Event Registration

TimelyChurch provides a full registration system for events, including capacity limits, guest tracking, waitlists, and automatic notifications.

Enabling Registration

Registration can be enabled in two places:

1. When creating an event: Check the Registration Required box on the event creation form.
2. On an existing event: Open the event detail page and toggle the Registration feature on.

For Event Series, enable the Registration Enabled toggle when creating or editing the series.

Registration Settings

Capacity Limit

• Max Registrations -- Set the maximum number of people who can register. Leave blank for unlimited capacity.
• When the maximum is reached, the event shows as "full" and no new registrations are accepted unless a waitlist is enabled.
• The spots remaining are calculated in real time: spots remaining = max registrations minus confirmed registrations.

Registration Deadline

Events support a Registration Deadline date. After this date passes, registration closes automatically even if spots remain available.

Note: The deadline, the event start date, the active status, and capacity are all checked before allowing a registration. If any condition prevents registration, the sign-up form is disabled.

How Registration Works

For Members (Linked to a Person Record)

When a church member registers, their registration is linked to their person record in TimelyChurch. This allows you to:

• See their full profile from the registration list.
• Track their event attendance history.
• Send them targeted communications.

For Guests (No Person Record)

Guests can register by providing:

• Name -- The registrant's full name.
• Email -- An email address for confirmations.

Guest Count

Each registration includes a Guest Count field, allowing a registrant to indicate how many additional guests they are bringing. The total attendees for a registration equals 1 (the registrant) plus the guest count.

Registration Status

Each registration has one of the following statuses:

Managing Registrations

Viewing Registrations

1. Open the event detail page.
2. The registration count is displayed prominently on the event overview.
3. Click on the registrations section to see a full list of everyone registered.

Cancelling a Registration

• From the registration list, you can cancel individual registrations.
• A registration can be cancelled as long as the event has not already passed and the registration status is not already "cancelled" or "attended."
• When a registration is cancelled and a waitlist exists, the next person on the waitlist is automatically notified that a spot has opened.

Marking Attendance

• After an event, you can update a registration status to "attended" to track who actually showed up.

Waitlist

When an event reaches its maximum capacity, additional registrants are placed on a waitlist.

How the Waitlist Works

1. A person tries to register for a full event.
2. Instead of being turned away, they are added to the waitlist with a position number.
3. Waitlist entries are ordered by position (first come, first served).

Waitlist Statuses

Automatic Spot Promotion

When a confirmed registration is cancelled:

1. The system finds the next person on the waitlist with "waiting" status.
2. That person is marked as "notified" and an email is sent telling them a spot is available.
3. They have 48 hours to claim the spot.
4. If they do not respond in time, their entry expires and the next waitlist person is notified.

Tip: The waitlist position is automatically reordered when entries are promoted, cancelled, or expired, so remaining entries always have sequential position numbers.

RSVP Confirmation Notifications

When someone registers for an event, TimelyChurch can send an automatic RSVP confirmation email. This notification includes:

• The event title and date/time.
• The event location.
• A confirmation of their registration.

How People Register

Registration happens through two public-facing surfaces:

1. Public Events Page (no login required)

Visitors discover events through your church's public site:

• Listing: a list of all events marked as Public and Active.
• Event detail: the single-event page with description, location, time, and a registration form (when registration is enabled).

This is the link that appears in newsletters, social media posts, and email reminders.

2. Member Portal (logged-in members)

Authenticated members use their member portal:

• Browse events: see all upcoming events.
• View an event: open any event's detail page.
• Register: sign up directly, specifying a guest count (0-10) and an optional note.
• Cancel a registration: cancel a sign-up. The cancellation triggers automatic waitlist promotion if anyone is waiting.

To keep capacity accurate when several members sign up at the same moment, the system processes each registration in order so two people cannot both claim the last spot. If the event fills up first, the member sees "This event is now full. You may join the waitlist."

Tip: When you create an event with Is Public enabled, the public events page automatically becomes the link used for email reminders and .ics calendar event URLs. Members and guests can register without needing an account.

Registration for Event Series

When registration is enabled on an Event Series:

• Each occurrence can accept registrations independently.
• The Max Registrations limit applies per occurrence, not across the entire series.
• The Waitlist Enabled toggle allows waitlists on each occurrence.