Managing Invites#

Invites are the gateway to your interviews. Each invite is a unique, tokenized link that grants one-time access to an interview session.

How Invites Work#

Invite Anatomy#

Each invite contains:

• Unique Token: Cryptographically secure, one-time use identifier
• Campaign ID: Links back to the campaign
• Expiry Date: When the invite becomes invalid
• Participant Email: Who the invite was sent to

Invite URL Structure#

https://interviewrelay.com/interview/[TOKEN]

Example:

https://interviewrelay.com/interview/inv_8f7d9e2c1a0b3h4k5j6m

Invite States#

Pending#

Invite created and sent, but participant hasn't started the interview yet.

Actions available:

• Resend email
• Extend expiry date
• Cancel invite
• Copy invite link

Started#

Participant has opened the invite and begun the interview.

Actions available:

• View live progress (if in progress)
• Send follow-up (if paused)
• Wait for completion

Completed#

Interview successfully finished.

Actions available:

• View transcript
• Download PDF
• Re-invite for follow-up study

Expired#

Invite validity period has passed without completion.

Actions available:

• Create new invite
• Extend and resend

Cancelled#

Invite manually revoked by campaign administrator.

Actions available:

• Create new invite (generates new token)

Common Operations#

Resending an Invite#

If a participant didn't receive the original email:

1. Navigate to the campaign
2. Find the participant in the invite list
3. Click Resend
4. Optionally customize the message
5. Click Send

Extending Expiry#

Give participants more time to complete:

1. Select one or more invites
2. Click Extend Expiry
3. Choose new expiry date
4. Optionally send notification email

Cancelling Invites#

Revoke access for specific participants:

1. Select the invite(s)
2. Click Cancel
3. Confirm the action

Cancelled invites cannot be reactivated. You'll need to create a new invite.

Copying Invite Links#

For direct sharing outside of email:

1. Click on the invite
2. Click Copy Link
3. Share via your preferred method (Slack, SMS, etc.)

Bulk Operations#

CSV Import#

Upload participant lists via CSV:

email,name,metadata
john@example.com,John Doe,segment=power_user
jane@example.com,Jane Smith,segment=trial_user

The metadata column is optional and can store custom data.

Bulk Resend#

Send reminders to all pending invites:

1. Filter by status: Pending
2. Select all (or specific subset)
3. Click Send Reminder
4. Customize reminder message
5. Click Send

Bulk Extension#

Extend expiry for multiple invites at once:

1. Filter invites nearing expiry
2. Select invites to extend
3. Choose new expiry date
4. Apply changes

Email Delivery#

Delivery Status#

Track email delivery in real-time:

• Queued: Email in send queue
• Sent: Successfully handed to email provider
• Delivered: Received by recipient's mail server
• Bounced: Delivery failed (hard or soft bounce)
• Opened: Recipient opened the email (if tracking enabled)

Handling Bounces#

Hard Bounces:

• Invalid email address
• Domain doesn't exist
• Recipient blocked sender

Action: Remove from list, verify email correctness

Soft Bounces:

• Mailbox full
• Temporary server issues
• Message too large

Action: System auto-retries up to 3 times over 72 hours

Spam Prevention#

Avoid your invites landing in spam:

1. Use White-Label Email: Send from your domain, not our generic domain
2. Authenticate Domain: Set up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records
3. Quality Lists: Don't send to purchased or scraped email lists
4. Engagement: Remove addresses that consistently don't open emails
5. Clear Opt-Out: Include unsubscribe link

Advanced Features#

Custom Metadata#

Attach custom data to each invite:

{
  "user_id": "12345",
  "segment": "enterprise",
  "plan": "professional",
  "signup_date": "2024-01-15"
}

Access this metadata in webhooks and exports for downstream analysis.

Invite Links Without Email#

Generate invite links without sending emails:

1. Create campaign
2. Add participant emails
3. Choose Generate Links Only
4. Download CSV with links
5. Distribute via your own system

Useful for:

• In-app notifications
• SMS distribution
• Custom email service
• QR codes at events

Pre-filled Data#

Pass data into the interview via URL parameters:

https://interviewrelay.com/interview/[TOKEN]?name=John&company=Acme

Access in your script to personalize the interview.

Monitoring & Analytics#

Invite Dashboard#

Key metrics per campaign:

• Delivery Rate: % of invites successfully delivered
• Engagement Rate: % of invites that were opened
• Conversion Rate: % of invites that led to started interviews
• Completion Rate: % of started interviews that finished

Time-to-Completion#

Track how long it takes participants to complete:

• Invite to Start: Time from email delivery to interview start
• Start to Completion: Interview duration
• Total Time: End-to-end participant journey

Optimize based on these metrics.

Best Practices#

Timing#

When to send:

• B2B: Tuesday-Thursday, 9 AM - 11 AM recipient time
• B2C: Evening and weekends often work better
• Students: Avoid exam periods and late nights

Validity periods:

• High intent: 3 days (e.g., existing customers)
• Standard: 7 days (most campaigns)
• Long-term: 14-30 days (passive recruitment)

Email Content#

Subject lines that work:

• "We'd love your feedback on [Product]"
• "5-minute interview about your experience"
• "Share your thoughts and earn $25"

Body best practices:

• Lead with value (incentive, exclusive access, help improve product)
• Be specific about time commitment
• Include interviewer introduction
• Clear call-to-action button
• Privacy assurance

Follow-up Strategy#

First reminder: After 3-4 days

• Gentle nudge
• Reiterate value
• Mention time remaining

Final reminder: 1 day before expiry

• Urgency-driven
• Last chance messaging
• Consider increased incentive

Don't send more than 2 reminders to avoid annoying participants.

Troubleshooting#

"Invite expired" Error#

Causes:

• Participant tried to access after expiry date
• System clock discrepancy

Solution:

• Generate new invite for the participant
• Extend expiry date before resending

"Invite already used" Error#

Causes:

• Participant already completed the interview
• Token was used by someone else

Solution:

• Verify the session completion in your dashboard
• Create new invite if interview wasn't actually completed

High Bounce Rate#

Investigation:

• Check email source quality
• Verify email format (no typos)
• Test with known-good addresses

Prevention:

• Use double opt-in for your email list
• Validate email format before import
• Remove consistently bouncing addresses