GC Events: Your Pre-launch Check List

Where to find the Publish Event button (and why it might be missing)

If you can’t find the Publish Event button, look in the Other Actions panel on your event’s overview page in the admin dashboard. Note that the button isn’t located within any Event Settings pages. To locate the overview page, open Events in the left admin menu, click your event from the list, and check the right side for the Other Actions panel. The panel is labeled Other Actions and contains the Publish Event button.

The Publish Event section (including its heading, description, and button) only appears if all four of the following conditions are met:

1. The event status is Draft.
2. The event has a location name, or a virtual link is provided (a virtual link automatically meets this requirement).
3. An Event Image has been uploaded on the Edit Event > Details page. This field is separate from Background Image and requires an actual file.
4. Both Event Contact Name and Event Contact Email Address are filled in under Edit Event > Email Settings in the Event Contact section.

The most common oversight is not providing the Event Contact details. If you’ve set up your ticketing, guest info, and images but still don’t see the Publish option, verify the contact details in Edit Event > Email Settings.

Checking contact fields

1. Open the event in the admin dashboard and click Edit Event.
2. In the editor’s left navigation, select Email Settings.
3. Confirm that the Event Contact Name and Event Contact Email Address are filled in.

Locating the overview / Other Actions panel

1. From the left admin menu, select Events and click your event name.
2. On the event overview page, locate the Other Actions panel on the right. When all conditions are met, the Publish Event section will appear there.

Publishing and post-publish behavior

• Once all four conditions are met, the Publish Event button appears in Other Actions. Click it, confirm the dialog, and the event’s status changes from Draft to Active, making the landing page publicly accessible.
• After publishing, the Publish Event section is replaced by an Unpublish Event option, available if no registrations have been made.

Double-checking your Ticketing setup: have you...?

• Created/customized at least one Ticket Type? 
  • From Event Settings > Ticketing: You can customize the default ticket type, or add new ticket types to meet your registration needs. Note: you can click and drag to sort ticket types once created. Also, once a registration has been completed using one of your ticket types, you can't edit or delete it!
• Assigned a Ticket Designation?
  • From Event Settings > Ticketing: You can choose the designation for ticket sales. The designation ID will show up as a column on Event Registration Deposit Reports to help your team know where to designate ticket proceeds. The designation will not be shown to registrants.
    • Need to also assign a ticket designation for the FMV of the ticket? Ask us in Support (support@givecampus.com) to enable that option for your institution's Events. 
• Leveraged Promo Codes? 
  • From Events Settings > Promo Codes: If you need to offer discounted/comped tickets for registrants, consider setting up promo codes. You can also use Promo Codes to add offline guests (folks who have paid by another method or should be registered but not expected to pay).

Double-checking your Registrant experience: have you...?

• Added custom fields to registration form and attendee form?
  • From Event Settings > Guest Information page: You can collect any additional detail from your registrants (t-shirt size, dietary restrictions, etc.) by adding custom fields. These fields can be different from the fields you choose for Attendees.  Note: make a field required by clicking the ⭐️ icon.
• Added the option for registrants to donate?
  • From Event Settings > Gifts: If you'd like to solicit donations as part of the registration flow, select the giving form, campaign or campaign backup form to which gifts from your event should be attributed. Next, select which parts of the registration experience should include the option to donate additional funds. 
    • Note: if this is enabled, donors will receive the gift acknowledgment email associated with the form/campaign you choose, so be sure that email template is current!
• Turned on the option to show a guest list?
  • From Event Settings > Sharing: At the bottom of the page, check the "Display Guest List for Event" box to include a guest list on the landing page of the event. Guests will have the option to hide their name from this list. 
• Customized the email template for registration confirmation? 
  • From Event Settings > Email Settings: Explore all of your email settings here.

Double-checking your Admin experience: have you...? 

• Set which Admins should receive Event-specific notifications? 
  • From Events Settings > Email Settings:  If you'd like a notification of each event registration emailed to select administrators, click the checkbox and select the people who should receive those emails. For complex events, these notifications will also include emails to flag any changes made to an existing registration.
    • Pro-tip: Consider adding a shared inbox (eg: events@testuniversity.com) as a GC Events administrator, and then adding that admin account to receive the notifications for events.
• Set up a reminder email?
  • From Event Settings > Email Settings page: Option to set up and send an automated reminder to event registrants with an RSVP status of "Attending."
    • 🚨🚨🚨 Reminder emails must be scheduled at least one day prior to the date the reminder is scheduled to be sent to ensure the reminder will be delivered at the event start time. A reminder email cannot be edited on the day it is scheduled to be sent. Doing so will delay delivery of the reminder email until midnight on the following day.
      • For example, if your event starts at 2:00 pm on November 15 and you want the reminder to be sent 1 day before the event at 2:00 pm, you must schedule the reminder email no later than 11:59 pm on November 13. If the email is scheduled or edited after 11:59 pm on November 13, the reminder email will not deploy until midnight on November 15.
• Tested the registration experience? 
  • When you're ready to run test registrations for your event, our strong recommendation is to clone your event and conduct your testing in that cloned version.  Testing in a clone of your actual event ensures that no real event registrations are created in your actual environment – you can read more about this commendation in the "Previewing Event + Testing Registration" section of this article.
• Enabled a waitlist? 
  • Learn all about how to use the waitlist feature here. 

How to clone an event (step-by-step)

Cloning an event lets you run full test registrations without affecting your live event. Use these steps to create and test a cloned event:

1. Open the Events list and click the event name you wish to clone (do not use the public URL).

2. On the event overview page, locate the right-side panel titled Other Actions. The first item in this panel is Clone Event.

3. Click the Clone Event button. A prompt appears asking you to enter a new name and dates for the cloned event. All other attributes can be modified later.

4. Complete the clone form fields when prompted:

   • Event Title (required)
   • Time Zone
   • Start Date/Time (required)
   • End Date/Time (optional)
   • Registration Start Date/Time (optional)
   • Registration End Date/Time (optional)

   Tip: Leave the Registration Start/End Date fields blank to use the smart defaults. Registration will open when you publish the cloned event and close at the event start time.

5. Click Save & Next to create the cloned event. The cloned event will be saved in Draft status so you can test without exposing any information publicly.

What the clone copies

• All event attributes (title, descriptions, images, location/virtual link)
• Affiliations attached to the event
• Custom guest and registrant form fields

What the clone does NOT copy

• Email templates: If the source event does not have email templates configured, a warning appears on the clone form. After cloning, review the email settings by opening Edit Event > Email Settings and create or update the templates as needed.

Additional notes

• The cloned event is always created as a Draft. You must publish it separately from the Other Actions panel.
• The Clone Event button is permission-controlled. If your account lacks the necessary permission, the button will be disabled with a tooltip stating: "You do not have permission to clone this event."

Using a cloned event for testing allows you to run registrations, test email functionality, and verify check-in flows without affecting your live event. When your testing is complete, archive the clone to preserve any test data for review.

And, if you're hosting a Complex Event, have you...?

• Required an activity?
  • From Event Settings > Details page: Check this box if you want to require registrants to sign up for at least one activity per person. This can be a helpful setting if you have a free overall ticket, but want to require registrants to select at least one paid activity to proceed through to checkout. By default, this option will be disabled with the "Require Activity for Registration" checkbox unchecked.
• Enabled the option for registrants to edit their own registrations? 
  • From Event Settings > Ticketing page: By default, the option will be disabled via the checkbox "Allow registrants to edit their initial registrations".
    • Note: Registrants will be permitted to add free or paid activities or add-ons, and remove free add-ons or activities. They will not be able to remove a paid activity or add-on via the self-edit workflow and instead should be directed to contact your office should a refund be required. Learn more about allowing registrants to edit their registrations here.