Simplify design reviews with Doodle: a step-by-step guide

Architects, design reviews do not have to eat your week. Between client check-ins, consultant coordination and site meetings, your calendar fills fast. The right scheduling approach can free hours for drawings, details and quality control.

In this guide, you will learn a simple, repeatable way to schedule design reviews with Doodle. We’ll walk through setup, show when to use Booking Pages, Group Polls, 1:1s and Sign-up Sheets, and share field-tested tips you can apply today.

Whether you run a small studio or manage a large practice, you’ll see how to keep meetings moving while protecting billable design time.

The challenge facing Architect professionals

Most design reviews involve more than two people. You may need the owner rep, PM, structural, MEP, landscape and your internal team. Finding a time by email threads can take days.

Add time zones, site constraints and permit deadlines, and the problem grows. Missed meetings lead to late markups and slow approvals — issues that can ripple into change orders and unhappy clients.

You need a way to schedule quickly, reduce back-and-forth and keep your calendar accurate. Your team also needs a consistent process they can follow across all phases.

Why this matters for Architect

Time management is core to project success. Every hour spent chasing replies is an hour not spent on CDs or QA.

Better scheduling improves:

• Decision speed during SD, DD and CD

• Quality in redlines and markup sessions

• Client experience and trust

• Predictability in your calendar and workload

When you can set meetings in minutes, you protect focus time for modeling, detailing and specs.

Build your review rhythm: a step-by-step setup in Doodle

Set up Doodle once and reuse it across projects. Follow these steps to build a reliable system for design review scheduling.

Connect your calendar and set working rules

• Connect Google Calendar, Microsoft Outlook or Apple Calendar.

• Set working hours, travel time and buffers. For example, add a 15-minute buffer before and after reviews for note cleanup.

• Turn on time zone detection — essential when consultants are in different cities.

Doodle reads your calendar and only offers available times. Your personal events stay private.

Create project-specific Booking Pages

Create a Booking Page for each project or client so stakeholders have a consistent link for all reviews.

• Offer clear meeting types aligned to phase:

  • SD concept check-in – 30 minutes (Zoom or Teams)

  • DD design review – 60 minutes (in-office or online)

  • CD markup session – 90 minutes (screen share)

• Add required questions like ‘Which drawings should we focus on?’ or ‘Agenda items?

• Set daily caps to avoid stacking multiple heavy reviews in one day.

Clients can now book time that fits your calendar — without emailing you.

Add video and in-person options

• Connect Zoom, Google Meet, Cisco Webex or Microsoft Teams.

• Include a physical address for in-person pin-ups or site walks.

• Add a phone call option for quick decision holds.

Doodle inserts the meeting link into everyone’s calendar automatically.

Use Group Polls for multi-party reviews

For reviews involving three or more people, use a Group Poll.

• Propose 5–8 time slots across a few days.

• Invite up to 1000 participants by email or link.

• Set a response deadline and enable automatic reminders.

The poll highlights the best slot so you can confirm quickly.

Send 1:1 invites for targeted sessions

Use 1:1 for focused check-ins with a single consultant or an internal team member.

• Share a curated list of times for a BIM coordination sync or shop drawing review.

• Doodle holds the slot once selected, preventing double booking.

• Add a prep question such as “Link to model or detail number.”

This keeps small decisions moving between major reviews.

Manage capacity with Sign-up Sheets

For public sessions, library demos or training, use Sign-up Sheets.

• Create time slots with seat limits (e.g., “Mock-up walkthrough, 6 seats”).

• Share the link with stakeholders or the public.

• Collect names, company and safety information before site visits.

You get a clean roster and avoid overcrowding.

Turn on reminders, deadlines and privacy

• Add automatic reminders 24 hours and 1 hour before meetings.

• Set a Group Poll deadline to lock in times quickly.

• Hide participant details if your client prefers confidentiality.

Less follow-up from you means more time for drawings.

Collect payment for consults and extra services

Some reviews fall under additional services. With Stripe on Booking Pages and 1:1s, you can collect payment during booking.

• Charge for feasibility consults or after-hours reviews.

• Choose when payment is collected (upfront or after confirmation).

• Funds go directly to your Stripe account.

This simplifies admin and improves cash flow.

Use AI meeting descriptions to set the agenda

Doodle Pro includes AI-generated meeting descriptions with customizable tone and length.

• Prompt with: “DD review for Project X. Focus on Level 2 plan, stair details, RCP coordination.”

• Add instructions like: “Please open the PDF set and add Bluebeam notes before the call.”

• Save templates for SD, DD and CD to reuse across projects.

Clear agendas save time and keep discussions focused.

Brand your links and store them

• Add your firm’s logo and colors to Booking Pages.

• Save project links in your PM tool or on the PDF cover sheet.

• Train your team to use the correct link for each phase.

Clients book the right type of meeting without asking you.

Practical tips for better design review meetings

Scheduling is only half the battle. Use these tactics to improve meeting outcomes.

• Timebox the agenda

Break a 60-minute DD review into plan, elevations and sections.

• Gate the pre-read

Use required questions to gather prep details before the meeting.

• Protect focus time

Restrict Booking Page availability to two daily windows.

• Use buffers wisely

Add a 15-minute buffer after heavy review sessions.

• Keep decisions visible

Add next steps to the AI description or link to Asana.

• Respect time zones

Turn on detection and label slots clearly.

• Split oversized agendas

Create two sessions instead of one 90-minute marathon.

Common mistakes to avoid

Architects often fall into these traps during design review scheduling.

• Relying on email threads

Use a Group Poll instead.

• Offering too many time slots

Limit to 5–8 options.

• Forgetting prep and travel time

Set buffers in Doodle.

• Mixing meeting types

Separate SD, DD and CD meeting types.

• Ignoring privacy needs

Use hidden participant details.

• Booking without an agenda

Use AI descriptions and required questions.

• Not confirming tools

Connect your video tool so links populate automatically.

Tools and solutions for Architect scheduling

Here is how Doodle’s features map to common design review scenarios.

Doodle product overview (table)

Real-world examples for Architect use cases

DD review across three time zones

A 12-person firm in Austin was coordinating a DD review with a client in Boston and engineers in Seattle. Emails dragged for a week.

A Group Poll with six options and a 48-hour deadline narrowed choices quickly. What once took seven days took 36 hours.

Client check-ins with Booking Pages

A boutique studio created a Booking Page with three meeting types. Clients booked during specific windows, freeing two mornings a week for detailing.

Paid feasibility consults with Stripe

A developer needed quick test-fit reviews. The principal set a Booking Page with payment. Clients booked and paid upfront, reducing no-shows.

GC coordination and OAC meetings

During CA, the team used 1:1 for weekly GC syncs and a Booking Page for OAC holds. Reminders kept meetings on schedule and decisions clearer.

Community charrette sign-ups

For a civic center project, the firm used a Sign-up Sheet with 25 seats per slot. Staff received a clean roster before each session.

Advanced best practices that save hours

• Build a template library for SD, DD and CD.

• Sync bookings to Slack or Asana with Zapier.

• Set office-wide rules like “no meetings Monday mornings.”

• Use booking analytics to adjust durations.

• Train clients at kickoff to use your Booking Page.

Key takeaways

• Use Booking Pages for phase-based reviews.

• Use Group Polls for multi-party coordination.

• Use 1:1 for quick decision-making between reviews.

• Use Sign-up Sheets for events and tours.

• Turn on reminders, deadlines and buffers.

• Add Stripe to collect payment for consults.

• Use AI descriptions for tight agendas.

• Connect your calendar to avoid conflicts.

Get started with better scheduling

Design reviews should move projects forward, not slow them down. With Doodle, you can coordinate clients, consultants and site teams in minutes while keeping your calendar clear for design work.

Set up Booking Pages by phase and use Group Polls when many people are involved. Share your first link today and see how fast the next review lands on everyone’s calendar.

Ready to streamline your scheduling? Create a Doodle and see how Architect professionals save hours every week.