Entry Form

The form builder is a live preview of the entry page. Open Entrant pages and switch to the Entry page view. Hover a question to edit it, drag to reorder, and use Add question at the bottom of the Entry Details card to add more.

What every form includes

• Entry name
• Categories chosen from your configured categories; an entry can compete in more than one
• Your details: the entrant types their name and email into a card on the form. No account is needed; at submit AwardKit emails them a code to confirm the address. Signed-in users see their details prefilled.

Two more questions ship on every new program and can be removed, reordered, or re-added like any other question:

• Entry Summary: a paragraph question that feeds gallery cards, search, and link previews. See Entry Summary.
• Team Members: name and email for each collaborator. See Team Members.

New programs also start with an Attachments File Upload question.

Question types

Click Add question and pick a type:

The picker only offers the one-per-form types (Entry Summary, Team Members, Membership Question) while the form does not have one yet.

Adding a question opens an inline editor in the preview where you set its label, placeholder, help text, whether it is required, and the settings below.

Answer limit

Short Answer and Paragraph questions accept an Answer limit in Words or Characters. Entrants see a live count on the answer box as they type. Leave it empty for no limit. The ceiling is 10,000 words or 50,000 characters.

Hide from judges

Tick Hide from judges on any question whose answer identifies the entrant: company names, portfolio links, headshots. In rounds with blind judging switched on, the answer is stripped before the page reaches a judge. In open rounds the answer shows as usual. Rows with this setting carry a Hidden from judges badge in the builder.

Visibility

Every question has a Visibility setting: Always show, Only for some categories, or Based on an answer. Questions with a rule show a Conditional badge, and the Preview as switcher lets you view the form as an entrant in a given category would. See Conditional questions.

Section headings

A Section Heading is not a question: it has no answer, no required setting, and no CSV column, and it never counts toward the question limit. Use headings to break a long form into titled chapters ("About your company", "The work", "Results"). Entrants fill the form under those headings, judges review each entry under the same headings, and the public entry page renders answers grouped the same way. Sections with no visible answers are dropped from the read views.

Headings accept visibility rules too, so a whole section can be scoped to a category.

Entry Summary

The Entry Summary is the paragraph that represents the entry everywhere: gallery cards, search, link previews, and the top of the entry page. It ships on every new form as a designated paragraph question. You can rename it, add a limit, or delete it; the Entry Summary tile in the question picker adds it back. Only one summary question exists per form, and its row carries an Entry Summary badge.

Deleting the summary question stops new entries from collecting one; existing summaries keep showing on gallery cards and link previews but disappear from entry detail and judging pages until you add a new Entry Summary question.

Team Members

Team Members is a regular question you can move, delete, or add back from the picker (at most one per form). Entrants click Add a team member and enter a name and email per person. Every team member receives the entry-added email, can open the entry, and gets their own certificate when results are published. Programs that honor individuals simply remove the question.

Membership Question

When your program prices entries by entrant type, the Membership Question collects the entrant's declaration ("Are you a member?"). The card on the form reads "Your answer sets your entry fee." and the price range collapses to the exact amount once answered. The declared type shows in your Entries table and CSV export. One per form; it is created for you when you add entrant types.

URL questions and embeds

When an entrant pastes a supported link into a URL question, judges see the content inline on the entry page instead of a bare link:

• YouTube and Loom: video player embedded inline
• X: post embedded inline

Other URLs display as clickable links. For files, use a File Upload question rather than asking for a Drive link.

Deadline

The entries deadline lives on the program Overview timeline, not in the form builder. After it passes:

• The form shows that entries are closed
• Entrants cannot edit their entries
• You can still edit entries and add new ones with Add entry or Edit as Organizer
• The public entry gallery opens if its visibility is set to After entries close

Entry fees on the form

Entry fees, pricing periods, entrant types, multi-entry discounts, discount codes, and tax are configured under Categories. The form shows the active price next to each category, a running total, the multi-entry discount as soon as the entrant qualifies, and any tax line.

Testing before you go live

While a program is in Test mode, the public entry form is a preview: visitors can click through every step, and submitting opens a modal that shows what they would submit and where the email code would appear, without saving anything. Once you go live, submit a real entry yourself to check the confirmation email, then delete it from Entries. See Test mode and going live.

Tips

• Less is more. Five required questions is enough for most programs. The longer the form, the lower the completion rate.
• Put limits on paragraphs. A 300-word limit tells entrants how much detail you want and keeps judging time predictable.
• Group with headings instead of adding more required fields. A form that reads as three chapters feels shorter than the same questions in one list.
• Hide identifying questions from judges before you open entries, so a blind round is a switch, not a rebuild.
• Pre-fill placeholder examples so entrants understand the expected format.