Ministry Sync Online Help
HistoryEdited Apr 15, 2009 5:27 PM by Jason Galicinski…

Dinner/ Banquet Checklist

by Jason Galicinski, CEO of Ministry Sync

The week of your dinner or banquet can be a stressful time. Use this checklist for helpful tips and suggestions the “day before” your event.


Close Public Registration

Closing public registrations allows you to take back control. Table Hosts and the general public will not be able to register anyone without your permission.

See How Do I Open And Close My Event Registrations?.


Adjust the “Registration Closed” Message (optional)

You may want to change the message that Table Hosts and the general public see when you close the public registration. You may want to include details like:

      • A map linked to Mapquest
      • Detailed directions from key locations
      • Instructions for last minute registrations
        • Reminders (ie: Parking costs $10)
          To adjust the “Registration Closed” message, click on “Template Setup”, “Registration Closed” (under Public Pages) and make the adjustments to the body. Don’t forget to click “Update” to save the changes!


          Backup Your Data Before Merging Groups

          We highly recommend that you backup your data before merging any of your groups together. 
          Creating a backup is easy.  Click on the  icon in the Viewing Options column.  Create a "New Layout" and call it something like "Snapshot from Jan. 13, 2009".
          Once your backup is made, you can refer back to it anytime you want.
          PLEASE NOTE:  WHEN YOU ARE IN A BACKUP, YOU STILL HAVE THE ABILITY TO MAKE CHANGES.  BE CAREFUL.  MAKE SURE THAT ALL YOUR REGISTRATIONS AND CHANGES HAPPEN IN YOUR "MAIN ACTIVE" COPY.  The "Main Active" copy is the MASTER that you want to be using on a daily basis.
          See Understanding Layouts for more information.


          Merge Groups Together - Leave Unassigned Alone

          Merge together the existing groups first. For example: merge a group of 4 and 5 together to make one group of 9. Or 4 and 4 to make a group of 8. Or 4 and 6 to make 10. Don’t worry about filling every table with 10. In fact, we recommend that you don’t so you have room for walk-ins and last-minute registrations.

          See:



            Handling Unassigned Members

            Did you know that the national "no-show" rate for a banquet is about 12%? It doesn’t matter what you do, some people will just not come without warning. The problem is not that 12% won’t show though. The problem is knowing who these people are so we can make room for others (and not pay for extra meals!)

            One group of people most likely not to show up are the people who don’t have the peer pressure from a Table Host -- the Unassigned Members. Because of this, we recommended that you don’t assign any (yes, I said “any”) of your unassigned members until they check-in that night.

            When the unassigned members actually show up, assign them a table on the spot. Of course, this may seem like a lot of work (and it is), so please make sure you are using Ministry Sync’s Live Check-In tool to manage this entire process. It’s a bit extra money, but it will save you more than you spend.


            Assign Table Numbers to your Groups

            After you have all your groups merged and set to go, it’s now time to assign each group with a table number.

            See Creating Your Table Chart From Start To Finish.



            Print your Table Chart

            Once your table chart is finished and you have assigned every group with a table number, print out at least 10 copies of the table chart to bring with you. This helps guests find their seats easier and helps you manage the check-in process better.

            See Printing Your Table Chart.


            Print Name Tags

            Now you can create and print nametags directly within Ministry Sync! No more exporting or mail merging!

            See Creating Nametags In Ministry Sync.



            Helpful Reports to Bring

            There are some helpful reports to bring with you for the night of your event. Depending on whether or not you are using the Live Check-in Manager, you will need different lists.

            Using Live Event Check-In:

                • Export a list showing: First Name, Last Name, and Member ID for each check-in station.
                • This will allow your check-in operators to cancel anyone by manually typing in the Member ID from the list.

                Not using Live Event Check-In:

                      • Export a list showing: First Name, Last Name, Group Title, Table Number and Is Group Host.
                        • Sort that list by:
                          • Last Name, First Name
                          • Table Number, Last Name, First Name
                          • Group Title, Last Name, First Name
                        • These three reports are all helpful to have for looking up your guest’s information.

                  Don’t Touch!

                  Once your name tags are printed, don’t make any more changes in Ministry Sync. If a person wants to register, tell him to just come and you’ll take care of it during the registration process the night of.

                  The only thing you can and should do, is cancel registrations in Ministry Sync. This will help you during the check-in process. See Canceling A Guest’s Registration.



                  Remind your Guests

                  Send out one last reminder email to all your guests registered reminding them that they are registered and you are expecting them. If they can’t come, ask them call the office to let you know so you can cancel them in Ministry Sync which frees up more space for the check-in process.

                  Comments

                  Cheryl Rhoads (unauthenticated)
                  Sep 26, 2008

                  It would be great if we could keep track of the dinner entree choices on Ministry Sync as so we can make place cards with their entree choice for the table.

                  Tammy Zinno
                  Mar 16, 2009

                  You can collect your guests' meal choices for your Ministry Sync event! This functionality can be created during the template setup process which occurs prior to your event. A pulldown field with your event's entree selections can easily be added to your Registration Form. When it is time to design nametags or placecards for your guests, you can simply include this entree field as part of your printout. For assistance in modifying your Registration Form, please contact our support team at support@ministrysnc.com, or call us at (847) 628-7746.

                  /groups/help/search/index.rss?sort=modifiedDate&sortDirection=reverse&tag=bloglist/groups/help/search/?sort=modifiedDate&sortDirection=reverse&tag=blogSupport BlogCustomTagSidebarCustomTagSidebar?sort=modifiedDate&sortDirection=reverse&tag=blog0/groups/help/sidebar/CustomTagSidebarmodifiedDate5CustomTagSidebarreverseblogSupport Blogcustom/groups/help/search/index.rss?tag=hotlist/groups/help/search/?tag=hotWhat’s HotHotListHot!?tag=hot7/groups/help/sidebar/HotListsbartonSandy Barton2012-05-15 15:06:33+00:002012-05-15 15:06:33updated9sbartonSandy Barton2012-05-15 14:48:15+00:002012-05-15 14:48:15updated8sbartonSandy Barton2012-04-20 21:14:38+00:002012-04-20 21:14:38updated7sbartonSandy Barton2012-04-20 21:06:18+00:002012-04-20 21:06:18updated6sbartonSandy Barton2012-03-22 14:38:19+00:002012-03-22 14:38:19updated5sbartonSandy Barton2012-01-29 22:31:49+00:002012-01-29 22:31:49updated4Added tag - fundeasysbartonSandy Barton2012-01-29 22:31:47+00:002012-01-29 22:31:47addTag3Added tag - hotsbartonSandy Barton2012-01-29 22:31:42+00:002012-01-29 22:31:42addTag2First createdsbartonSandy Barton2012-01-29 22:29:34+00:002012-01-29 22:29:34created1wiki2012-05-15T15:06:33+00:00groups/help/wiki/54555FalseFundEasy Help/groups/help/wiki/54555/FundEasy_Help.htmlSandy Barton9 updatesFundEasy Help Registering People into Your FundEasy Event Reassigning People Recovering FundEasy Login Managing Money ...Falsesbarton2012-05-15T15:06:33+00:00sbartonSandy Barton2012-04-12 15:01:22+00:002012-04-12 15:01:22updated13sbartonSandy Barton2012-03-23 20:07:32+00:002012-03-23 20:07:32updated12sbartonSandy Barton2012-03-22 14:47:41+00:002012-03-22 14:47:41updated11sbartonSandy Barton2012-03-22 14:47:22+00:002012-03-22 14:47:22updated10sbartonSandy Barton2012-03-22 14:46:49+00:002012-03-22 14:46:49updated9Added tag - walksbartonSandy Barton2011-10-28 19:13:39+00:002011-10-28 19:13:39addTag8Added tag - fundeasysbartonSandy Barton2011-10-28 19:11:10+00:002011-10-28 19:11:10addTag7sbartonSandy Barton2011-07-26 16:51:35+00:002011-07-26 16:51:35updated6sbartonSandy Barton2011-07-26 16:20:48+00:002011-07-26 16:20:48updated5Added tag - loginsbartonSandy Barton2011-07-26 16:20:34+00:002011-07-26 16:20:34addTag4Added tag - hotsbartonSandy Barton2011-07-26 16:20:23+00:002011-07-26 16:20:23addTag3sbartonSandy Barton2011-06-13 21:39:51+00:002011-06-13 21:39:51updated2First createdsbartonSandy Barton2011-06-13 21:30:12+00:002011-06-13 21:30:12created1wiki2012-04-12T15:01:23+00:00groups/help/wiki/5ba5eFalseRecover FundEasy Login/groups/help/wiki/5ba5e/Recover_FundEasy_Login.htmlSandy Barton13 updatesRecover FundEasy Login Recovering a forgotten username can be done directly from the participant's FundEasy page and also from your column browser. From the Column Browser...Falsesbarton2012-04-12T15:01:23+00:00sbartonSandy Barton2012-01-31 22:28:02+00:002012-01-31 22:28:02updated27Added tag - hotjzinnJulie Zinn2012-01-31 22:27:59+00:002012-01-31 22:27:59addTag26Added tag - host managerjzinnJulie Zinn2010-12-17 15:59:14+00:002010-12-17 15:59:14addTag25Added tag - hostsjzinnJulie Zinn2010-12-17 15:59:11+00:002010-12-17 15:59:11addTag24jzinnJulie Zinn2010-12-15 15:01:43+00:002010-12-15 15:01:43updated23Removed tag - sending e-mails to people in your databasejgalicinskiJason Galicinski2010-12-15 14:58:06+00:002010-12-15 14:58:06removeTag22Removed tag - sending e-mails and invitesjgalicinskiJason Galicinski2010-12-15 14:58:04+00:002010-12-15 14:58:04removeTag21Added tag - send emailjgalicinskiJason Galicinski2010-12-15 14:58:00+00:002010-12-15 14:58:00addTag20jgalicinskiJason Galicinski2009-06-16 17:48:07+00:002009-06-16 17:48:07updated19jgalicinskiJason Galicinski2009-06-16 17:47:35+00:002009-06-16 17:47:35updated18jgalicinskiJason Galicinski2008-08-29 02:48:34+00:002008-08-29 02:48:34updated17tzinnoTammy Zinno2008-08-08 01:14:49+00:002008-08-08 01:14:49updated16tzinnoTammy Zinno2008-08-05 15:32:20+00:002008-08-05 15:32:20updated15tzinnoTammy Zinno2008-08-05 15:32:00+00:002008-08-05 15:32:00updated14tzinnoTammy Zinno2008-08-05 15:30:39+00:002008-08-05 15:30:39updated13bbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-08-04 21:23:24+00:002008-08-04 21:23:24updated12bbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-08-04 21:21:53+00:002008-08-04 21:21:53updated11tzinnoTammy Zinno2008-07-31 15:27:11+00:002008-07-31 15:27:11updated10tzinnoTammy Zinno2008-07-23 15:04:13+00:002008-07-23 15:04:13updated9tzinnoTammy Zinno2008-07-23 15:02:00+00:002008-07-23 15:02:00updated8tzinnoTammy Zinno2008-07-23 15:00:56+00:002008-07-23 15:00:56updated7tzinnoTammy Zinno2008-07-23 14:59:08+00:002008-07-23 14:59:08updated6bbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-07-23 14:45:20+00:002008-07-23 14:45:20updated5Added tag - common questionsbbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-07-23 14:43:50+00:002008-07-23 14:43:50addTag4Added tag - sending e-mails to people in your databasebbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-07-23 14:43:48+00:002008-07-23 14:43:48addTag3Added tag - sending e-mails and invitesbbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-07-23 14:43:44+00:002008-07-23 14:43:44addTag2First additionbbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-07-23 14:43:38+00:002008-07-23 14:43:38created1wiki2012-01-31T22:28:02+00:00groups/help/wiki/a6b73FalseHow Do I Resend A Table Host Email?/groups/help/wiki/a6b73/How_Do_I_Resend_A_Table_Host_Email.htmlSandy Barton27 updatesHow Do I Resend A Table Host Email? A Table Host needs the Table Host email to access his Table Host Manger. You can resend this email to a Table Host if he asks for it. You can resend...Falsesbarton2012-01-31T22:28:02+00:00sbartonSandy Barton2012-01-31 22:26:58+00:002012-01-31 22:26:58updated6sbartonSandy Barton2012-01-29 22:30:44+00:002012-01-29 22:30:44updated5Added tag - hotsbartonSandy Barton2012-01-29 22:30:42+00:002012-01-29 22:30:42addTag4Added tag - attendeasysbartonSandy Barton2012-01-29 22:30:14+00:002012-01-29 22:30:14addTag3sbartonSandy Barton2012-01-29 22:30:14+00:002012-01-29 22:30:14updated2First createdsbartonSandy Barton2012-01-29 22:29:08+00:002012-01-29 22:29:08created1wiki2012-01-31T22:26:58+00:00groups/help/wiki/fe015FalseAttendEasy Help/groups/help/wiki/fe015/AttendEasy_Help.htmlSandy Barton6 updatesAttendEasy Help Registering People to Your Event Managing People, Groups & Folders Sending Emails & Invites Table Chart S...Falsesbarton2012-01-31T22:26:58+00:00Removed tag - custom reportsjgalicinskiJason Galicinski2010-11-18 15:03:34+00:002010-11-18 15:03:34removeTag38jgalicinskiJason Galicinski2010-08-02 15:53:43+00:002010-08-02 15:53:43updated37Removed tag - dashboardtzinnoTammy Zinno2010-08-02 15:53:41+00:002010-08-02 15:53:41removeTag36Added tag - dashboardtzinnoTammy Zinno2010-08-02 15:52:58+00:002010-08-02 15:52:58addTag35Minor edittzinnoTammy Zinno2010-05-04 21:09:09+00:002010-05-04 21:09:09updated34tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:50:46+00:002009-04-02 19:50:46updated33tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:49:54+00:002009-04-02 19:49:54updated32tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:48:24+00:002009-04-02 19:48:24updated31tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:47:43+00:002009-04-02 19:47:43updated30tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:47:07+00:002009-04-02 19:47:07updated29tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:46:23+00:002009-04-02 19:46:23updated28tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:45:09+00:002009-04-02 19:45:09updated27tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:44:04+00:002009-04-02 19:44:04updated26tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:43:34+00:002009-04-02 19:43:34updated25tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:42:18+00:002009-04-02 19:42:18updated24tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:41:33+00:002009-04-02 19:41:33updated23tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:40:13+00:002009-04-02 19:40:13updated22tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:36:07+00:002009-04-02 19:36:07updated21tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:34:40+00:002009-04-02 19:34:40updated20tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:32:34+00:002009-04-02 19:32:34updated19tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 19:30:32+00:002009-04-02 19:30:32updated18tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 16:35:17+00:002009-04-02 16:35:17updated17tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-02 16:32:08+00:002009-04-02 16:32:08updated16tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-04-01 18:20:10+00:002009-04-01 18:20:10updated15tzinnoTammy Zinno2009-03-27 17:07:11+00:002009-03-27 17:07:11updated14Added tag - hotbbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-10-22 15:15:26+00:002008-10-22 15:15:26addTag13bbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-08-20 02:05:12+00:002008-08-20 02:05:12updated12bbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-08-16 20:11:31+00:002008-08-16 20:11:31updated11bbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-08-11 23:07:50+00:002008-08-11 23:07:50updated10bbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-08-11 23:06:00+00:002008-08-11 23:06:00updated9bbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-08-11 23:04:52+00:002008-08-11 23:04:52updated8bbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-08-11 22:58:14+00:002008-08-11 22:58:14updated7bbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-08-11 22:35:41+00:002008-08-11 22:35:41updated6bbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-08-11 22:34:11+00:002008-08-11 22:34:11updated5Added tag - table chartbbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-08-11 21:19:56+00:002008-08-11 21:19:56addTag4bbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-08-11 21:19:51+00:002008-08-11 21:19:51updated3Added tag - custom reportsbbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-08-11 21:19:48+00:002008-08-11 21:19:48addTag2First additionbbishoppBrittany Bishopp2008-08-11 21:19:37+00:002008-08-11 21:19:37created1wiki2010-08-02T15:53:43+00:00groups/help/wiki/c903fFalseCreating Your Table Chart From Start To Finish/groups/help/wiki/c903f/Creating_Your_Table_Chart_From_Start_To_Finish.htmlJason Galicinski38 updatesCreating Your Table Chart From Start To Finish There is probably a seating limit per table at your venue (usually ten). Before you start your table chart, you’ll want to merge small groups tog...Falsejgalicinski2010-08-02T15:53:43+00:00hot/groups/help/search/index.rss?sort=modifiedDate&kind=all&sortDirection=reverse&excludePages=wiki/welcomelist/groups/help/search/?sort=modifiedDate&kind=all&sortDirection=reverse&excludePages=wiki/welcomeRecent ChangesRecentChangesListUpdates?sort=modifiedDate&kind=all&sortDirection=reverse&excludePages=wiki/welcome0/groups/help/sidebar/RecentChangesListmodifiedDateallRecent ChangesRecentChangesListUpdateswiki/welcomeNo recent changes.reverse5search