Apple Invites: Apple’s new event app
Apple Invites lets you create, share and manage invitations for events, with potential for the music industry.
What is Apple Invites?
Apple has launched Apple Invites, a brand-new app designed to streamline event planning and enhance social gatherings. Available as a new app for iPhone users, Apple Invites allows users to create and manage invitations, track RSVPs, create a Shared Album, and even integrate Apple Music playlists.
“Apple Invites brings together capabilities our users already know and love across iPhone, iCloud, and Apple Music, making it easy to plan special events.”
Brent Chiu-Watsom, Apple’s senior director of Worldwide Product Marketing for Apps and iCloud
While Apple Invites makes event organisation smoother for all types of gatherings, musicians and industry professionals might find creative ways to use it for fan engagement, networking, and event promotion.
How does Apple Invites work?
Setting up an event with Apple Invites is simple and user-friendly, featuring deep integration with Maps, Weather, and Apple Music. Here’s a breakdown of its key features:
- Create an event: Open the app and tap “Create Event”.
- Customise your invite: Add an event title, date, time and location. Users can also choose from suggested backgrounds or upload their own images.
- Enhanced planning tools: Integration with Maps provides guests with directions, while Weather gives a forecast for the event day.
- Personalised details: A description of up to 1,000 characters allows hosts to add relevant details about the event.
- Shared Albums & Apple Music playlists: Attendees can contribute to shared photo albums, and Apple Music subscribers can create a curated playlist to set the event’s mood.
- RSVP management: Host can track RSVPs in real-time and share invitations through Messages, Mail, or a simple link.
- No Apple ID required for guests: While the event organiser needs an iCloud+ subscription to host an event, invitees don’t need an Apple account to RSVP.
- AI assistance (on supported devices): Apple Intelligence tools help with phrasing invites and generating unique images through the Image Playground features.
How Apple Invites could be used in the music industry
While Apple Invites is marketed as a general event-planning app, it has clear potential for music industry professionals, from independent artists to major event organisers. Here’s some possible ideas:
Engaging fans before a show
- Inviting fans to help curate a pre-show playlist on Apple Music.
- Offering exclusive invites to pre-release listening parties, or meet-and-greet sessions for superfans.
Underground and pop-events
- Secret gigs and pop-up performances through invite links.
- After-parties and networking events where industry professionals can RSVP easily.
Collaboration and industry networking
- Plan network events for managers, labels, collaborators, and industry professionals.
- Organise group travel to music festivals and events.
Will Apple Invites be a game-changer?
Apple Invites is still in its early days, but its seamless event organisation tools make it an interesting prospect for artists and professionals across the industry.
Apple Invites could not only change the way events are organised amongst friends and family, but also across industries. Whether it’s curating hype before a show or organising exclusive listening parties, this app could become a valuable tool in an artist’s digital toolkit.