As the popularity of email increases as an easier, cheaper, and faster alternative to the role of letters, so does the number of invitations for weddings, birthday celebrations, and even social gatherings sent through these online media. Generally, the invitees will send an email with the RSVP system to measure the number of guests who can attend the event. But unfortunately, the RSVP system is not very popular in Indonesia, so chances are, you will find it difficult to respond. Do not worry! This article contains tips on determining the right way and time to respond, crafting the right response, and verifying whether or not your response has been received by the invitee.
Step
Part 1 of 3: Determining the Right Way and Time to Respond
Step 1. Make a decision
The first step you need to take is to make a decision to attend or not to attend the event listed in the invitation. Think about this as soon as you receive the RSVP email.
- Think about the location of the event and consider whether or not you need to travel out of town. For example, to attend an event held outside the city, of course you have to spend more to buy a plane ticket, right?
- Make sure you don't have to attend another event at the time of the event.
- Make sure your partner and closest relatives can also attend. Remember, the availability of the people closest to you will also affect your decision-making process.
Step 2. Identify the nature of the event
Indeed, the nature of different events will require different tones of response and levels of formality. Therefore, you need to first understand the nature of the event before sending a response to prevent unwanted errors from occurring.
- If the event is informal, such as an invitation to a barbecue at a neighbor's house, you will generally need to give an informal response. In addition, the time you have to send a response tends to be shorter.
- If the event is formal, such as an invitation to a wedding, birthday party, or other important celebration, you generally need to give a more formal response.
Step 3. Provide an effective response
After reading the details of the event and making a decision, immediately provide an effective response. In other words, through the response you give, confirm whether you will comply with the invitation or not.
- Read the RSVP date listed by the inviter. Remember, you are required to respond before the deadline!
- Respond as soon as possible. Even if the inviter gives you a month or two to respond, that doesn't mean you should take the opportunity to stall for a response! Instead, respond immediately after you've made a decision to accept or decline the invitation.
Part 2 of 3: Crafting Responses
Step 1. Specify the subject of the email
After determining how and when to respond, structure your message. To get started, include a subject in the email that indicates your response and is appropriate to the nature of the event.
- For formal invitations, use sentences that are also formal. For example, write, “Roger and Anna Turn Down Invitations to the Ball and Dinner on May 11th.”
- For non-formal invitations, such as frozen invitations to your complex neighbors, simply write, "Can't Come to the 11th Barbecue."
Step 2. Include a greeting
It's important to open the email with a proper greeting because it's the greeting that will set the tone for your response. In addition, the right greeting will also emphasize your feelings and perspective on the invitee.
- Some examples of appropriate greetings are “To,” “To my best friend,” or simple greetings like “Good morning/afternoon/evening/evening,”
- For informal events, simply say a short and simple greeting such as, “To John and Marcy,”.
Step 3. Compose the message in the body of the email
The message written in the body of the email may be the most important part of your response, especially since it will both conclude your response and reflect the nature of the event. Some examples of sentences you can use to accept or decline an invitation:
- Provide an informal response to invitations of this nature. For example, “Thanks for the barbecue invitation, Tom. But sorry, we were unable to attend because we had to be out of town that day.”
- Give a formal response to an invitation of this nature. For example, “The Higginsons received an invitation to Josh and Belinda's wedding on November 5, 2019.” Another example is, “John and Sarah Appleby are delighted to accept your invitation to Marta Rodriguez's birthday party.”
- An example of a formal rejection sentence would be: “The Parker family was unable to attend Josh and Belinda's wedding on November 5, 2019.”
Step 4. Write a closing greeting and include your name
After writing the message, end the response with an appropriate closing greeting. In fact, writing a closing greeting is not just a formality, but can at the same time represent the type of relationship you have with the person and how you feel about them.
- Choose a formal closing greeting such as, “Greetings” or “Thank you”.
- Choose an informal closing greeting such as “Greetings” or “Greetings”.
- Match the closing greeting to your response. For example, write “So sorry,” if you should decline the invitation, or “Thank you,” if you accept the invitation.
- Write your name at the end of the email. For informal events, just write down your nickname and those of the other people invited. However, for a more formal event, it's a good idea to write down your full name and that of other invited guests. If you and the invitee have a very close relationship, simply write down “Smith Family”.
Part 3 of 3: Dealing with Automated Emails and Troubleshooting Possible Problems
Step 1. Click “reject” or “accept”, if there is an automatic button in the email
Today, many people are more interested in using an automated RSVP service that is sent in the form of an email for formal invitations. Most likely, the automated RSVP email was forwarded through a third party, and has a button with a “reject” or accept” option in it.
- If you receive such an email, you do not need to send a personal email to the invitee.
- Once an invitation is accepted or declined, the response will be sent to a third party and forwarded to the inviter.
- Automatic email services are often used for semi-formal events such as birthday parties, reunions, social gatherings, etc.
Step 2. Click the “return receipt” option in the body of the email
Do this so that your email provider will send you an email confirming if the person in question has received or opened your response. That way, you'll know if the message has been sent.
- Be aware that different e-mail providers may also have different policies regarding the “return receipt” option.
- Some email service providers don't even provide this option.
Step 3. Send a follow-up email if your plans change
In fact, a change of plans is an inevitable possibility. If you need to decline an invitation that has been previously accepted or vice versa, make sure you convey the change in response directly to the inviter.
- If you accidentally pressed the “Accept” option on an automated email, clarify the error via private email to the person concerned.
- If you want to decline an invitation that you previously received, convey the rejection directly to the inviter. For example, send an email with the subject “RSVP Changes” that says “Sorry, for one reason or another, Sarah and I were unable to attend your 20th wedding anniversary on the 14th. Hopefully we can meet again in the near future, okay!”
- If you would like to accept an invitation that you previously declined, also communicate the changes directly to the inviter. For example, send an email with the subject "RSVP Changes" that says "Hello! If the invitations are still available, I'd be happy to attend your event."
- Changes in response should be communicated as soon as possible. If the upcoming event is informal or semi-formal, you're more likely to have changed your response some time in advance. However, if the event is formal (for example, a wedding), changes in response should be made in advance, at least one month in advance.
