# Private Views and Openings

Section: Gallery Guide · Page: https://artsvp.com/docs/gallery-guide/private-views-and-openings

(Plans: All plans)

An opening night draws two crowds at once: the collectors, artists, and press
you invite by name, and the wider audience who arrive through the newsletter,
the website, or a friend. A private view on ARTSVP gives each their own route in
 (personal invitations for one, booking links for the other) and lands everyone
on the same event and the same live guest list.

## Build the event

1. Create a **Single Slot** event covering the opening period.
2. Add a free ticket with a clear public label, *"Private View RSVP"* works.
3. Turn on **Limit Capacity** when the room has a firm ceiling. One thing to be
   aware of: lowering capacity after guests have booked does not cancel their
   existing bookings.
4. Set **Max per booking** to allow for plus-ones or group reservations.
5. Choose **Standard** booking for immediate confirmation, or **Register
   Interest** when your team should approve each request. If the opening is
   paid, know that a guest cancelling does not trigger an automatic refund.
6. Add a waitlist if guests should still be able to register once capacity is
   reached.

## Give each audience its own way in

- Send personal invitations (Plans: Pro & Expert) to named collectors,
  artists, press, and VIPs.
- Create booking links for the website, newsletter, social channels, or a
  partner. The event's first link comes with every plan; multiple links are
  (Plans: Pro & Expert).
- Give every link a source tag so you can filter and export responses later.

However a booking arrives, once confirmed it counts toward the event's
availability.

## On the night

Open **Check-in** on a phone, tablet, or laptop. Staff can search for a guest,
record a walk-in, and watch updates flow through the same live guest list.
Enable QR tickets when scanning is more useful than name search.

Remember that one booking can cover several guests, set the guest-detail
fields carefully when the door needs every attendee's name, not only the
booker's.

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Keep reading: [Creating events](https://artsvp.com/docs/events/creating-events) ·
[Invitations](https://artsvp.com/docs/guest-management/invitations) ·
[Booking links](https://artsvp.com/docs/guest-management/booking-links) ·
[Check-in](https://artsvp.com/docs/guest-management/check-in)

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