From Draft to Active: Launching Your Event

When you create a new event in Navan, it starts in Draft mode. Before you can send invitations to participants, there are a few setup steps to complete.

These all live in your Overview tab, which acts as your home base for event setup and gives you a clear checklist to work through before your event goes live.

You don't need to complete every step directly from the checklist; most will update automatically as you work through your event. That said, two steps do require you to click through from the Overview tab specifically, and we'll call those out below.

Your event is automatically created as the first item on the checklist. Before moving forward, it's worth reviewing your event details to make sure everything is accurate.
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Click the pencil icon near your event name to edit:

Click Save to apply any changes. You can also delete your event from this page if needed.

Next, you'll need to shortlist at least one hotel for your event. Head to the Search Vendors tab to browse and save options.
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Once you've shortlisted a hotel, this step will automatically be marked complete in your checklist.

Learn how to search for vendors and build your shortlist in our step-by-step guides.

Your event website is where participants will find key details about the event and RSVP. Set it up from the Website & RSVPs tab. Once it's configured, this step will update automatically in your checklist.

If you plan to collect RSVPs through the platform, this is also a good time to review and set up your RSVP questions. You'll find them within the Website & RSVPs page -- you can add custom questions, mark them as required, adjust the order, and configure settings like deadlines and confirmation emails before your event goes live.

Ready to dive in? Check out our guides on setting up your event website and customizing your RSVP questions.

This step requires you to click Continue directly from the Overview tab checklist.

From there, you'll be taken to your flight and transportation settings, which are pulled from your Navan account defaults.

Review each setting to make sure it's applicable and up to date for this specific event, then head back to the Overview tab when you're done.

Like the previous step, click Continue from the checklist to access your booking policy and payment settings.

Here you can review and update:

Make any necessary changes, then return to the Overview tab.
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Click Continue on the participant list step to head to the Participants tab. From there, you can add participants in two ways:

First, add them manually by searching for their name or email address. Participants must be in your company's Navan user list and enabled in Navan to appear here.

Alternatively, bulk upload participants by downloading the CSV template, filling it in, and re-uploading it.
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​Heads up: While your event is still in Draft mode, participants are not notified when they're added. You can build out your full participant list here without anyone receiving an invite until you're ready.
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Need more detail? Check out our guide on adding and managing participants.
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Once all of the above checklist items are marked complete, you're ready to go.Click Continue on the Send invitations step.
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You'll see a confirmation prompt reminding you that event dates and location cannot be changed after invitations are sent.

Click Send invitations to confirm. Once sent, you'll see a confirmation screen letting you know how many participants have been invited.

A couple of important things to know before you send:

Once invitations are sent, your event status will change from Draft to Active.
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After sending invitations, the Overview tab shifts into a dashboard view for your active event.
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From here you can:

With your event live, participants will start receiving their invitations and can begin booking travel. From here, you can manage participants, track RSVPs, and keep your event details up to date as things develop.