About the RSVP feature

In a Premium, Enterprise, or legacy Free group, members who are permitted to add calendar events can request RSVPs to events and use these additional RSVP features:

• Specify a maximum number of attendees for the RSVP event. (The group will maintain a wait list.)
• Specify whether RSVP attendees can bring guests.
• See a directory of people who have responded, and send email messages to only those who replied Yes or No.
• Change members’ responses.
• Export a list of RSVP attendees.
• Create name tags for RSVP attendees, using a variety of Avery templates.

Requesting RSVPs to an event

To request RSVPs when you are adding a calendar event, look for the RSVP panel near the bottom of the Add Event page and ensure that the Request RSVP checkbox is selected (in a new event, it is selected by default). These additional elements are included in the RSVP panel:

• Maximum # Attendees (0 means unlimited)

  To set a maximum number of attendees for the event, enter the number in this field. (Leave the number as 0 if you do not want to limit the number of attendees.) 

  Note:

  • This number includes any guests (if you select the checkbox below).
  • When the number of yes responses (including guests) reaches the maximum number you set, additional members who respond yes are placed on a wait list. If a member who is on the attendee list later updates their response to no, the first member on the wait list is added to the event automatically, and that member receives an email confirmation.
• Attendees can bring guests

  Select this checkbox if you want to allow attendees to bring guests. The event page that members use to RSVP will contain a button that attendees can use to specify the number of guests they will bring.

• Additional Information Requested from Attendees

  In this field, you can enter a question that you would like attendees to answer when they respond to the RSVP. For example, for a potluck dinner event, you could ask “What will you bring?”

  Note: The information entered in this field by responders is visible only to event creators, group owners, and group moderators who have the appropriate permissions.

• Note To Send Attendees

  In this field, you can enter information (for example, additional details) that will be sent by email to members who respond that they will attend the event.

  Note: If a respondent ends up on a waitlist, they will not receive this note.

When you have completed the Add Event page to your satisfaction, click or tap Add Event & Invite Group. Group members will receive an email invitation containing a link they can click to respond to the event. The invitation will also have an attached iCalendar (ICS) file. Members can add that ICS file to their personal calendars if desired.

Note: The RSVP link in the email invitation goes to the event’s page on the group website, so members who RSVP will need to log in to Groups.io if they are not logged in already.
Exception: Gmail and Outlook users will see response buttons in the email invitation, which they can click or tap to respond to the invitation without going to the group website. In Gmail, the buttons are labeled Yes, No, and Maybe; in Outlook, they are labeled Accept, Tentative, and Decline.

Responding to an RSVP event invitation

When you receive an emailed event invitation that requests an RSVP:

1. Open the email invitation and click or tap the Click here to RSVP link. It takes you to the event’s page on the group website. You will need to log in to your Groups.io account if you are not already logged in.
   Gmail and Outlook users: You will see response buttons in the email message (Yes, No, Maybe in Gmail; Accept, Tentative, and Decline in Outlook). You can use those buttons to respond to the invitation without going to the group website. 
2. On the RSVP event’s page:
   • Provide any information that the event creator requested.
   • If the event creator is allowing attendees to bring guests, and you plan to attend the event, select the number of guests you are bringing from the list above the Will Attend button. (That list will not be present if attendees are not allowed to bring guests.)
   • Click or tap the button that applies to your response: Will Attend, Will Not Attend, or Not Sure.
     Note: If the Not Sure button is not shown, it means the event’s creator has limited the number of attendees.

   You will receive an email notification confirming your response.

Note: If the event’s creator has limited the number of attendees, and:

• The event is full when you respond that you will attend: You are added to a wait list. A notification, with your position on the wait list, will be displayed at the top of the page. If your position on the wait list changes, you will receive an email notification. Be aware that if you change your RSVP to Will Not Attend and later change it back to Will Attend, you will be put at the end of the wait list.
• You were accepted as an attendee, but you later update your RSVP to increase the number of guests you are bringing and you get a notification that the event is full: You will be added to the wait list, but you will be at the end of the list.

Viewing RSVP event responses and contacting respondents

All group members can see who has responded to an RSVP event:

1. Display the group’s calendar.

   Desktop browser: On the group’s website, in the left menu, click Calendar.

   Mobile device: At the bottom of a group page, tap the More icon, then tap Calendar on the More menu.

2. Find the RSVP event, click or tap its name to open its popup summary, then click or tap the See more details button.
3. On the event’s details page, click or tap the Responses button. On the Responses page, you can select a gallery (grid) view or a list view using the icons at the right above the list of respondents. You can also sort the responses by name, response type, or date.

Event creators, as well as group owners and moderators, can email members who have responded to the RSVP event:

1. Follow steps 1 through 3 above.
2. On the Responses page, click or tap the Actions button at the bottom, and select the desired Email All option.
3. On the resulting page, compose your message, and click or tap the Send To Members button.

Changing someone’s response

Event creators, as well as group owners and moderators, can change other members’ responses to an RSVP event:

1. Display the group’s calendar.

   Desktop browser: On the group’s website, in the left menu, click Calendar.

   Mobile device: At the bottom of a group page, tap the More icon, then tap Calendar on the More menu.

2. Find the RSVP event, click or tap its name to open its popup summary, then click or tap the See more details button.
3. On the event’s details page, click or tap the Responses button.
4. On the Responses page, click or tap the List View icon above the list of respondents.
   Note: You cannot change responses from the gallery view.
5. Select the checkbox next to the respondent's name. You can select more than one respondent if you want to change all of them to the same response.
6. Click or tap the Actions button at the bottom of the page and select Change RSVP.
7. In the Change RSVP popup, select the response you want to change to, then click or tap the Change button.

Creating name tags for event attendees

1. Display the group’s calendar.

   Desktop browser: On the group’s website, in the left menu, click Calendar.

   Mobile device: At the bottom of a group page, tap the More icon, then tap Calendar on the More menu.

2. Find the RSVP event, click or tap its name to open its popup summary, then click or tap the See more details button.
3. On the event’s details page, click or tap the Responses button.
4. On the Responses page, click or tap the Actions button at the bottom, then select Create Name Tags.
5. In the Create Name Tags popup, select the desired Avery template for name tags, then click or tap Create. Groups.io generates a PDF file of event attendees that is formatted for that template. The name tags contain the display names and photos (if provided) from the attendees’ group profiles.

Exporting a list of event attendees

1. Display the group’s calendar.

   Desktop browser: On the group’s website, in the left menu, click Calendar.

   Mobile device: At the bottom of a group page, tap the More icon, then tap Calendar on the More menu.

2. Find the RSVP event, click or tap its name to open its popup summary, then click or tap the See more details button.
3. On the event’s details page, click or tap the Responses button.
4. On the Responses page, click or tap the Actions button at the bottom, then select Export Responses. A list of members who responded is exported to a comma-separated values (CSV) file. You can open or save the file and then sort it to obtain a list of members who responded that they will attend.

Locking or unlocking RSVP events

Locking an RSVP event prevents members from changing their responses to that event.

To lock an RSVP event:

1. Display the group’s calendar.

   Desktop browser: On the group’s website, in the left menu, click Calendar.

   Mobile device: At the bottom of a group page, tap the More icon, then tap Calendar on the More menu.

2. Find the RSVP event, click or tap its name to open its popup summary, then click or tap the See more details button.
3. Scroll to the bottom of the event’s details page and click or tap the Lock Event button. A statement that the event has been locked is added below the event’s description on its page, and members will not be able to change their RSVP responses nor will they be able to add a response if they have not already responded.

To unlock an RSVP event, follow the steps above, but in step 3, click or tap the Unlock Event button.

Note: Group members do not receive notifications when RSVP events are locked or unlocked. 

Cancelling an RSVP event

To cancel an RSVP event and notify the respondents about the cancellation:

1. Display the group’s calendar.

   Desktop browser: On the group’s website, in the left menu, click Calendar.

   Mobile device: At the bottom of a group page, tap the More icon, then tap Calendar on the More menu.

2. Find the RSVP event, click or tap its name to open its popup summary, then click or tap the See more details button.
3. Click or tap the Cancel Event button at the bottom right of the details page. A message composition page appears.
4. Enter an appropriate subject line and a message explaining the cancellation.
5. If you want a copy of the cancellation message to go to yourself and/or the moderators of the group, select the appropriate Bcc: checkbox.
6. Click or tap the Cancel Event And Email RSVPs button. Your cancellation message is sent to the event’s respondents. The event remains on the calendar (and is colored gray in Month, Week, and Day view). The event’s details page contains a statement that the event has been cancelled, and the response buttons are not active.

Deleting an RSVP event

See Editing or deleting calendar events.