FAQ

Here is a link to the game rules. Step-by-step instructions are provided at the bottom of the page

To participate in a gift exchange you should log in to the site. If you received an invitation link from the game organizer, then by clicking on it you perform 2 actions at once:

1. you log in to the site,
2. you send a request to participate in the gift exchange

The authorization process happens faster via social networks. But if you register using Email and password, you will also have to confirm your email at the same time (you'll receive an account activation link in your inbox).

If you have a problem with authorization, then do it in 2 steps:

1. first log in the site,
2. then open the invitation link sent by the organizer and click the "Join" button, - in this case, you are guaranteed to join the gift exchange (bypassing the intermediate registration process). The organizer will receive a notification with your request. And when he or she approves it, you will also receive a message that you are now participating in the gift exchange

After registering on the site, email notifications are enabled by default. This allows users to receive service alerts about the progress of the gift exchange in which they're participating.

Messages are sent to the email specified during registration. You can see it at your profile. If the mailbox is invalid, you can specify another one. In this case, you'll receive a confirmation link on your second Email.

In addition to mail, notifications are sent to the website: see the bell button in the upper left corner. This is a counter of unread messages and a link to all previously received notifications:

To create a wish list or a thrash list, you need to log in to the site. You can fill out your list manually or by adding gift ideas to it.

Public wish list:

Profile ➡ My wish list

You can make this list without participating in a gift exchange. You can share your wish list link with your loved ones, they will see it without registering on the site. This list contains gifts that don't yet have the status "Received". Access to the list is only by link, other users can't see it.

 

The wish list inside the gift exchange:

Game page ➡ Me ➡ ❤️ Wishes

This list is compiled to participate in the gift exchange within a specific team, so that your Secret Santa knows what kind of gift you expect from him or her. Any approved team member can see your wish list. It's not available to other users.

You can also view the wish lists of your teammates in the same way:

Game page ➡ 👤 Members ➡ ❤️ Wishes of a member

After all invited participants (at least three) have been approved by the administrator, the draw can begin.

Before the deadline:

If users have confirmed their participation before the deadline, the administrator can complete the registration stage ahead of time:

Game page ➡ "Close registration" button

The game status will be updated immediately and the "Start the draw" button will appear.

 

After the deadline:

When the registration period expires, the administrator receives a notification that the team is ready for the draw:

Game page ➡ "Start the draw" button

After the start of the draw, the approved participants will be divided into pairs and receive a secret message with the name of their giftee.

Interfering with the drawing algorithm is a bad idea (it's fraught with abuse by the gift exchange administrator). Pairing occurs automatically and randomly on the site. No one can assign a giftee manually. But you can make sure that 2 persons don't exactly match.

Why might this be needed?

1. To avoid repeating a pair drawn in the last gift exchange.
2. The atmosphere can be different in the team, and some people are better off not getting together in order to avoid negative emotions and bad gifts.

The function to add exceptions is available to the administrator of a team with more than 3 players. However, there is a limitation: the number of exceptions cannot exceed 30% of the number of participants in your game.

Evenness doesn't matter because "pairs" is a figurative concept. Each team member will be a Secret Santa for some person, and a giftee for another one. For example, if there are 10 players on a team, then your Santa is selected from the remaining 9 persons. Same for every other participant.

See an example

If the player who submitted the application has already been approved, then no way. If the player changes his or her mind about participating before the draw, he or she can drop out of the game unaided:

Gift exchange page ➡ Tab "Me" ➡ Button "Quit the game"

After the draw, none of the approved participants can leave the game.

If the user who submitted the application is not approved, then you can play without him or her. Because the user's application is not confirmed, he or she doesn't participate in the gift exchange and cannot see the progress of the game.

If you created 2 identical games accidentally, you can delete the unnecessary one so as not to get confused. This feature is only available to the game creator:

Gift exchange page ➡ Button "Delete"

According to the game rules, no one can know the results of the draw, not even the organizer. This is the meaning of Secret Santa gift exchange. The organizer and his or her assistant are the same members as the other invited users; they just have the ability to control the course of the game.

If the "Anonymous game" option is selected in your gift exchange settings, the result of the draw will always be hidden. If not, then you will see all members' pairs after the date of exchanging gifts:

Gift exchange page ➡ Tab "Members"

The Secret Santa website is not responsible for sending gifts. You need to resolve this issue with the organizer of your gift exchange.