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Open Call / Call for Papers

Accept speaker proposals and manage submissions for your event.

Overview​

The Open Call (also called Call for Papers or CFP) feature allows:

  • Public submission of speaker proposals
  • Organized review process
  • Selection and scheduling of talks
  • Speaker communication

Accessing Open Call​

  1. Go to Dashboard → Toolkit
  2. Click Open Call
  3. Select your event

Or: Event → Manage → Toolkit → Open Call

Creating a Campaign​

Setting Up CFP​

  1. Click Create Campaign
  2. Configure campaign settings

Campaign Details​

Campaign Title (required)​

Name your call:

  • "Open Call 2024"
  • "Call for Speakers"
  • "Submit Your Talk Proposal"

Description​

Brief description explaining what you're looking for.

Submission Guidelines​

Provide submission guidelines:

  • Proposal requirements
  • Selection criteria
  • Important dates
  • What to include

Campaign Timing​

Opens At (required)​

When submissions open:

  • Set date and time
  • Campaign can be opened manually or opens automatically

Closes At (required)​

Submission deadline:

  • Set end date and time
  • No more submissions accepted after

Campaign Settings​

Max Proposals per Applicant​

Limit submissions per person:

  • Minimum: 1
  • Maximum: 10
  • Default: 3

Allow Multiple Tracks​

Toggle to let applicants submit to different tracks/categories.

Tracks/Categories​

Setting Up Tracks​

Organize submissions by category:

  1. In Campaign Settings, scroll to Tracks / Categories
  2. Enter track name in the input field
  3. Click Add Track

Tracks can be edited or deleted after creation.

Track Examples​

  • Frontend - UI and frontend development
  • DevOps - Infrastructure and operations
  • AI/ML - Artificial intelligence and machine learning
  • Design - UX/UI and creative
  • Workshop - Hands-on sessions

Proposal Submissions​

Submission Form​

The public submission form has two sections:

Your Information​

  • Name (required) - Applicant's full name
  • Email (required) - Contact email
  • Bio - Brief biography
  • Company - Organisation/affiliation
  • Job Title - Position

Proposal Details​

  • Title (required) - Talk title
  • Abstract (required) - Detailed description of the talk
  • Format (required) - Talk, Workshop, Panel, or Lightning Talk
  • Duration (required) - Requested time in minutes
  • Level - Beginner, Intermediate, or Advanced (optional)
  • Track - Category selection (if tracks configured)
  • Language - Presentation language (default: en)
  • Tags - Comma-separated keywords
  • Requirements - Special requirements (AV, setup, etc.)

Managing Submissions​

Submission Dashboard​

The proposals view includes:

  • Tabs for filtering by status (with counts)
  • Track filter dropdown (if tracks configured)
  • Paginated list of proposals

Proposal Status​

StatusMeaning
SubmittedNew proposal, awaiting review
Under ReviewBeing evaluated (auto-set when opened)
AcceptedSelected for event
RejectedNot selected
WaitlistedBackup selection

Reviewing Proposals​

  1. Click on a proposal to open the review modal
  2. Proposal is automatically marked as Under Review
  3. View full details:
    • Applicant name and email
    • Format, duration, level, language
    • Track (if selected)
    • Submission date
    • Abstract
    • Requirements and tags
    • Co-applicants (if any)
  4. Add reviewer notes
  5. Accept, reject, or waitlist

Reviewer Notes​

  • Add internal notes about the proposal
  • Notes are saved automatically when you click away
  • Notes are not shared with the applicant
  • Shows who reviewed and when
  • Notes are locked once the applicant has been notified

Selection Process​

Accepting Proposals​

  1. Open the proposal review modal
  2. Click Accept (green button)
  3. Proposal status changes to Accepted

Rejecting Proposals​

  1. Open the proposal review modal
  2. Click Reject (red button)
  3. Proposal status changes to Rejected

Waitlisting​

For backup selections:

  1. Open the proposal review modal
  2. Click Waitlist
  3. Proposal status changes to Waitlisted

Sending Decision Notifications​

Applicants are not automatically notified when you change their status. To send notifications:

  1. Click Notify Lineup (X) button (shows count of unnotified decisions)
  2. Add optional custom messages for each status:
    • Message for accepted applicants
    • Message for rejected applicants
    • Message for waitlisted applicants
  3. Click Send to email all applicants with pending decisions

Once notified, reviewer notes are locked and cannot be edited.

From Proposal to Activity​

Scheduling Accepted Proposals​

Accepted proposals appear in the Accepted Proposals section of the Schedule Builder:

  1. Go to Schedule Builder for your event
  2. Find the Accepted Proposals panel
  3. Click Schedule on a proposal
  4. In the modal, set:
    • Event Date (required) - Which day
    • Arena (optional) - Which room/track
    • Start Time (required)
    • End Time (required)
  5. Click Schedule

The proposal is converted to an activity with the proposal details.

Applicant Lineup Entry​

When a proposal is submitted, the applicant is automatically added to your lineup with their submitted information (name, email, bio, company, job title).

Email Notifications​

To Applicant​

applicants receive emails at key points:

On Submission​

Proposal Submitted email with:

  • Confirmation of submission
  • Proposal details

On Decision (when you send notifications)​

Applicants receive emails based on their decision status:

note

Decision emails are only sent when you click Notify Lineup. Changing status alone does not send emails.

View all email notifications →

Public CFP Page​

What Visitors See​

The public Open Call page shows:

  • Campaign title and description
  • Submission guidelines
  • Available tracks (if configured)
  • Opens/closes dates
  • Submission form (when open)

Sharing Your CFP​

Use the sharing buttons in the Open Call manager:

  • Copy Link - Copy URL to clipboard
  • Share - Native share dialog (or copy)
  • QR Code - Generate a QR code for the page

URL​

https://delvent.io/events/[event-slug]/open-call

Campaign Status​

StatusBadgeMeaning
DraftGreyNot yet open, still configuring
OpenGreenAccepting submissions
ClosedRedNo longer accepting submissions

Opening a Campaign​

From the campaign info panel or Settings modal:

  • Click Open Campaign to start accepting submissions
  • Click Reopen Campaign to reopen a closed campaign

Closing a Campaign​

In the Settings modal:

  • Click Close Campaign to stop accepting submissions
  • You can reopen later if needed

Best Practices​

Clear Guidelines​

Provide clarity on:

  • What topics you want
  • Expected audience level
  • Session lengths available
  • Selection criteria

Reasonable Timeline​

Allow time for:

  • Adequate submission period (2-4 weeks minimum)
  • Review process
  • Speaker notification
  • Schedule finalization

Communication​

  • Acknowledge all submissions
  • Provide timeline for decisions
  • Notify all speakers of outcome
  • Be constructive in rejections

Diversity​

Consider:

  • New speakers
  • Diverse perspectives
  • Different experience levels
  • Variety of topics

Campaign Overview​

The campaign info panel shows:

  • Opens At - When submissions open
  • Closes At - Submission deadline
  • Max Proposals/Applicant - Per-applicant limit
  • Total Proposals - Number of submissions received

Status counts are shown in the tabs:

  • All, Submitted, Under Review, Accepted, Rejected, Waitlisted

Troubleshooting​

Submissions Not Coming In​

  • Verify campaign status is Open (not Draft)
  • Check opens_at date has passed
  • Check closes_at date hasn't passed
  • Share the Open Call link more widely

Applicant Can't Submit​

  • Check campaign is open
  • Check submission deadline hasn't passed
  • Verify they haven't exceeded max proposals per applicant
  • Clear browser cache and retry

Decision Emails Not Sent​

  • You must click Notify Lineup to send emails
  • Changing status alone does not notify applicants
  • Check unnotified count in the button

Next Steps​