diff --git a/README b/README
index 09d9d301c5..7b2dcacc50 100644
--- a/README
+++ b/README
@@ -1129,6 +1129,9 @@ welcome: nickname of a user account that sends welcome messages to new
          busy servers it may be a good idea to keep that one just for
          'urgent' messages. Default is null; no message.
 
+If either of these special user accounts are specified, the users should
+be created before the configuration is updated.
+
 Troubleshooting
 ===============