How I Send Real Estate Event Invitations by Text and Email Without Using My Personal Phone Number

If you are looking to create online event invitations and want to send them via text message or email at scale, there is a better option than blasting people from your personal phone number.

Here is the short answer up front:

I use Punchbowl for text message invitations and Eventbrite for email marketing. This combo lets me promote events hard, protect my personal number, and track results. Below, I am breaking down exactly how I do this step by step, why it works so well for real estate events, and how you can copy the same system for your own classes, panels, client events, or networking mixers.

Why Text Message Event Invitations Matter More Than Ever

If you are hosting real estate events, you already know this:

Email alone is not enough anymore. Inbox competition is brutal. Even good emails get buried. Text messages, on the other hand, get opened almost immediately. When I want real estate agents to actually see an invitation, read it, and RSVP, text wins every time.

The problem is that most text blasting tools send messages from your personal phone number. That is a hard no for me. I host a lot of events. If I sent hundreds of messages from my own number, I would be setting myself up for replies at all hours, confusion, and potential spam issues. That is where Punchbowl changed the game for me.

Why I Use Punchbowl for Text Message Invitations

The single biggest reason I use Punchbowl is simple:

Text messages are sent from Punchbowl’s phone number, not mine.

That alone makes it worth it.

Here is what I love most:

• I can send up to 500 text messages at scale

• Messages go out from Punchbowl’s system, not my personal device

• Guests can RSVP directly from the text

• I can schedule reminders automatically

• I can track who opened, clicked, and responded

Pricing is also extremely reasonable. At the time of recording, the preferred plan is about $5 per month, roughly $60 per year. For anyone running recurring real estate events, that is a no brainer.

When I Still Use Eventbrite

I am not anti Eventbrite. I actually still use it regularly.

Here is how I split responsibilities:

• Eventbrite handles email blasts, event pages, and organic discovery

• Punchbowl handles text message invitations and reminders

Email plus text is a powerful combo. One supports the other instead of relying on a single channel.

Step 1: Create Your Punchbowl Account

Once you create your Punchbowl account, fill out your profile information first. This helps everything downstream look more professional.

After that, you will choose between two options:

• Greeting card

• Online invitation

If you are creating events at scale like I do, always choose online invitation.

Greeting cards are fine for personal use. Online invitations are built for events.

Step 2: Create Your Invitation Design the Right Way

This is the part that trips most people up.

Punchbowl allows you to upload your own custom image. That is what I recommend doing.

The key detail most people miss is image size.

For the invitation style I use, the image dimensions must be:

360 pixels wide by 510 pixels tall

If your image is not sized correctly, it will look blurry or cut off.

How I Create My Images

I usually do one of three things:

• Use ChatGPT to help reformat an existing Eventbrite banner

• Use Gemini or another AI tool to assist with resizing

• Final polish inside Canva using the exact dimensions

If I already created an Eventbrite banner, I do not start from scratch. I reformat it.

Once the image is ready, upload it into Punchbowl and select it as your invitation design.

Step 3: Fill in Event Details Carefully

A few important things to know here:

• Event titles are limited to 50 characters

• Punchbowl does not like same day end dates

• I usually list the time range in the description instead

I enter:

• Event name

• Date

• Start time

• Host name

• Venue details

• Full event description

For longer descriptions, I recommend formatting the text outside of Punchbowl first.

Step 4: Formatting the Event Description Cleanly

Punchbowl’s editor can be a little finicky with spacing.

Here is what I do:

I take my Eventbrite description, paste it into ChatGPT, and ask it to clean up spacing and formatting so it is Punchbowl friendly.

Once formatted properly, I paste it back into Punchbowl and everything looks clean and readable.

You can also use:

• Bold text

• Bullet points

• Paragraph spacing

This makes a big difference in how professional the invitation looks.

Step 5: Uploading Contacts the Smart Way

This is a big one.

Punchbowl allows you to upload contacts via CSV. The format matters.

For text message invitations, I only upload:

• First name

• Last name

• Phone number

I intentionally do not upload email addresses into Punchbowl.

Why?

Because if an email is present, Punchbowl may default to sending an email instead of a text. Since I am already handling email through Eventbrite, I want Punchbowl to focus 100 percent on texting.

My CSV has three columns only:

• First Name

• Last Name

• Phone Number

That is it.

Step 6: Customize the Message So People Know Who You Are

Never send a generic invitation message.

If someone receives a text from a random number with no context, they will ignore it.

I always customize:

• Subject line

• Message body

  
  

For example:

Subject: You’re Invited Message: Jerad Larkin with Chicago Title is inviting you. Click the invitation to see details and RSVP. This instantly establishes trust and clarity.

Step 7: Turn On Automatic Reminders

This is one of the most underrated features.

I always enable automatic reminders so guests receive a follow up text closer to the event date. This alone boosts attendance significantly.

People are busy. Reminders work.

Step 8: Preview the Invitation Before Sending

Before sending anything out, I always preview the invitation.

I look at it exactly how a guest will see it:

• Envelope design

• Event title

• RSVP buttons

• Calendar add option

• Description layout

If something looks off, I fix it before sending.

Step 9: Branding the Invitation

Punchbowl allows you to add branding touches that make a big difference:

• Upload your logo to the envelope

• Customize the stamp or seal

• Adjust colors to stand out visually

These small details increase curiosity and click through.

If someone does not recognize the number, the visual presentation helps pull them in.

Step 10: Send and Track Results

Once sent, Punchbowl lets you track:

• Who opened the invitation

• Who RSVPed yes

• Who has not responded

This helps you follow up intelligently instead of guessing.

Why This System Works So Well for Real Estate Events

I host classes, panels, networking events, and workshops constantly. This system lets me:

• Promote aggressively without annoying people

• Protect my personal phone number

• Combine text and email strategically

• Track engagement

• Look professional and intentional

If you are serious about hosting real estate events that actually get attended, this setup works.

Final Takeaway

If you are still relying only on email or texting people one by one from your personal phone, you are making event promotion harder than it needs to be.

Using Punchbowl for text and Eventbrite for email has been one of the simplest upgrades I have made in how I market events.

If this was helpful, I share more tools, resources, and real world marketing strategies like this at:

MileHighTitleGuy.com

Questions? Contact:

Jerad Larkin

303.630.9430

Info@MileHighTitleGuy.com

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