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Managing Contest Registration Details
In this tutorial, you'll learn how to specify the details for each of the items you wish to include in your online registration process. This tutorial assumes that you, or your State or Regional Coordinator, have already done the initial set-up of your Contest event in the Registration Manager system. This process is explained in the tutorial entitled "Creating and Managing a Contest," which we recommend you view before continuing with this lesson.
To manage the details of each of your contest's registration items, go to the Registration Manager Admin Start Page. Note at the top of this page that there are several components of the registration process marked as "global," in that they will apply to all Contests for your State or Region. Global components are managed by the State or Regional Coordinator, and are described in more detail in our tutorial on "Global Components of the Registration Manager System."
Below the Global components, you'll see the list of individual Contest events for your jurisdiction. Begin by finding and then clicking on your Contest name's link. (Ask your State or Regional Coordinator if you don't find your Contest event on this list).
Clicking on the contest name will take you to the Contest Items Menu. Under the heading, "Registration Setup," you'll see each of the major components of your event's online registration, as defined when the Contest was initially set up. Again, if you do not see a component you expected, check with your State or Regional Coordinator.
In the second cluster of items, you'll see "Registration Data" for your contest. The first set of items are Custom Reports for event; that is, formatted lists showing various sub-sets of information about the people and entries registered for your Contest, organized and sorted in a variety of useful ways. We'll talk more about how to set up and manipulate these reports in the tutorial entitled, "Reporting Functions for Your Contest."
The next cluster of items, "Edit Master Registrant Records," is where you'll be able to search, view, update, or add to the registration data already submitted by your various types of registrants, once your online registration period has commenced. More on that in just a bit.
Below that section, there are additional tools for managing your Contest, in the clusters titled "Competition Setup," "Competition Data," and "Create New Reports." These are functions you don't need to deal with right now -- they pertain to the set-up and management of your actual Contest event. They are covered in greater detail in our series of Competition Manager administrative tutorials.
Now, let's return to that first cluster of components at the top of the Contest Items Menu. These components pertain to the various options we reviewed in the tutorial on "Creating and Managing a Contest". Remember that what we're doing now is adding detailed information to each of these components, the results of which will appear on the various forms that Registration Manager will display as part of your Contest's online registration process.
You may not need to supply details for all of these components -- only for those which were activated when your Contest was initially created. At the minimum, however, you must provide details for the Division and Category items, as these are required for proper operation of the Registration Manager system.
Before we get started, let's review some general concepts that will help you find your way around. For each topic in these lists, you'll see three button-options: "Add New," "Search," and "View." In general, the "Add New" button is how you can add new item details to each component of your online registration; when you click "Add New," you will be taken to a brief form where you can supply the necessary detail for each item you wish to create. "Search" takes you to a powerful search tool that will allow you to quickly find any information you've entered into the system for each component. "View," as you might expect, takes you to a listing of each of the detail items you've established for that component. Note that from the listing view, you'll also be able to add, edit, or even delete detail items. More on that in a bit.
Let's start by setting up the Divisions for your Contest. "Divisions" are the large sub-groupings into which you want to place your contestants, such as "Junior" for Middle School students or "Senior" for High School students.
First, click on the "Add New" button to the left of the "Divisions" link. On the resulting form, select your Contest from the drop-down menu and enter the Division name, exactly as you wish it to appear throughout your Contest, and maximum grade level allowed to compete in that Division.
When choosing a title for your Divisions, we recommend that you include the eligible grade levels for each division within the division name, so that your registrants will know immediately in which division an entry should be placed. For example, you may want to enter "Junior (6-8)" or "Senior (9-12)" as your Division titles, instead of simply "Junior" or "Senior." Your event may call for the establishment of additional Divisions to add, but be sure you create all the Divisions you'll need to properly classify entries which may be eligible to advance to the next higher level of competition, beyond your Contest event.
Note that throughout this set-up process, only one item can be entered at a time; in this case, after you've entered details for your first Division item, simply click "Save Changes," which will return you to the Divisions list-view, and repeat the "add new" process for each additional item you wish to create.
When you have entered all your Division items, you can return to the Contest Detail Menu for your Contest by clicking on the small, red "Back to [your contest's name]" link (for example, "Back to Tammy's Contest") near the top of the page just below the gray bar.
Each of the detail items for the subsequent Registration components can be set up and edited in the same manner. If you've already set up an item and later wish to revise it, simply call up the item by selecting the "View" link for its parent component (in this example, choose "View" next to "Divisions"). Find the item you wish to edit on the resulting list-view, and click the "Details" link next to that item. The screen now shows you the information you previously entered; simply make your changes, and when finished, click the "Save Changes" button. This will return you to the list-view from which you came. Remember, you also can use the small red links at the top of the form to navigate back to the broader menus, such as the Contest Items Menu and Admin Start Page.
Next, we'll set up Categories for your Contest, the second registration component that is required for proper operation of the Registration Manager system. "Categories," like Divisions, allow you to further organize your contestants into comparable competitive groups; and, like most detail items you'll be setting up, you want to give careful thought to how you title each Category, because the titles you enter here will appear throughout the forms, reports, and online registration for your Contest event.
For example, where both individuals and groups may enter a particular Category, but do not compete directly, you should set up two separate Categories, each one reflecting both by the entry class ("Individual" or "Group") and the entry type (for example, "Documentary," "Paper," "Performance," "Exhibit," etc.). In this example, therefore, "Individual Performance" and "Group Performance" would be two separate categories.
Exhibition Display Location will only need to be edited if the "Include Display Your Work Form" checkbox was selected when your Contest was initially created. If so, you can enter information about each venue that will be available for contestants to display their work.
Packages (Housing/Meals) will only need to be edited if the "Include Housing, Meal Form" checkbox was selected when your Contest was initially created. This registration component can also be used to enroll your registrants for transit or similar logistical services. For each housing, meal or other package you are offering, supply the requested information. Note that the "begin" and "end" dates are primarily intended to define check-in/check-out dates for housing packages, but you could put the same date for both "start" and "end" if you are describing a single-day package, such as a charter bus tour to a nearby historical site.
Where you wish to provide differentiated pricing for different types of registrants, simply create additional Package Items, varying the fee as you wish for each registrant type and checking the appropriate box(es) to indicate which registrants should be offered that particular package price. For example, you may be offering a meal plan with a base price of $20 for students, $15 for teachers and parents, and free for volunteers and judges. In this case, you would want to set up three meal plan items (each with a different price point), using the audience checkboxes to assign each package to the appropriate registrant group(s).
Scholarships will only need to be edited if the "Include Scholarship Form for Students" checkbox was selected when your Contest was initially created. Use the description area to include as much information as you may need to communicate, including the scholarship description, amount, eligibility requirements, etc. The "Sponsor Contact Name" and "Sponsor Email" fields govern who, at the sponsoring institution, will receive the applicant information you'll be gathering through online registration. By default, Registration Manager automatically e-mails scholarship applications to the sponsor contact you specify, but the contact information is not displayed on the online registration form. If the scholarship requires a supporting essay, check the box marked "This scholarship requires an essay" to add a text field to this page of your online registration, where students may type or paste in their essay.
Special Awards will only need to be edited if the "Include Special Awards for Entries" checkbox was selected when your Contest was initially created. Enter each of the Special Award items you'll offer as part of your Contest, one at a time, clicking "Save Changes" after each one. Use the Description field to describe the nature of the award (certificate, monetary prize, etc.) as well as eligibility requirements. Use the "Sponsor" field to recognize any organization(s) contributing honoraria for the award.
On your online registration form, registrants may nominate themselves or others for each award, as per your stated eligibility requirements. If an award nomination requires a supporting explanation or justification statement, check the box marked "This award requires justification" to add a text field to this page of your online registration, where nominators may type or paste in their supporting statement.
Note that you can use Special Awards not only to advise contestants of competitive recognition opportunities, but also to recognize individuals for outstanding service; lifetime achievements, etc.; honor sponsors for exceptional support of your organization; and any other type of recognition driven by open nominations from your
Special Events will only need to be edited if the "Include Special Events for Registrants" checkbox was selected when your Contest was initially created. Enter the details of each of Special Event in this area. Special Events can range from workshops, seminars or tours to social events, spouse programs, group meal events or official ceremonies. Note that the "time" field can contain any descriptor you wish, including numerical or text information, such as "7:30 pm. 'til conclusion."
If you wish to establish differentiated pricing for different types of registrants, simply create additional Special Event items, varying the Event Fee as you wish for each registrant type and checking the appropriate box(es) to indicate which registrants should be offered that particular price. For example, you may be offering an Awards Dinner with a base price of $20 for students, $35 for teachers and parents, and free for volunteers and judges. In this case, you would want to set up three Awards Dinner items (each with a different price point), using the audience checkboxes to offer the appropriate package to the respective registrant group(s). Of course, you can offer Special Events at no charge -- simply enter an Event Fee of "0".
Merchandise will only need to be edited if the "Include Merchandise form" checkbox was selected when your Contest was initially created. Merchandise offerings can include tangible goods, such as T-shirts, caps, logo pins and the like; as well as specific services, such as wireless internet ("Wi-Fi") access for registrants while they are on-site at your Contest venue. For each item, set a unit price and, if you wish, add a link to a photo of the item, which might exist elsewhere on your website.
Contest Fee Discount will only need to be edited if you are offering entry, housing, meal, shipping and/or overall fee subsidies to your contestants. The "Paid by" field optionally allows you to recognize a sponsor or other benefactor who may have provided funding for the subsidy. In this field, for example, you may want to say "$10 of your entry fee has been generously provided by XYZ Corporation in support of our program."
Remember, by clicking on any component's "View" button, you can access a list view of that component's active items. From there, you can always click on the "Details" link for any item, to revise or update existing information. From the list view, you can also delete an unwanted item by checking the small box at the far left of the item listing, and then clicking the "Save Changes" button to permanently erase that item from the list.
Please view our other tutorials in this series to learn more about the many options and features to help set up and manage online registration for your event through AcuWeb's Registration Manager system.
To view another tutorial in this series, please return to the listing of RM Tutorial contents. |
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