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The cardinal rule of concocting a cover story for a surprise party is to make it believable. If the story is too elaborate and is too far out of the normal realm for the guest of honor, they will begin to question it. Make it natural, keep it simple, and they will be buy it. Most people aren’t great liars so the simpler the story, the better chance at success. Here are five suggestions to get your creative surprise party juices flowing.
1. A Weekly Routine Event.
Would you and your partner normally meet a group of friends at a restaurant in town on Friday after work? Have the party waiting for them there. If your dad plays golf every Saturday till 3PM, then host a casual surprise BBQ when he returns home. This approach to a surprise not only keeps it simple for you, but your guest of honor will truly not suspect anything as they are just going about their normal weekly business.
2. A Small Celebration.
This may sound crazy, but telling the guest of honor that there’s going to be a party is often a great way to throw them off the trail, plus you can actually talk about “the party” in front of them. What they won’t know is that the intimate dinner party for four you’ve been talking about is actually a party of 75 of all their family and lifelong friends, complete with a video tribute, DJ, and catered food. A surprise, indeed.
3. An Event or Celebration for Someone Else.
If there is another family member’s birthday or anniversary close to the party date, then that celebration can be a perfect rouse. Same goes for a faux fundraiser or awards banquet – these types of covers are especially good if you have planned the party at a more formal venue (restaurant, hotel, etc.) where the guest of honor normally wouldn’t go. Tell your mom that your partner is being honored with a work award at the Hilton, so that way she’s dressed nicely for the event, but when she gets there…surprise!
4. Workplace Surprise.
It’s Friday afternoon in the office – what better way to get the weekend going than a surprise happy hour birthday party? These types of events can be a lot of fun, especially when your guest of honor has a lot of close work friends. Use an out-of-the-way conference room or space, then have a coworker take the guest of honor out for coffee. The coworker can pretend to get a text message saying they must get back to the office for a special meeting, then…
5. An “Oops” Surprise.
This one takes good acting and a lot of prep, but can be loads of fun. Choose a venue such as a bowling alley or picnic in the park – basically a daytime venue where the guest of honor can be in the come-as-you-are mode. The host will pick up the person for a mundane activity (a movie, shopping at the mall or something similar), then pretend to get a text message that veers them to the surprise location. The pretend message can be from a child, friend, or spouse that says they forgot their backpack (or whatever item you’ve decided on) in the person’s car and can they bring it by a certain location. When you casually stroll in to deliver the “lost item” the guest of honor will be blown away that everyone is there for their birthday celebration.
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What makes Evite SignUp Sheets different from other signup tools?
Developed hand-in-hand with community organizers, PTA presidents, parents and teachers, Evite's signup sheets are designed to make organizing volunteers a breeze. Here are a few ways SignUp Sheets are different than other signup tools:
- 100% free: SignUp Sheets are free to use.
- Ad-free: No popup ads ever! Our signup sheets remain clutter-free, keeping your volunteers focused on signing up.
- No extra login required: Seamlessly use your Evite account to create and manage your signup sheets, keeping all your events in one convenient location.
- Automatic reminders and notifications: Stay on top of your event with automated reminders and notifications for you and your participants. Perfect for busy parents, teachers and anyone juggling multiple commitments.
- Customization options: Tailor your signup sheets to your specific event, whether it's a school fundraiser, potluck, volunteer opportunity or team activity. Add custom tasks, time slots and requirements for smooth coordination.
- User-friendly experience: Our intuitive interface makes creating and sharing signup sheets simple for everyone, regardless of tech experience.
- Real-time updates: Get instant notifications whenever someone signs up or makes a change, so you always know where things stand.
Choose Evite SignUp Sheets for the easiest, most streamlined way to get volunteers and signups for your next event!
What is a SignUp Sheet?
Signup sheets are the perfect way to streamline scheduling, volunteer recruitment, class parties, snack duty, potluck organization, parent-teacher conferences and more! You can think of them as your digital assistant for coordinating events and tasks and ensuring that your event is a success.
Evite SignUp Sheets offers parents, teachers and event planners customizable online forms that organizers and volunteers can access and update effortlessly. Volunteers can choose their preferred time slots, sign up for tasks or indicate what they'll bring to the event. It only takes organizers a few minutes to create a signup sheet and send it out with a shareable link, so they can get the word out via text, email or social media—whichever way they prefer!
Long story short, SignUp Sheets save everyone involved tons of time, avoid scheduling headaches and ensure everything runs smoothly before and during the event.
How do I create a SignUp Sheet?
Creating a signup sheet has never been easier than with Evite! Here’s how to create a sheet that’s sure to make your event an absolute success:
- Go to Evite SignUp Sheets and choose the template that best fits your needs. Evite offers multiple signup sheet templates perfect for every occasion, including:
- Signup sheets for one day events (without different time slots), perfect for when you’re organizing a class party, potluck or end-of-season party.
- Signup sheets for single or multiple day events (with time slots), perfect for when you’re organizing concession stand volunteers, fundraisers, parent-teacher conferences, meal train, post-game snack duty or during appreciation week.
- After selecting your sheet template, create a title for your signup sheet and add the date, the location, the time (if applicable), who the organizer is, the organizer’s phone number or email and an optional note describing the event to your volunteers. You can also change your signup sheet background and title image if you wish!
- Next, create slots for your signup sheet. If you aren’t logged into your account, you will need to do so at this point, but luckily, you can use your existing Evite account (no need to create yet another login!). What you’ll include here will depend on what your event needs, but you can include a list of what’s needed (along with optional descriptions), how many volunteers are needed, and dates and times.
- After creating your slots, you can then add a wish list from any retailer or include supply suggestions from Evite’s retailer partners. These are to help your volunteers find and purchase supplies quickly and easily.
- Finally, review your sheet, copy your shareable link and send it out to everyone on your list! Every time a volunteer signs up for a slot on your signup sheet, Evite will email you. We will also send reminders to you and your volunteers before your event so no one will forget about it, and we’ll even let volunteers know if you remove their slot or cancel your event sheet so you don’t have to!
What information should be included on a SignUp Sheet?
When it comes to signup sheet information, there are some essentials to include regardless of what you’re organizing:
- A title for your signup sheet. Tip: Aim to keep your signup sheet title concise but clear. You want volunteers to read it and have a general understanding of what your event is about, and also make it easy for them to look for later if they need to reference your sheet again. You have the option to include a more descriptive note in a different field about your event, so save the more in-depth details for that!
- When and where the event is taking place.
- The organizer’s name and phone number.
- Slots for volunteers to choose from. Once you choose the SignUp Sheets template that fits the occasion, the slots you’ll need for your sheet will be right there and ready for you to add the relevant info, such as dates, times, items to bring and tasks to complete.
When adding your slot information, clearly define what people are signing up for, especially for a what-to-bring list or role assignments. If you want someone to bring healthy snacks for kids to enjoy after a game, specify that. You want your volunteers to feel confident in what they’re bringing and to make it easy for them to know what’s expected of them. It will save them time and stress (and you, too!). That being said, if you make your ask too specific (for example, asking for a hard-to-source item or something expensive), you may not end up with a volunteer for it. So be clear about what you expect, but also be reasonable!
Aside from providing the basic signup information, you can also add optional descriptions to both your entire signup sheet and individual slots. While not required, they can help guide your volunteers further and provide more information. You can add information about allergies, preferences and general info about the event. You can also add a wish list to make it easier for your volunteers to bring exactly what you need!
What are the benefits of using a SignUp Sheet template?
Signup sheet templates offer a ton of advantages for both organizers and volunteers and with Evite SignUp Sheets, you'll enjoy even more benefits than other digital and paper signup sheets! Some benefits our signup sheet templates offer include:
- A 100% free experience (no subscriptions required!).
- Shareable links for quick and easy sharing.
- No need to create another login—you can use your existing Evite account.
- The option to add a wish list to help your volunteers out.
- Automatic reminders—we’ll remind everyone on your behalf.
- An easy-to-use experience with eye-catching guided templates.
- Clean, modern designs with no pop-up ads.
With Evite SignUp Sheets, you can enjoy organizing and coordinating all your events with ease. Signup sheets streamline the signup process for everyone involved, ensuring that everything will go to plan on the day of your event while saving you precious time in the process.
