Look for any errors in the execution log and verify the Slack message appears in your channel.

1. 1Click the green Test button
2. 2Watch each step execute in sequence
3. 3Check the execution log for errors
4. 4Verify the Slack message was sent
5. 5Confirm message formatting looks correct

Workflow Canvas > Deploy

Deploy workflow to production

Once testing looks good, click the Deploy button to activate the scheduled workflow. Pipedream will now run this every minute, checking for upcoming meetings and sending reminders as needed. Monitor the execution history for the first few hours to catch any issues.

1. 1Click the Deploy button in the top right
2. 2Confirm deployment in the popup
3. 3Check the status changes to 'Active'
4. 4Monitor the Executions tab for first few runs
5. 5Watch for any failed executions

This Node.js code goes in the filter step between Google Calendar and Slack. It checks for events starting in exactly 15 minutes and formats attendee data properly.

export default defineComponent({
  async run({ steps, $ }) {
    const events = steps.google_calendar?.events || [];

export default defineComponent({
  async run({ steps, $ }) {
    const events = steps.google_calendar?.events || [];
    
    if (events.length === 0) {
      $.flow.exit('No events found');
      return;
    }
    
    const now = new Date();
    const reminderTime = new Date(now.getTime() + 15 * 60 * 1000);
    const targetWindow = 2 * 60 * 1000; // 2 minute window
    
    const upcomingEvents = events.filter(event => {
      const eventStart = new Date(event.start.dateTime || event.start.date);
      const timeDiff = Math.abs(eventStart.getTime() - reminderTime.getTime());
      return timeDiff <= targetWindow;
    });
    
    if (upcomingEvents.length === 0) {
      $.flow.exit('No events in reminder window');
      return;
    }
    
    const event = upcomingEvents[0];
    const attendeeList = event.attendees 
      ? event.attendees.map(a => a.email).join(', ')
      : 'No attendees listed';
    
    const startTime = new Date(event.start.dateTime || event.start.date)
      .toLocaleTimeString('en-US', { 
        hour: 'numeric', 
        minute: '2-digit',
        hour12: true 
      });
    
    return {
      event: event,
      formattedTime: startTime,
      attendees: attendeeList,
      hasVideoLink: !!event.hangoutLink
    };
  }
});