Digital invitation: what to include before you send it

It's the Thursday before the party. Someone in the group chat asks what time it starts, someone else asks about parking, and a third person says the link won't open. You've answered all three before. A digital invitation can be set up and sent today from the catalogue: you pick a design, fill in the fields and share one link. The work isn't in the decoration. It's in what a digital invitation should include, and in how it opens on a phone that isn't yours.

Below are five checks. Run them before you paste the link into the group, because each one is a reason for someone to put off replying — and none of them are about taste.

What a digital invitation should include before anyone replies

Guests decide in the first few seconds. They scan for four things: who is inviting them, when it is, where it is, and what kind of evening they're turning up to. If any of those needs a follow-up question, you'll get the question.

• The event name and the hosts written out: 'Ana and Luis', not 'A&L'. A nickname works if everyone already uses it.
• Date, time and place on one clear line: 'Saturday 14 June, 6.30pm, Casa del Lago'. If there's a map, it should open directions on a phone.
• One phrase that sets the tone: 'Long dinner' or 'Last dance' tells people more than 'You're invited'.
• A name at the top that reads without zooming: strong contrast, one typeface, no four styles competing.

The cover of a digital invitation: does it filter or just decorate?

A cover photo isn't a mood board. It tells people what they're walking into. A laid table with the cloth and the candles in frame does that job. A blank wall doesn't.

So choose the picture on purpose, and check the event name is legible before anyone has to pinch the screen. Then check you can swap the photo later — indoors instead of the garden, say. With Send The Joy you can upload your own photos, mark which one is the cover and replace any of them after sending; the link doesn't change.

If guests have to ask what time it starts, the design didn't fail. The details did.

How to create a digital invitation that survives 'it won't load'

The link is the whole product. It has to open in a phone browser with nothing to install — if someone has to download an app first, you've lost the reply. Send it as a link in the group, as a QR for the people who see it on a table, or as a message. And when the time shifts or the dress code gets dropped, edit the page and the same link shows the new version. No reprinting, no second round of texts.

Digital invitations and RSVP: where the answers actually land

Set the confirmation questions to what you'll use. Name and whether they're coming is usually enough. Answers arrive in one ordered list inside the invitation, so you're not scrolling through a hundred messages hunting for a yes. Guests reply from the same link, on their phone. It's all digital, so there's no paper and nothing to post — and if someone wants a copy for a drawer, print a few and give everyone else the link.

Before you send it, run the five checks: names spelled out, date and place on one line, a cover photo you chose on purpose, the link tested on a real phone, and a confirmation question that's easy to answer. Do that and the design can do its job instead of getting in the way. You can try the cover for free, customise it in the browser and publish your digital invitation for €29.99.