How does it work?

Join an event

Most of the time, you arrive on The Playground via a shared link — via message, social media, or email. This link points directly to the event page.

On the event page:

1. 1Read the details: date, location, description, number of attendees
2. 2Click Join
3. 3If you don't have an account yet, you can sign in in seconds (magic link by email or via Google / GitHub) — no form to fill out
4. 4Once registered, you receive a confirmation email with the details and a link to add the event to your calendar (Google Calendar, Apple Calendar, or .ics file)

Some events require approval by the organizer. In that case, the button reads “Join (subject to approval)”. Your request is sent to the organizer, and you receive a confirmation email once it is accepted. If your request is declined, you are notified by email. While your request is pending, it appears in Dashboard with the status “Pending approval”.

Join a community

When you register for an event, you automatically become a member of its community. Nothing else to do.

As a member, you can:

• See upcoming events from the community
• Browse past events
• See other members and visit their public profile
• Be notified of new events by email (based on your preferences)

You can also join a community without registering for an event, from the Explore page or from a community page. On Explore, you can filter communities by topic and sort them (Recommended, Popularity, Date). The Featured section highlights a selection of active communities. If the community is private, the organizer can send you a private invite link — click it to join directly, no event registration required.

Waitlist

If an event shows as full, you can join the waitlist. If a spot opens up (after a cancellation), you are automatically registered and receive a confirmation email.

Your position in the waitlist is shown directly on the event page (e.g. "You are on the waitlist · #3"), as an indicator displayed above the cancel button.

Add to calendar

After registering, an "Add to calendar" button is available on the event page. Click it to choose your format:

• Google Calendar: opens directly in your browser
• .ics file: compatible with Apple Calendar, Outlook and most calendar apps

Cancel your registration

While you are registered, a "You are registered" indicator appears on the event page, above the cancel button.

From Dashboard:

1. 1Go to the event in question
2. 2Click Cancel my registration

If you were on the waitlist, your spot is simply removed.

Paid events

Some events require payment. The price is shown on the registration button (e.g. Join — 15.00 EUR).

How it works:

1. Click the registration button — you'll be redirected to a secure Stripe payment page
2. Enter your card details and confirm
3. You're automatically registered and receive a confirmation email with your payment receipt

Refund policy:

• Each event is either refundable (automatic refund on cancellation) or non-refundable (no refund if you cancel)
• If the event is cancelled by the organizer, you are always refunded regardless of the policy
• Refunds are processed within 5 to 10 business days to your card

Comments

Each event has a comment thread. You can ask questions, share your excitement, or chat with other attendees. Comments are visible to all registered members and the organizer.

Photos in comments:

• You can add up to 3 photos to each comment (JPG, PNG, WebP)
• Large photos are automatically compressed for fast upload, even from a phone
• Click a photo to enlarge it

For a private question, use the "Contact the organizer" link available under the organizers section on the event or community page. Your message is sent directly to the organizer by email, and they can reply to you in return.

My Dashboard

Dashboard is your personal hub. You'll find there:

• Your upcoming events — those you're registered for and those you organize (including drafts)
• Your past events
• The communities you belong to or organize
• Your profile (name, avatar, notification preferences) — including a link to your public profile, visible to other members
• An organizer filter (visible if you organize at least one community) to show only your organized events and communities

Manage notifications

In your profile (Dashboard → Profile), you can enable or disable certain emails. Three preferences are available:

• New registration for one of your events (for organizers)
• New comment on an event
• New event published in a community you belong to
• Some emails are sent automatically and cannot be disabled: registration confirmation, event reminders, event update or cancellation notifications.
• From comment notification emails, a "Manage my preferences" link takes you directly to the settings page, without going through Dashboard.

Leave a community

While you are a member, a "You are a member" indicator is shown on the community page, above the Leave button.

From a community page in Dashboard, click Leave community. Your registrations for upcoming events are not automatically cancelled — remember to cancel them separately if needed.

Networks

A Network groups several related communities under a shared showcase page. Each Network has a public page displaying its member communities, with their upcoming events and member count.

• On a community page, a Member of [Network] badge appears in the info section if the community belongs to one or more networks
• Click the network name to visit its page and discover other member communities
• There is no network membership — you are a member of individual communities

Create your community

Your community is your central space on The Playground. It's from here that you manage your events and your network.

To create your community:

1. 1Sign in and go to Dashboard
2. 2Click Create a community
3. 3Fill in: name, description, topic, city, visibility (public or private)
4. 4Add a cover image (optional but recommended)

Create an event

From your community, click Create an event.

Essential fields:

Advanced options (accessible via "More options"):

• Capacity — maximum number of attendees (automatically activates the waitlist). To switch back to unlimited capacity, click the × next to the field.
• Price — if the event is paid, payment is handled via Stripe (attendees pay directly, The Playground takes no commission)
• Cover image

Attach documents

You can attach up to 3 files (PDF, JPEG, PNG or WebP, 10 MB max each) to any event — great for sharing a presentation deck, meeting notes, venue directions or any relevant document.

• From the event page, click Add document or drag your files into the drop zone
• Documents can be added when creating the event (before publishing) or at any time from the event page
• Attendees can see the documents directly on the event page and download them in one click

Manage registrations

From the event dashboard, click the "Members" block to open the full list. You can access:

• The registrant list with names, emails and status. The waitlist is displayed separately
• Member profiles: click a name to view their public profile (links to their social accounts: website, LinkedIn, X, GitHub if they've added them)
• Remove a member from the list (contextual menu next to their name)
• CSV export of the full list (registered + waitlist)

Contact your members

From the event dashboard, the Message to attendees block lets you email the people registered for your event: practical reminders, last-minute changes, or a thank-you note after the event. You pick the audience (registered, waitlist or all), write the subject and message with simple formatting, and each attendee receives it with a personalized greeting. Replies land directly in your inbox.

Members can also send you a private message via the "Contact the organizer" link shown on the event or community page. You receive this message by email and can reply directly.

Edit or cancel an event

The event status is always visible in the breadcrumb of your dashboard: "Draft" (amber), "Published" (green), "Cancelled" (red) or "Past" (grey).

From the event dashboard:

• Edit — update information at any time. Registered attendees are notified by email if the date or location changes. For a past event, the date can no longer be changed; other details (title, description, location) remain editable.
• Cancel — cancel the event. All attendees receive a cancellation email.

The Radar — avoid scheduling conflicts

Share your event

Every event has a unique URL (format the-playground.fr/m/your-event). Copy this link from the event dashboard and share it directly — via WhatsApp, Instagram, email, or newsletter. No installation or prior account is required for attendees.

Embed an event on your site

You can display any event directly on your website, blog or newsletter using an embeddable widget. It shows the essentials of the event page (title, date, location, attendees) with a registration button, and always stays up to date automatically.

To get the embed code:

1. 1From your event dashboard, find the Event widget block and click Get the code
2. 2Choose the language (French or English) and the theme (light or dark). A live preview is shown
3. 3Click Copy code, then paste the HTML snippet into your site, blog post or newsletter editor

Manage community members

From your community page, you can see the full member list with their emails. Each name is clickable and links to the member's public profile. You can remove a member via the ⋮ menu next to their name.

You can export the full member list as a CSV file via the «Export» button in the members modal. Useful for importing into an external tool or sending a bulk email.

Members automatically join your community when they register for one of your events.

Share management with co-organizers

You can delegate community management to other members by promoting them to co-organizer. A co-organizer has almost all the same powers as you, except for a few sensitive actions that stay with the owner.

A co-organizer can:

• Create, edit, publish and delete events
• Approve or reject registrations and membership requests
• Update community settings and message event attendees
• Receive the same notifications you do (new registrations, comments, etc.)

Only the owner can:

• Delete the community
• Manage the Stripe Connect account (for paid events)
• Promote, demote, or remove another co-organizer

To promote a member: on the Members page of your community, open the ⋮ menu next to their name and click Promote to co-organizer. They'll receive an email confirming their new rights, and can immediately start helping you manage the community.

To revoke a co-organizer's rights, open the same menu and click Demote to member. The person remains a member of the community but loses their management rights, and receives a plain email informing them of the change.

Invite members

You can invite someone directly into your community without them needing to register for an event first. Two options are available from the Share & Invite card on your community page:

1. 1By email — enter up to 10 email addresses and send an invitation directly from the platform. Each recipient receives an email with a link to join the community.
2. 2By invite link — a private invite link is available in the Share & Invite card. Copy it and share it via WhatsApp, Slack, or any other channel. If the link has been revoked, click Generate a link to create a new one.
3. 3The person clicks the link, signs in, and instantly joins your community.
4. 4They appear immediately in the member list — you receive an email notification.

Approve registrations

You can enable registration approval on each event and/or each community independently, from the creation or edit settings.

For an event with approval enabled:

1. 1When a Member clicks Join, their request is sent to the organizer (no automatic registration)
2. 2You receive an email for each new request
3. 3From the event dashboard, a "Pending requests" section lists all requests with Approve or Decline options
4. 4If you approve: the Member receives a confirmation email and is registered (or placed on the waitlist if the event is full)
5. 5If you decline: the Member receives a notification email

For a community with approval enabled:

1. 1Membership requests (from the community page or via invite link) are subject to your approval
2. 2From the community dashboard, a "Pending requests" section lets you approve or decline each request

Enable payments

You can offer paid events by enabling payments on your community via Stripe Connect.

To enable payments:

1. Go to Edit your community
2. In the Payments section, click Enable payments
3. You'll be redirected to Stripe to complete your profile (name, address, bank details, ID)
4. Back on The Playground, the status changes to Payments enabled

To set a price on an event:

1. In the creation/edit form, the Ticket price section is now editable
2. Enter the price in euros — an estimated net amount (after Stripe fees) is displayed
3. Toggle Refundable on or off to set the refund policy

Payment tracking:

• Each paid event's dashboard shows a Ticketing summary (paid registrations, amount collected, refunded)
• For full details, click View my payments in the community settings — this opens the Stripe Express dashboard