Auto-Publish to Google Business Profile (GMB Poster) vs Appointment Booking Calendar

GMB Poster turns your WordPress posts into a steady stream of Google Business Profile (GBP) updates. New posts join a queue, the scheduler picks a slot from your cadence, and at slot time GMB Poster either: Auto-publishes the post directly to your GBP location via the official Google Business Profile API (v2.0+), or Prepares the caption, image and tracked link and hands it off to you for a one-click publish in the GBP web interface (the original semi-manual mode). You pick the mode in Settings. You can switch any time. Auto-publish (recommended, v2.0+) Create a free Google Cloud project, enable the My Business APIs, paste your OAuth Client ID + Secret into GMB Poster Settings. (Step-by-step guide is built into the setup wizard.) Click Connect Google account — Google’s consent screen opens, you pick the Google account that manages your GBP, click Allow. Pick your GBP location from the dropdown. Flip the Auto-publish toggle on. From then on, every time a queued post hits its scheduled slot, GMB Poster posts it directly to your GBP location automatically. Posted items show a green “Posted” pill and the Google post ID. Failed items show a red “Failed” pill with the Google API error and a one-click Retry publish button. Why “per-install” OAuth credentials? GMB Poster never embeds a shared Google client — that would leak the same OAuth secret to every installation of the plugin on WP.org and risk Google revoking it for everyone. Instead, each install uses its own free Google Cloud project; the OAuth Client Secret and the refresh token are stored encrypted-at-rest in your WordPress database using a key derived from your site’s AUTH_KEY constant. Semi-manual mode (original) If you don’t want to set up a Google Cloud project, the original semi-manual handoff still works: New WordPress posts are added to the GMB Poster queue automatically (configurable per post type and category). The scheduler picks a posting slot using either time-of-day slots or a cooldown window. When a slot is due, the next item appears in your Dashboard widget and on the GMB Poster Queue screen. Click Prepare & open GBP. GMB Poster: copies the formatted caption to your clipboard, downloads the featured image to your computer, opens your GBP composer in a new browser tab. In GBP: paste the caption, drop in the image, set the call-to-action, click Publish. Click Mark posted back in WordPress. Features Auto-publish to Google Business Profile via the official Google API (v2.0+), with a built-in setup wizard Per-install OAuth 2.0 credentials — your secret + refresh token are encrypted at rest in your WordPress database Semi-manual mode preserved as a fallback for installs that don’t want a Google Cloud project Custom queue with statuses: Pending → Ready → Prepared → Posted (or Skipped / Failed) Time-of-day slots OR cooldown-hours cadence, with optional weekend skipping Auto-queue on publish, filterable by post type and category Per-post opt-out checkbox in the editor sidebar Dashboard widget showing the next item ready to send “Publish now” / “Retry publish” buttons per row when auto-publish is on UTM-tagged Learn-more links (utm_source / medium / campaign configurable) Featured image → GBP image, title + excerpt → caption, permalink → call-to-action Translation-ready Disclaimer This plugin is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Google LLC. “Google” and “Google Business Profile” are trademarks of Google LLC. External services GMB Poster communicates with the official Google Business Profile API when (and only when) you’ve connected a Google account and turned on Auto-publish: Google OAuth 2.0 (https://accounts.google.com/o/oauth2/v2/auth, https://oauth2.googleapis.com/token, https://oauth2.googleapis.com/revoke) — used to obtain, refresh and revoke the access token GMB Poster uses on your behalf. My Business Account Management API (https://mybusinessaccountmanagement.googleapis.com/) — to list the GBP accounts your Google login can manage. My Business Business Information API (https://mybusinessbusinessinformation.googleapis.com/) — to list the locations under each account so you can pick one. Google My Business API v4 (https://mybusiness.googleapis.com/) — to create local posts on the location you selected. This is the actual “publish” call. When and what is sent: * The OAuth handshake sends nothing about your WordPress posts — only your chosen Google account’s permission to act on its behalf. * For each post we publish on your behalf, we send the caption text, the URL of your featured image, the call-to-action button text + URL, and the post’s language code. We do not send any visitor data, analytics, or anything else. If you do not connect a Google account, GMB Poster never contacts Google. The semi-manual mode opens GBP in your browser as a normal page navigation (your browser, your session — exactly as if you had clicked a regular link). Google’s terms of service: https://policies.google.com/terms Google’s privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy

Simply Schedule Appointments® is an easy-to-use WordPress appointment booking plugin. It’s an automated appointment booking system loved by 70,000+ businesses, with a 5-star review average. The Simply Schedule Appointments booking calendars are easy and fast to set up. And enjoyable for your customers and clients to book and schedule appointments. You can set up the appointment scheduling calendars to take your first booking in less than 5 minutes! And, the best part is that our 5-star support team is here to help you each step of the way, either through our comprehensive and organized Help Center, here on the WordPress Forums, or directly from the Simply Schedule Appointments Support Tab within the plugin. Booking System Features to Help You Schedule Business Meeting Appointments Features included with the Simply Schedule Appointments Free Basic Edition for booking appointments: Unlimited Booking Calendars and Customizable Notifications Use Advanced Scheduling Options and Blackout Dates to highly tailor your schedule Embed the appointment booking calendars using the Block Editor, Elementor widgets, Beaver Builder modules, and Divi modules Style and Customize the Booking Calendars to match your brand and website Translation-ready – including Spanish, German, French, and more! Deeply connected with WordPress, including integrations for the The Events Calendar plugin, WP Fusion Automations, and more! Features included with the Simply Schedule Appointments Paid Premium Editions for booking appointments: Group or class event booking – Book time slots up to a certain capacity Booking Flows – Choose from a selection of booking steps and layouts Google Calendar Sync – Allow your site’s booking system to check your personal calendar for conflicts and customize those calendar events Team booking – Allow your staff to receive bookings and customize their own schedules Resource booking – Schedule meeting rooms, rental items and things such as bikes or tables, or set max occupancies Mailchimp – Automatically add users as new contacts to your audience from the booking form Stripe and PayPal for Payments – Instantly get paid for your time and expertise Twilio for SMS notifications and reminders Gravity Forms and Formidable Forms Integration – Create complex booking forms Zoom and Google Meet for virtual meetings Google Analytics and Tag Manager tracking enabled to count booking form conversions Trigger Webhooks for appointment actions and connect to Zapier ICS Subscription Feeds – Sync your personal calendar applications to all incoming bookings. Simply Schedule Appointments is perfect if you want to let your customers schedule phone calls, in-person or virtual video meetings, or coaching appointments. The perfect tool for business consultations, interviews, or scheduling services. You can tame and automate your schedule and easily manage when you’re available for appointments. And block off dates when you don’t want to be disturbed for bookings — no more phone calls or back-and-forth emails to find a meeting time that works. Simply let your WordPress booking system take care of it! Easily limit how many daily appointments you schedule and set the minimum time between bookings. Automate your schedule while still maintaining control of your availability — manage your booking calendars, time slots, and appointments all in one place. Offer different types of appointment calendars for your services. For example, you could allow new clients to schedule on an introduction call calendar or let established customers schedule a longer time slot with a separate calendar. And, forget about double-bookings, Simply Schedule Appointments is capable of preventing unexpected scheduling problems! Are you looking to offer tutoring or remote teaching classes? Let your students quickly book times with you for lessons, reviews, or simple consultations. Localized time zones make meetings for distance learning and remote office hours a breeze to schedule. Simply Schedule Appointments contains all the data from your appointments and customers within your WordPress site. Own your data and be fully GDPR-compliant and make it easier for your booking system to achieve HIPAA compliance. Complete documentation to start booking appointments today is available on our website. Getting Started with the WordPress Booking Calendars is Easy Use the built-in Setup Wizard to create your first Appointment Type in under 5 minutes. Next, just embed the booking calendar on your site using our general booking shortcode [ssa_booking] or our native WordPress editor block: Who This Booking System is For Simply Schedule Appointments is ideal for anyone who needs to automate and book appointments with clients and customers, including booking for: Client Meeting Booking — Entrepreneurs, Web developers, Consultants, Personal and Business Coaches, Lawyers, Car Dealers, Real Estate, Agencies Event Booking — Wedding coordinators, Dress Shops, Boutiques, Workshop Teachers, Food Truck Lots Class Lessons or Tutor Scheduling — Personal trainers, Yoga studios, Exercise Studios, Language / ESL Tutors, Dance Studios, Fitness Professionals, Music Teacher, Instructors, Professors Service Booking — Handyman Services, Contractors, Hair Salons, Barbershops, Photographers, Tattoo Shops, Notaries, Tax Preparations, Home Inspections Visitor Booking — Bakeries, Restaurants, Museums, Retirement Homes, Curbside Pickup Patient Booking — Nutritionists, Vaccination Appointments, Chiropractors, Physical Therapists, Pharmacy Prescription Pickups Simple Reservations — Equipment Rentals, Room Reservations, Table Reservations for Restaurants, Office Reservations Simply Schedule Appointments offers an excellent experience for your customers who need to book appointments. Our WordPress booking plugin has just the features you need without all the extra bloat and needless settings found in other appointment booking plugins. And our UI is snappy, highly responsive, and a joy to use. Flexible, Fast, and Powerful Booking Calendars Other appointment scheduling plugins are either too simple or too complicated. They lack the basic features you need to start automating your schedule and booking appointments, or, if they do have those features, as you grow and add services, staff, and locations, they become complex and confusing to use for booking. Simply Schedule Appointments is ready to grow with your business’ booking needs — without all the confusion and clutter of settings that don’t apply to you. It’s also highly compatible with WordPress and can be added to any theme and page layout on your site. Simply Schedule Appointments offers fully responsive booking calendars and works efficiently on any device – even touch screens. Our WordPress booking plugin will work dependably and reliably, whether you’re managing your appointment availability from your tablet or your customer is booking an appointment from their smartphone. User-Friendly and Accessible Booking System Our WordPress booking calendar system was designed with people in mind, first and foremost. So we’re always thinking about how people will be using our appointment scheduling plugin, what they’ll expect, and what booking features they’ll want and need. This WordPress booking calendar system is built with you and your customer in mind and is accessible for everyone. We believe appointment scheduling should be as clear and straightforward as possible while maintaining the flexibility and booking features our customers need. We’ve made sure that everyone can use our appointment scheduling plugin, including people with auditory, visual, and physical disabilities. Everyone deserves access to everything the web offers, so we built our WordPress booking calendar plugin with accessibility in mind. As a result, you’ll never have to worry that a customer will find themselves unable to schedule an appointment because of their abilities or the device they’re using. Deep Integrations With All the Tools and WordPress Plugins You Love Integrations included with the Simply Schedule Appointments Free Basic Edition for booking appointments: Logged in WordPress users can see their appointments and benefit from auto-filling Name and Email fields. Elementor widgets Beaver Builder modules Divi modules WP Fusion Automation The Events Calendar Integrations included with the Simply Schedule Appointments Paid Premium Editions for booking appointments: Google Calendar Mailchimp Stripe and PayPal for Payments Webhooks for Zapier and Make Twilio for SMS notifications Gravity Forms Gravity Wiz Perks Formidable Forms Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager Zoom and Google Meet for virtual meetings The Events Calendar Project Panorama LifterLMS Webex Facebook pixel Useful Links to Help You Start Booking Appointments Today Help Center for Troubleshooting and Setup Guides Free Basic Edition Setup Guide Booking Demos to Try Before Installation How to Display the Booking Calendars on a WordPress Page or Post Admin Dashboard Walkthrough Guide Full Appointment Type Settings Guide 1.6.12.4 – 2026-06-16 Fixes Restore webhook price fields in SSA appointment payloads Security: stored XSS via nested customer_information array (Patchstack) Defend Google Calendar token expiry against host clock drift Fix Zoom OAuth open redirect: use wp_safe_redirect 1.6.12.2 – 2026-06-09 Fixes Fix IDOR in MemberPress user appointment REST endpoints fix: neutralize CSV formula injection in appointment backup exporter Fix SSA module missing from Divi 5 picker with a child theme active 1.6.12.0 – 2026-06-04 Fixes Remove public-nonce fallback and tighten notices/templates REST auth 1.6.11.13 – 2026-06-02 Fixes test(security): drain async queue to close a Time-Of-Check to Time-Of-Use race against notification cron fix(notifications): stop drift resync from wiping still-applicable reminders Throttle deprecated id-token verifies; use hash_equals on token compares Fix token-comparison auth bypass in get_items_permissions_check 1.6.11.11 – 2026-05-26 Fixes fix: dedicated reorder endpoint for appointment types to avoid oversized save requests 1.6.11.9 – 2026-05-19 Fixes 💰Bug/Ticket: Database size issues and fatal error in async Prevent token-authenticated modification of admin-controlled appointment fields (CVE-2026-6723) fix(security): strip append_where_sql from REST requests WordFence Vulnerability Appointment Booking Calendar <= 1.6.11.0 – Missing Authorization to Unauthenticated Arbitrary Modification via Bulk Appointments REST API Endpoint 1.6.11.7 – 2026-05-12 Fixes Cover both signed in and signed out usage in Cypress tests Cap async endpoint delay to prevent DoS (CVE-2026-7493) 1.6.11.5 – 2026-05-05 Fixes Detect and resync out-of-sync appointment reminders Features and Improvements Add “Defer loading” toggle to booking integrations 1.6.11.3 – 2026-04-28 Features and Improvements For older changelog entries, please see the additional CHANGELOG.md file delivered with the plugin.