Duplicating an event

"Can I duplicate this event?" is one of the most common questions on the support inbox, and the honest answer is: not directly, but the thing you actually want is a template, and templates are usually a better fit anyway!

This article explains why 1pm doesn't have a one-click duplicate button, what to use instead for the three common reasons people ask, and the small bag of tricks for the cases where templates aren't quite right.

Why there is no "Duplicate" button

It seems like an obvious feature, and we thought about adding it. The problem is that "duplicate this event" means six different things to six different venues, and a single button can't do all of them well.

The annual conference planner wants every timeline item copied across, but with new dates and new crew assignments. (That's a template.)

The wedding planner wants every timeline item copied across, but the original event is for the bride and groom, and the duplicate is meant to be a different couple in a different venue. (That's a template.)

The corporate operations manager wants to copy yesterday's gala dinner because tonight's is the same shape but with a slightly different running order. (That's a template, with light editing.)

The venue that made a typo on event creation wants to throw away the original and start again. (That's just edit the existing event.)

The venue that has built a complex run of show for client A and wants to clone it as a starting point for client B. (That's a template.)

The venue that needs the exact same event to happen on a second date with the same crew, same venue, same details. (That's the closest thing to a true duplicate, and even then the crew assignments would almost certainly want a sanity check before you sent the links.)

Every one of these is best served by templates. A template is a run of show plus event defaults: it carries the items, the event notes and the event settings into a new event, and leaves the booking-specific parts behind (status, value, files, links, requests, tasks, share links and the live start and finish marks), so you start from a clean reusable shape. A template does carry the crew assigned to each item, so the one thing to check afterwards is that those people are actually on this event.

Use a template for "I want this shape again"

Templates are the supported path for almost every duplicate-event scenario. The flow:

1. Open the event you want to base the new one on. Click Save as template in the planner header. Give it a name that describes the shape ("Standard Saturday wedding", "One-day conference plenary", "Two-day intensive workshop"). Click Save.
2. On the events list, click New event and pick the template in Start from template. The form fills in with the template's settings.
3. Type the new event's name and date, change anything that's different this time, and save. The new event opens with the template's run of show and notes.
4. Check the crew on each item, fill in anything specific to this client, and you're off.

What is copied into the new event: every run of show item with its title, start time, duration, Where field, Details and assigned crew, each on the same day relative to the event date; the event notes; and the event settings (headcount, Space, times, client and organizer, the BEO fields, branding and display options).

What is not copied: the status and value (a new event starts as a Lead with no price), files, links, requests, tasks, internal notes, share links, and the start and finish marks from the original event.

If the new event already exists, use Insert template in its planner instead. That adds the items only and leaves the event's settings and notes as they are.

See Event templates for the full walkthrough, including editing a template and how the dates line up.

Use a template once and discard, if you just want this event copied

If you have a one-off "I need this exact event again" case, you can still use the templates flow. Save the source event as a template, start the new event from it, then delete the template if you don't expect to use it again. Deleting the template doesn't change the event you made from it.

This is also the approach for the "moved my event to a new date and want to keep everything" case. Save as template, start a new event from it on the right date. The run of show is identical to before, with the times intact and the dates moved.

What about the briefing fields

Briefing fields (the BEO data: Service style, Setup style, PAX guaranteed, Dietary requirements, the Menu picker and Menu notes, Bar package, Audio visual and technology, Access from, Vacate by) are part of a template's settings. Starting a new event from a template fills them in, and you can change any of them before you save. Insert template leaves an existing event's briefing fields alone.

If one template's briefing doesn't suit every event (a 150-pax plated dinner and a 600-pax stand-up cocktail, say), make two templates, or clear the fields on the create form for the event that differs.

What about crew assignments

Crew assignments do carry across when you use a template: each run of show item keeps the crew member it was assigned to on the source event. For an internal, stable team (you always have the same banquet manager running plated service) this is a time-saver: the assignments are already in place.

The flip side is the one thing worth checking every single time. Crew availability changes by the day, so before you generate and send any share links, run an eye down the Responsible column and re-pick anyone who isn't on this event. Sending last quarter's photographer a link to tonight's wedding is the mistake to avoid, and a ten-second check after using a template prevents it.

Edge cases

• Same event, two days. Save as template, then start the second event from it on the second date. The same applies if you need the same event repeated weekly for a month (start four events from one template).
• Recurring monthly. 1pm doesn't have a recurrence engine. Use the template pattern manually each month. If you find yourself doing this often for a true recurring series, email [email protected], we'd want to hear about it.
• Backed up wrong, need to re-do. If you've made a mess of an event and want to start over while keeping the original as a reference, save the messy event as a template (even half-finished work makes a fine template) and start a fresh event from it. You now have a clean slate. The original event is untouched.
• Want to share an event with another planner. Templates are private to your account. You can't directly export a template to share with someone else's 1pm account. If you have a use case for this, email [email protected].

When templates aren't enough

The genuinely hard duplicate case is when you want a one-click copy of every aspect of an event including files, links, requests, tasks and history. We haven't built that because the cost of getting it wrong is high (links sent to the wrong people, briefing fields copied from a different client). If you have a strong reason to want this, email [email protected] with the specifics; the more concrete the use case, the more usable the feature will be if we do build it.

A small workflow note

The biggest unlock for "I keep duplicating events" is investing fifteen minutes the first time to build the template properly. The second time you use it, you'll save twenty minutes. The fiftieth time, you'll save hours. Treat the template as the durable artifact and the events as disposable.