# Selecting My Dates

### The Three Required Dates

#### 1. Start Date

* When your raffle page goes live for ticket purchases
* Even if you activate your raffle earlier, it won't be visible to the public until this date
* Choose a start date that gives you enough time to promote your raffle

#### 2. Close Date

* When ticket sales will end
* You have two options on this date:
  * Manually close the raffle through the admin portal at any time
  * Let it automatically close shortly after midnight
* The close button will appear in your admin portal on this date

#### 3. Draw Date

* When you can conduct your raffle draw
* The draw button will be enabled in the Draw Panel in your admin portal once:
  * The raffle is closed
  * It is your selected draw date
* You can draw the raffle at any time on this date

### Recommended Approach for Events

If you're running a raffle at an event (like a fete or fundraiser):

* Set the close date and draw date to your event day
* Log in to the admin portal during the event
* Close the raffle when you want to stop selling tickets
* Draw the winners when you're ready to announce them

### Important Tips

* We recommend setting your close and draw dates to the same day to maximize sales
* Once closed, a raffle cannot be reopened unless manually done by RaffleLink Support
* You can set up and activate your raffle before the start date and it won't go live to the public before your start date

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