Make a tribute page from everyone's messages

Two stages, two pages

The mistake people make is building the tribute in public, where the person being celebrated can watch it grow. Keep the stages apart. A plain collection page goes to contributors; the tribute itself is published only on the day.

Stage 1: the collection page

Write a short brief: whose tribute, the occasion, the deadline, and what kind of message you're hoping for. Prompts help people who stare at a blank box: a favourite memory, something they taught you, a thing they always said. Ask for a few sentences rather than a speech.

The contact form on an Anticode page asks for a name, an email and a message, which is exactly the shape of a tribute message. Say above it that the name will be shown with the message and the email won't. Each submission is saved in your dashboard, and you can have them emailed to you as they arrive or sent to a Google Sheet through a connector, which makes the editing stage much easier. The form doesn't take file uploads, so ask people to email photos to you separately.

Curating the messages

This is where a tribute page earns its keep over a card. Read everything, then:

• Group them: colleagues, family, friends, or by decade of their life.
• Fix typos quietly and leave each writer's voice alone.
• Leave out anything that could hurt, including in-jokes that won't read well to others. When in doubt, ask the writer.
• Lead with a strong one, and end with someone close to them.
• Get permission for photos of other people.

Put the edited messages into a CMS collection with fields for name, relationship and message. You add or adjust entries in the dashboard, and late messages that arrive after the reveal can be added without rebuilding the page.

Stage 2: building the tribute

Describe it: "a retirement tribute page for Margaret, 32 years at the library, with a short story of her career, photos, and messages from colleagues and readers". Add photos to the build; the model sees them and places them. Choose a design system that suits the person rather than the occasion: Editorial (Geist) for a writer, Organic (Figtree) for a gardener, Playful (Fredoka) for someone who never took anything too seriously. The memorial website guide covers the different care a tribute after a death needs.

Revealing it

Publish on the morning of the day and share the link at the leaving do, the birthday dinner or in the team meeting. Projected on a screen, the page can be scrolled through while people read their own messages aloud. Give the person a moment with it before the crowd does: some people would rather read their messages alone first, and it's worth asking a partner or close friend which they'd prefer. Afterwards, it can stay up as long as they'd like; you can also export it as a single HTML file they can keep offline.

Limits

• No moderation queue. Messages don't appear on the page automatically; you add the ones you choose. Many organisers prefer this.
• No photo uploads by contributors. Collect them by email.
• No private pages. Published pages are public; keep home addresses and anything sensitive out.
• No printed book. If you want one, use a print service with the same text.

Questions people ask

How many messages can a tribute page hold?

As many as you add to the collection. On the free plan, a monthly number of form submissions is visible (default 100) and the rest are held until upgrade.

Can contributors see each other's messages before the day?

No, unless you publish them. Messages go to your dashboard, not onto the page.

Can several organisers read the submissions?

Send them to a shared Google Sheet with a connector, or work in a Team workspace.