Invite Others to Join a Class

Invitations are how you bring members into your class to enjoy a study together. This guide covers the complete invitation process: sending invites, tracking responses, handling accepts, declines, resends and deletes.

Understanding Invitations

How Invitations Work

When you invite someone to your class:

You send an invitation with their first name, last name and email address
They receive an email notification with the invitation details
The invitation appears as an alert on the Home page
The invitee can accept or decline the invitation
Upon acceptance, they join your class and begin the study

Invitation Roles

When inviting, you assign each person a role:

Member:

Participates in the study
Answers questions and makes notes
Optionally shares answers with the class
Participates in discussions

Leader:

All member responsibilities, plus:
Helps facilitate class discussions
Guides conversation and learning
Collaborates with class manager
Supports other members

What Invitees Experience

Invitees can respond to the invitation to join the class and begin the study.

When they receive your invitation:

Email notification with study and class details
In-app notification when they log in
They can preview the study before responding
See class name, description, and their assigned role
Can accept or decline

If they don’t have an account:

An email invitation is sent to the invitee
The invitee is prompted to join BookFellows to accept the invitation
After signup, they’ll see the invitation alert on the Home page
They can then accept and join the class

Prerequisites

You need to be the manager of a class. That class will be available on the Classes page with a Manager badge indicating that you are the manager. If are not yet the manager of a class you could address that by selecting a study and then starting a class. Alternatively, you could become the manager of a class if someone transfers management to you.

Send Invitations

Invite members to join your class from the class landing page by selecting Invite Someone from the action menu (⋮), the Members tab, or the Invitations tab. We don’t want the member to miss it!

Fill Out Invitations

When you initiate an invitation, you will be prompted to fill out a Send Invitation Form with the following fields:

First Name and Last Name
Role: Suggest their role
- Member: Default for most participants
- Leader: For those who will facilitate discussions
Personal Message (optional but recommended):
- Click the Generate button to automatically generate a basic message based on the first name and role
- Update the message to your liking
Click Send Invitation
Repeat for each invitee

What Happens After You Send

Immediately:

Invitation is sent via email
Invitation appears as an alert on the Home page of the invitee
Invitation shows as “Pending” in your class management

Email delivery:

Email usually arrives within minutes
May take longer during high volume

In your class:

Invitation appears with status of “Sent” in the Invitations tab
You can track who has and has not responded
You can resend again or delete the invitation if required

Track Invitation Status

Monitor invitations you’ve sent. Take action when needed.

View Current Invitation List

Go to your class landing page
Open the Invitations tab
See list of current invitations

Check Invitation Status

Sent:

Invitation sent but not yet responded to
Invitee may not have seen it yet
Still valid and can be accepted

Accepted:

Invitation accepted
Member has joined the class
Appears in your member list
You will also be notified by email

Declined:

Invitation declined by invitee
You will also be notified by email

Resend Invitations

Send another invitation to someone who hasn’t responded.

When to Resend

Good reasons to resend:

Several days have passed with no response
Invitee mentioned not receiving it
Email may have gone to spam
After following up personally

Avoid resending too soon:

Give people time to respond (at least 2-3 days)
Don’t spam with multiple resends
Consider personal follow-up first

How to Resend

Just repeat the Send Invitation process again, sending a new invitation to the same email address. This time, you may want to update the personal message to remind the invitee of the study and class details.

Handle Invitation Responses

Understand what happens when invitees respond.

When Someone Accepts

Automatic process:

Invitee clicks Accept
Invitation is marked as Accepted
They’re added to your class
Their study instance is created
They appear in your member list
You will receive notification of acceptance

If they were previously studying solo:

Their solo progress transfers to the class
All answers and notes move with them
They continue from where they left off
Solo study becomes class study

If they were previously in another class for same study:

They are switched to your class automatically
Their progress transfers to your class
They leave the previous class
You can see them in your member list

When Someone Declines

What happens:

Invitee clicks Decline
Invitation is marked as Declined
Removed from pending invitations
You may receive notification
Invitee may provide a reason (optional)

Your options:

Respect their decision
Follow up personally if appropriate
Send new invitation later if circumstances change
Adjust class size or plans accordingly

If they decline by mistake:

They need to ask for a new invitation
Send a fresh invitation
Previous invitation is gone

Delete Invitations

Delete an invitation you’ve sent.

When to Delete

Common reasons:

Invited wrong person
Email address was incorrect
Person told you they can’t join
Class is full
Class plans changed

How to Delete

Find the invitation on the Invitations tab of the class landing page
Click the options menu (⋮) and select Delete
Confirm the deletion

Best Practices

For Sending Invitations

Be clear and informative:

Include study title and description
Explain class format (in-person, video, hybrid)
Share meeting schedule and times in the class description
Set expectations for participation

Personalize your message:

Explain why you’re inviting them
Share what you hope they’ll gain
Make it warm and welcoming
Not just a generic template

Timing matters:

Send invitations well before first session
Give people time to respond (week or more)
Don’t send too close to start date
Consider their schedule and commitments

Follow up thoughtfully:

Wait a few days before resending
Personal message or call often works better
Ask if they received the invitation
Check if timing works for them
Be understanding if they can’t join

For Managing Invitations

Stay organized:

Monitor the Invitations tab regularly
Track responses and follow-ups
Note any personal conversations
Remember who expressed interest

Be patient:

People need time to decide
Not everyone checks email daily
Life circumstances vary
Some need to discuss with family

Be flexible:

Adjust class size based on responses
Start with whoever joins initially
Add latecomers if space allows
Don’t wait indefinitely for everyone

Communicate clearly:

Send reminder as first session approaches
Share meeting details again
Provide study materials info
Make joining easy and clear

For Role Assignment

Choosing Members:

Most participants will be Members
Those new to the study
Those without facilitation experience
Those who prefer to participate without leadership

Choosing Leaders:

Usually one leader per class but co-leaders are allowed
Co-leaders may make sense for large classes
Those with facilitation skills
Those willing to help guide discussion
More experienced with the content

Remember:

You can change roles later
Start conservative (most as Members)
Promote members to leaders as needed
Multiple leaders can share facilitation duties

Next Steps

Choose your path forward:

Manage a Class Learn other management activities like tracking members and leading discussions

Participate in Class Discussion Facilitate meaningful discussions with your class members

Need help? Contact support at rich@bookfellows.net