Import Airtable Speaker Information to Accelevents

While speakers can be uploaded through a CSV file, you can also import speakers from different platforms, such as Airtable and Google Sheets to Accelevents through Zapier integration. You can create a zap that imports speakers to Accelevents when they are added or updated on the other platform.

Accelevents has an official app published in Zapier for integrating with other platforms. The steps below will show you how to connect your Accelevents account to Zapier and then build your integration between your event and the other apps available in Zapier.

A Zap is like your personal assistant following all your instructions to complete the task. It has two essential components: a trigger and an action. The trigger is an event or condition as to when the action will happen. The action is the command that will complete your goal.

Your zap would look like this:

Speaker Fields

Before setting up your zap, ensure that the other platform's field formats are compatible with Accelevents. Here are the fields that can be imported and their proper format.

See a Sample Airtable Format

See a Sample Google Sheet Template

Accelevents Speaker Field	Field Format
First Name	Text field
Last Name	Text field
Email	Text or email field
Pronouns	Text field
Title	Text field
Company	Text field
Bio	Text field Note: HTML format works with this field, however, markdown and rich text won't work.
Allow this speaker to override their profile details	Text or Dropdown Below are the accepted values: Yes No OR True False
Profile Image	Attachment, Text, or URL field *The attachment format will work if the field generates a valid image URL (this works with Airtable)
LinkedIn URL	Text or URL field - ensure that the LinkedIn URL format is correct sample: https://www.linkedin.com/in/username
Instagram Handle	Text or URL field - ensure that the Instagram URL format is correct sample: https://www.instagram.com/username
Twitter Handle	Text or URL field - ensure that the Twitter URL format is correct samples: https://x.com/username https://twitter.com/username

Accept the Invite to Create a Zap

Accepting the invite will allow you to use the most up-to-date version of our Accelevents app. Click Accept & Build a Zap.

Start by Clicking This Invite Link

In the next steps, you'll learn how to set up the trigger and action. We have examples for Airtable and Google Sheets for the trigger.

Click the arrows to see the next steps.

Part 1: Trigger

Airtable

1. Format the Airtable Fields

Please ensure that the Airtable field formats are compatible with Accelevents.

See a Sample Airtable Format

2. Accept the Accelevents' Invite

To ensure that you're using the correct app version, accept the Accelevents invite to build a Zap

Accept the Invite

3. Choose Airtable as the Trigger

Create a new zap. Click the trigger, search Airtable, then select it from the options.

4. Choose the Trigger Event

Select New or Updated Record as the trigger event. When a speaker is created in Airtable, a speaker will also be created in Accelevents. Any edits made to the speaker in Airtable will also be updated in Accelevents.

5. Connect Your Airtable Account

Click + Connect a new account to add an Airtable account or select the account from the dropdown if you previously used Airtable for your Zaps. After selecting, click Continue.

6. Choose the Airtable Base, Table, and Timestamp fields.

Select the values for these required fields.

If no fields are showing for the modified time column, create a field and select "Last modified time" as the field type in your Airtable's grid view.

When done with the required fields in the zap, click Continue.

7. Test the trigger

Click Test Trigger so Zapier can check for a successful connection between the two platforms. Select which Airtable record to test.

Important: Before testing, check the fields in the record you selected. It should include all the fields that you want to import. If the fields are incomplete, add values in the Airtable record and click "Find new records" in the zap to fetch the latest updated record.

Google Sheets

1. Format the Google Sheet Values

Ensure that the Google Sheet values and format are compatible with Accelevents so that the speakers from the Google Sheet carry over to the other platform.

See a Sample Google Sheet Template

2. Accept the Accelevents' Invite

Make sure that you are using the most recent app version. To accept the Accelevents invite to build a Zap, click on the button.

Accept the Invite

3. Choose Google Sheets as the Trigger

After creating the zap, click the trigger and select Google Sheets from the available apps.

4. Choose the Trigger Event

Select New or Updated Spreadsheet Row as your trigger event. When a new speaker is added on Google Sheets, the speaker will be on Accelevents. If any edits are made on Google Sheets, this will also reflect on Accelevents.

5. Connect your Google Account

Select an account from the dropdown if you have previously used Google Sheets for your zaps. If you wish to use a new account, click + Connect a new account. After selecting an account, click Continue.

6. Choose the Spreadsheet and Worksheet fields

Select which spreadsheet and worksheet you wish to use from the dropdowns, then click Continue.

7. Test the Trigger

Lastly, click Test Trigger to check if the connection between the two platforms went through successfully. Click Continue with the selected record.

Part 2: Action

Accelevents

1. Select Accelevents as the Action

Search and choose the latest version of Accelevents. You will only see this version if you accept the invite in the previous step.

2. Select Create or Update Speaker

Select Create or Update Speaker in the action event dropdown.

3. Connect Your Accelevents Event to Zapier

If you're not yet signed in to your Accelevents account, click Sign In. A pop-up window will appear, where you will be prompted to input the API Key. If your account is already connected, you can select it from the dropdown.

To get your Zapier API Key, open your event admin console in Accelevents

Go to Settings > Integrations
Enable the toggle for Zapier Integration
Click on Configure, then copy the generated API key.

Paste the API Key to the Zapier pop-up, then click Yes, Continue to Accelevents. Then click Continue in the Zapier settings.

4. Configure the fields

Map all the fields that you want to import to Accelevents.

First name, last name, and email are required fields.
For the profile override, you can select True or False to have the same settings for all speakers or click the 3 dots and select Custom to map your override field.
If you uploaded an image file for the profile picture, map the profile picture URL field.

5. Test

Click Continue, then test the step to see if it will fetch the data from the other platform and add the speaker to Accelevents.

6. Publish the Zap

If the test is successful, publish the zap. If you're on Zapier's free plan, the sync interval is every 15 minutes, you may need to click "Run" in the zap to push the data ahead of time. Below are the expected import and update behavior when the Zap is turned on.

Import and Update Behavior

Here are the expected behavior when you create new speakers or make changes to existing ones once the Zap is turned on:

Add New Speakers

Newly added speakers will be imported to Accelevents, as long as the required fields have a valid value (e.g., name and email)
Existing speakers will only be imported to Accelevents when the existing record is updated on the other platform.

Update Speaker Information

Speaker information will sync if the speaker email matches in the other platform and Accelevents, regardless of where and how the speakers are added. Speakers should have unique email addresses to ensure the correct speaker's information is updated.
When the speaker email is changed on the other platform, a new speaker will be created in Accelevents and will not update the existing one.
When updates are made in the integrated platform, the new data will sync with Accelevents, replacing the existing data.
When updates are made in Accelevents and that field is not mapped in the Zap or is blank in the other platform (e.g. company, profile picture), that field will update to the default session settings (blank company and profile picture field) if updates are done in the other platform.
Deleted Accelevents speakers will reappear in Accelevents if changes are made to the existing speaker on the other platform.
Deleted speakers from the integrated platform will not be deleted in Accelevents.