Why we built Cordially Invited

Cordially Invited began with a simple problem. We were planning our own wedding, and we wanted an easier, faster way to invite our guests — and to know who was actually coming.

The problem we were trying to solve

Inviting people to an event involves more work than it looks. Printed cards take time and money to produce and deliver. Replies arrive in scattered calls, messages and conversations, and someone has to keep track of them all. Close to the day, it is still hard to say how many people will come, and at the door there is no easy way to tell who was invited.

Meanwhile, almost everyone we were inviting was already on WhatsApp. We wanted an invitation that would travel the way people already talk to each other, and that would take the counting and the chasing off the host’s shoulders.

From one wedding to a platform

When friends and family saw what we had made, they asked us to make one for them too. That is when we realised there was a real need for digital invitations in Zambia. We spent months refining the idea into something that was not only beautiful but practical and reliable, and what started as a personal project became a service.

Today, every invitation we make works the same simple way:

• Your invitation is a page with its own link, which you share on WhatsApp. Guests open it on any phone, with no app to install.
• Guests reply on the same page, and every reply lands on your guest list straight away.
• You approve who is coming — or have replies approved automatically — and each approved guest receives a WhatsApp confirmation with a unique reference number.
• On the day, guests show that reference at the entrance, and whoever is on the door checks them in.
• Family members, a planner or your door person can help as helpers, each with their own sign-in.

Built by listening

We were once in our clients’ shoes, so we know the stress and the excitement of planning an event. Much of what the platform does today exists because a client or a guest told us what they needed:

• Families who share one phone could not each reply. Now one WhatsApp number can reply for several guests, each under their own name.
• Families planning a memorial asked for an invitation that informs without asking anyone to reply. Now the reply form is a choice.
• Hosts wanted to know when a guest’s confirmation could not be delivered. Now they receive a daily report of any WhatsApp message that did not arrive, so it can be put right.
• Some guests read French more comfortably than English. Now an invitation can be offered in both.

Our commitment to you

We will keep improving Cordially Invited, and we will keep listening. Every message we receive is read, and every suggestion is considered. When something is not working for you or your guests, we want to hear about it — and when an idea would make your event easier, there is a good chance it will make someone else’s easier too.

We treat every client like family, and every project like our own celebration. Thank you for trusting us with yours.