D-7 checklist before an event — day by day
A week before the day, lots of things move in parallel: caterer, vague registrants, badges, team briefing. Here is the day-by-day checklist, tested on 50+ events.
Empirical rule on a 100-person event: 80% of stress comes from things you could have done 4 days earlier and end up patching on the morning of. The checklist below isn't magic — it just spreads the work over 7 days so nothing falls at the last second.
D-7: Check signups
☐ Check the signup counter (does it match the capacity goal?) ☐ List missing profiles: expecting VIPs? Co-organisers? Chase by DM ☐ If under-attended: plan a social push + email to direct contacts ☐ If over-subscribed: enable the waitlist, set the cut-off date ☐ Check payments (for paid events — everything cashed / committed?) On JustOneEvent, the dashboard gives you these 4 numbers at a glance. Otherwise, export the CSV and write a brief check-in.
D-5: External logistics
☐ Confirm the caterer (final estimated count, dietary needs, delivery time) ☐ Confirm the venue (access, opening, Wi-Fi password, on-site contact) ☐ Confirm vendors (sound, flowers, entertainment, photographer) ☐ Check event insurance (organiser liability, in order?) ☐ Print badges if you hand out personal badges (CSV export from the day before) ☐ Prepare reception signage (welcome panel, arrows, map) It's the right time to call 3 vendors about subjects that worry you — not the morning of.
D-3: Reminder to registrants
☐ Send the email reminder to registrants (date, time, location, directions) ☐ Include last-minute practical info (parking, dress, rain?) ☐ Re-check the waitlist: manual promotions if some cancellations didn't bubble up ☐ Brief the team (each person's role, schedule, what-if scenario) ☐ Prepare the welcome materials: badges, map, QR scanner, brochures JustOneEvent sends an automatic D-1 reminder. The D-3 reminder is up to you — useful for any long event or one requiring travel.
D-1: Final prep
☐ The automatic T-24h reminder goes out during the day — no action needed (sent by the platform to all confirmed registrants) ☐ List confirmed attendees (count) vs capacity (alert if gap > 10%) ☐ Test the QR scanner on 2-3 test signups (you, your team) ☐ Charge every phone / tablet used for scanning ☐ Pack the 'day-of' bag: badges, tape, map, walkie-talkies, power bank, water ☐ Check the weather: plan an indoor backup for an outdoor event ☐ Sleep early (really) Day-of starts the night before.
Day-of: 1 hour before opening
☐ Arrive 1 hour before official opening (always) ☐ Set-up: reception tables, signage, visitor flow ☐ Brief the welcome team on the QR scan procedure (10 min) ☐ Test one final end-to-end QR scan ☐ Check lighting, sound, temperature ☐ Set up the welcome coffee 30 minutes before At T-30 min, open the door. Early arrivals forgive a 5-min delay but not a 30-min one. Honouring the opening time is your first kept promise.
Golden rule
7 days is just enough to anticipate everything that can go wrong without burning out. The checklist above is deliberately short and delegates everything you can delegate (auto reminders, waitlists, CSV exports). What stays on your plate — human communication and external logistics — is precisely what no tool will ever do for you.
Run your next event with a real checklist
Auto D-1 reminders, auto waitlists, CSV exports — focus on the human logistics.
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