Restricting Events as Invite-only

Invite-only events are used to restrict who can register for an event.

Rather than opening registrations to the public, you’ll invite a selected group of contacts and send them personalized invitations via e-mail. Only those invited can RSVP / sign-up.

For example, you may wish to Invite only people by creating a condition of: in a Membership group, or Current Clients group.

This guide walks through creating the event, inviting contacts, and sending invitations.

The Workflow

To run an invite-only event, follow these steps:

1. Create an invite-only event via Dashboard > Marketing > Events.
   
2. Invite contacts who are allowed to RSVP.
   
3. Send an e-mail invitation that includes an RSVP link.
   
4. Optionally, set up a reminder e-mail for contacts who were invited, but haven’t yet responded.
   

Unlike public events, invite-only events do not allow general users to RSVP. Invitations are sent via e-mail, and when recipients click the RSVP link, they’re automatically logged into your website to confirm attendance.

Creating an Invite-only Event

1. Navigate to Dashboard > Marketing > Events and click New Event.
   
2. Enter event details such as title, start time, end time, and time zone.
   
3. Select the RSVP Options tab.
4. Under Invitation required, choose Invitation Only.
5. (Optional) Enable Allow Alternate Guest Registration if you’d like guests to send an alternate attendee in their place.
6. Click Save Event.
   

Your invite-only event is now set up.

Inviting Contacts to the Event

Important: Inviting contacts does not automatically send invitations. It simply prepares your invite list for the next step.

After setting up your invite-only event, the next step is to define who is allowed to RSVP.

• Navigate to Dashboard > Marketing > Events, and select your event.
  
• Click Invite Contacts.
• Select the conditions / create a filter to select the contacts you'd like to invite.
• Invited contacts will initially appear with the attendance status "No RSVP".

Need to manually add a specific contact? 

• Navigate to Dashboard > Marketing > Events, and select your event.
• Click Add Attendee.
• Add a new contact, or search for the contact you would like to invite to the event. 
• Set their RSVP status - which is usually "No RSVP", to indicate they are invited but haven't yet responded. Otherwise, if you would like to manually RSVP them now, select "Attending".

Sending an Invitation E-mail

After inviting contacts, you can send a personalized invitation to RSVP.

1. Go to Dashboard > Marketing > Events, and select your invite-only event.
2. Click the E-mail button at the top of the page. 
3. In the dialog box, choose which attendees to email - typically those with RSVP status No RSVP.
4. Click Create E-mail.
   

Oncord will generate a new campaign pre-filled with the event details.
An RSVP link is automatically included at the bottom of the message.

Before sending, review who will receive the campaign by clicking the number next to "Number of contacts to send to".

When recipients click the RSVP link, they’ll be taken to your website to respond. Because they're clicking through from an Oncord email campaign, they'll be automatically logged in, ensuring the RSVP page recognizes them as an invited attendee.

Remind Contacts to RSVP

As an optional next step - configure event reminders to prompt attendees to RSVP.