The problem, and what Kinora does about it.
Half the group never replies
Non-response is almost never a no. It is a decision someone postponed, and a message to a group of twenty is a message to nobody — everyone assumes the reply is expected from someone more central.
RSVPs on a page, not in a thread
People reply with a click, the answer stays put, and everyone can see who is in. That last part matters: "who else is going?" is the question most people are actually asking before they reply.
The details get asked eleven times
What time, what address, is it dinner or drinks, should I bring anything. Each question is small and each one gets asked individually, of the organiser, by text, in the final week.
One page with every detail on it
When, where, what it is, what to bring, what it costs. Changes propagate — move the start time once and everyone who looks sees the current version, instead of a second message half of them will not connect to the first.
Who brings what
Four people bring wine, nobody brings ice, and the person hosting ends up doing the shop at 5pm. A "can someone grab…" in the chat is read by everyone and acted on by no one.
A supplies list people claim from
List what is needed. Guests claim items, and what is still unclaimed is visible — so the ice gets covered without anyone being asked directly.
Guests who will not install an app for one evening
Reasonably. Event apps that need everyone to sign up before they can even see the invite lose the people who were on the fence — which is most of them.
The invite is a link
Anyone can open it in a browser and see everything. Signing up is only needed to RSVP, claim something or add photos, and it takes under a minute.
The annual thing that has to be rebuilt every year
The reunion, the book club, the game night. Every time it comes round, someone recreates the guest list, the details and the reminder from scratch.
Recurring events
Turn the recurring option on when you create it. The guest list and the details carry forward, so the yearly gathering takes a minute to set up rather than an evening.
The photos live on whoever took them
A party produces two hundred photos across a dozen phones and the host sees fifteen of them. A year later none of them can be found.
A shared album attached to the event
It exists before the party starts, so guests drop photos in the same evening. Private to the people who were there, and findable in two years because it lives with the event, not loose in a chat.
From idea to done.
1Create it with what you know
A name and a date is enough. Add the address, what it is, what to bring and what it costs as you settle them — the page updates in place.
2Share the link
Into the chat, by text, by email — wherever your people already are. Everyone can see it immediately; the ones who want to RSVP or claim something sign up from there.
3Watch it fill in
RSVPs come in with a click, the supplies list gets claimed, and "who else is going?" answers itself. Chase the two stragglers directly — everyone else is handled.
4Keep it
Photos go into the album that night. If it is the annual thing, set it recurring and next year is already half done.
Straight answers.
Is this for weddings or corporate events?
No — it is for the events you do with friends and family: birthdays, reunions, dinners, parties, the yearly gathering. A wedding weekend's guest-facing plan fits well (see the wedding weekend guide), but Kinora is not a seating-chart or ticketing tool and does not try to be.
Do guests need an account to RSVP?
They can see the whole event from the invite link without one. RSVPing, claiming an item from the supplies list, or adding photos needs a sign-up, which takes under a minute and requires no download — Kinora runs in the browser.
Can I send reminders?
The event page carries the deadline and the details, and guests receive notifications for the plans they are part of. The most effective reminder is still a direct message to the specific people who have not replied — a group reminder is read by everyone who already has.
Can I set up a recurring event?
Yes. Turn on the recurring option when you create or edit the event — it is built for the monthly book club, the annual reunion, the weekly game night. The guest list and details carry forward.
Is it free?
Yes, while the beta runs: invitations, RSVPs, the supplies list, recurring events and the shared album are all included. Beta testers get notice before anything about that changes.
Read the guides first.
How to get everyone to RSVP
Why people do not reply to invitations, and the specific changes to your invite, your deadline and your follow-up that fix it.
How to plan a birthday trip
Planning a birthday weekend away — how to handle the guest list, whether to surprise them, who pays for the birthday person, and the date nobody can move.
How to plan a family reunion
Planning a family reunion across generations, budgets and time zones — picking a date, sharing the load, and making it work for both toddlers and grandparents.
One page instead of six threads.
Kinora is free while the beta runs. Start with a name and nothing else — the group fills in the rest.