Most event tools assume you already know what you're doing. PopIn doesn't. This guide walks through your first event end to end: deciding what to throw, setting it up, inviting people without annoying them, and getting a real headcount before the day.
For the short version, see Your first event. This is the deep-dive with the why behind each step.
Step 1: Pick the kind of event
Before you open PopIn, decide who this is for. The visibility you choose changes how the invite flow works:
- Invite only, a specific guest list, hidden from everyone else. Usually the right call for a first event.
- Friends, visible to your PopIn friends so they can opt in. Good for "anyone from the crew who's around Saturday".
- Public, anyone with the link, and surfaces in discovery. For run clubs, fundraisers, anything open to newcomers.
- Private, maximum privacy; even invited guests sign in to view.
Step 2: Create it
Tap Create event and you land on the manual form's three tabs (Basics, Details, Logistics). On Basics, give it a name, set when it starts, and pick the visibility from Step 1, that's enough to publish. For a cover photo, location, description, capacity, or BYO details, tap Next into Details and Logistics; none of it is required.
Prefer to describe the event in plain English? Tap Prefer AI? Vibe it out and PopIn drafts the details for you to tweak. For your first event, the manual form helps you see what each field does.
Hit Publish now. You've got an event page with a shareable link.
Step 3: Invite people
The most important step. On the event page, open Host controls and guests and use the Guests tab to add people by email or phone, or tap Share to copy the link for a group chat. Mix channels freely, the same guest list tracks everyone however they were reached.
A few things that lift reply rates:
- Send when people read. Weekday mornings and lunchtime beat late nights and Saturday afternoons.
- Add a line of your own. "Missed you last time, would love to see you Saturday" beats the default text.
- Batch mixed channels. SMS gets read in minutes, email in hours, don't read silence from the email crowd as a no.
Step 4: Manage RSVPs
Open the event page (or rely on notifications). The guest list lives inside Host controls and guests, broken down by Going / Maybe / Invited / Can't go, with running totals so you can plan. PopIn auto-nudges people who haven't replied after a few days; you can also resend an invite from the Guests tab. One nudge plus one manual resend is plenty.
Step 5: Day of
PopIn sends every Going/Maybe guest a reminder the day before with the time, place, and any updates. If something changes last minute, use Broadcast in the Updates tab of Host controls to message everyone going at once, far better than texting people individually.
Show up, have a good time. Afterwards, photos and stories on the event page flow into your memories under Throwbacks.