Vote Categories and Scoring System
EntryThingy's voting system allows you to configure how jurors score entries or pieces. You can use a simple single-category scoring system or create multiple voting categories for more detailed evaluation.
Overview
When setting up jury voting for your call, you configure: - Voting Range: The point values jurors can assign (e.g., 0-4, 1-10) - Voting Categories: Optional categories for scoring (e.g., "Technical Skill", "Creativity", "Overall Impact") - Vote Aggregation: How votes from multiple jurors are combined
Voting Range
The voting range defines what point values jurors can assign. This is set when creating or editing your call.
Example: If you set the range from 0 to 4, jurors can assign: - 0 points (lowest) - 1 point - 2 points - 3 points - 4 points (highest)
Common ranges: - 0-4: Simple 5-point scale (common for art calls) - 1-5: Standard 5-point scale (no zero option) - 0-10: More granular scoring - 1-10: Standard 10-point scale
How to set: In your call's Juror Settings, configure "Voting Range" with a start value (From) and end value (To). The range is inclusive, meaning both endpoints are valid scores.
Voting Categories
Voting categories let jurors score entries or pieces across multiple criteria. This provides more detailed evaluation than a single overall score.
Single Category (Default)
If you don't add any voting categories, jurors use a single "Points" category. This is the simplest setup and works well for straightforward evaluations.
Example: A juror assigns 4 points to an entry. That's the entry's score.
Multiple Categories
You can add up to 10 voting categories. Each category is scored independently, and scores are summed or averaged to create a total score.
Example categories: - Technical Skill - Creativity - Concept - Presentation - Overall Impact
How it works: 1. A juror reviews an entry 2. They assign points for each category (e.g., Technical Skill: 4, Creativity: 5, Concept: 3) 3. The system sums these scores (4 + 5 + 3 = 12 total points) 4. When multiple jurors vote, their scores are aggregated
How to add categories: In your call's Juror Settings, click "+ Add additional categories" and enter category names. You can add up to 10 categories.
How Scores Are Calculated
Single Juror, Single Category
If a juror assigns 4 points to an entry, that entry has 4 points from that juror.
Single Juror, Multiple Categories
If a juror assigns: - Technical Skill: 4 points - Creativity: 5 points - Concept: 3 points
The entry receives 12 total points from that juror (4 + 5 + 3).
Multiple Jurors
When multiple jurors vote on the same entry: - Each juror's total score is calculated (sum of their category scores) - All jurors' totals are summed together - The entry's final score is the sum of all jurors' votes
Example: - Juror A votes: Technical Skill (4) + Creativity (5) = 9 points - Juror B votes: Technical Skill (3) + Creativity (4) = 7 points - Juror C votes: Technical Skill (5) + Creativity (5) = 10 points - Entry total: 9 + 7 + 10 = 26 points
Note: The system also tracks the number of votes (how many jurors voted) separately from the total points.
Viewing Scores
For Administrators
- Entries/Pieces Lists: Sort by "Points" to see highest-scoring submissions
- Statistics Dashboard: See score distributions and voting patterns
- Individual Entry Pages: View all votes cast by each juror
For Jurors
- Score Distribution: See how votes are distributed across point values
- Their Own Votes: Can see and modify their own votes
- Cannot see other jurors' votes: Each juror only sees their own voting, not scores from other jurors
Best Practices
Choosing a Voting Range
- 0-4 or 1-5: Good for most calls, simple and easy for jurors to understand
- 0-10 or 1-10: Use when you need more granular scoring or have many entries to differentiate
- Avoid very large ranges: Ranges like 0-100 can be overwhelming and don't provide much benefit
Using Multiple Categories
When to use multiple categories: - You want detailed feedback on different aspects of submissions - Different jurors have different expertise (e.g., one focuses on technique, another on concept) - You want to understand what makes entries successful
When single category is better: - Simple evaluation where overall quality is what matters - Jurors prefer straightforward scoring - You want to keep the voting process quick
Tips: - Keep category names clear and specific - Don't add too many categories (3-5 is usually ideal) - Make sure categories are distinct (avoid overlap) - Consider what you'll do with the data—if you won't analyze by category, single category may be simpler
Examples
Example 1: Simple Single Category
Setup: - Voting Range: 0-4 - Categories: None (uses default "Points")
How jurors vote: - Juror assigns 4 points to Entry #123 - Entry #123 has 4 points from that juror
Result: - Entry #123 appears with 4 points in the entries list - If 3 jurors all vote 4 points, Entry #123 has 12 total points
Example 2: Multiple Categories
Setup: - Voting Range: 1-5 - Categories: Technical Skill, Creativity, Overall Impact
How jurors vote: - Juror assigns: Technical Skill (4), Creativity (5), Overall Impact (4) - Entry receives 13 points from that juror (4 + 5 + 4)
Result: - Entry appears with 13 points in the entries list - Administrators can see breakdown by category if needed
Example 3: Comparing Entries
Setup: - Voting Range: 0-4 - Categories: Concept, Execution
Voting results: - Entry A: Concept (4) + Execution (3) = 7 points from Juror 1 - Entry B: Concept (3) + Execution (4) = 7 points from Juror 1 - Both entries have the same total score, but different strengths
Use this to: Identify entries with different strengths even if they have similar total scores.
Common Questions
Can jurors see scores from other jurors? No. Jurors can only see their own votes. Administrators can see all votes from all jurors.
Can I change voting categories after jurors start voting? It's not recommended. Changing categories after voting has started can cause confusion and data inconsistencies. Set up your categories before jurors begin reviewing.
What if a juror doesn't vote on all categories? Jurors must vote on all configured categories for their vote to be complete. The system tracks which entries have complete votes.
How do I see which entries scored highest? Go to your Entries or Pieces page and sort by "Points" (descending) to see highest-scoring submissions first.
Can I export voting data? Yes, use the download feature to export entries with voting data. See How does the new downloader work? for details.