Off platform payments

Some galleries collect entry fees through their own website, registration system, or in person — rather than through EntryThingy's built-in PayPal integration. The Off-Platform Payment setting supports this workflow: artists submit their application through EntryThingy, then contact you to pay separately, and you confirm the submission once payment is received.

When to use this

Use Off-Platform Payment if you:

• Have your own payment portal or online store (common for conventions, art fairs, and organizations with membership systems)
• Collect fees in person or by check
• Want to handle entry fees entirely outside EntryThingy

Setting it up

1. Open the call you want to configure (or create a new one)
2. Scroll to the Payment section at the bottom of the call form
3. Under Entry Fee Type, select Off-Platform Payment
4. Save the call

That's it — no PayPal configuration needed. When you select Off-Platform Payment, any existing PayPal button code for this call is automatically cleared.

What artists see

When an artist completes their application and clicks Submit, they are taken to a confirmation page that says:

Almost there!

Your application is saved. Contact the gallery to pay the entry fee — they'll confirm your submission once payment is received.

If your gallery account has a contact email set, that email address is shown on the page so artists know who to reach out to.

The artist's application is saved in full at this point. They can continue to edit their work while they wait for you to confirm — their deadline still applies.

Confirming a submission after payment

Once you've received payment from an artist, you need to mark their entry as Submitted in EntryThingy. Until you do, their application shows as a draft.

There are two ways to do this:

Option 1: Manual update in your admin panel

1. Go to your call's submission list
2. Find the artist's entry
3. Use the status dropdown to change the entry from Not Submitted to Submitted

Option 2: Platform API (for high-volume workflows)

If you have many entries to confirm — for example after a payment batch at a convention registration — you can use the EntryThingy Platform API to update entries programmatically.

The API lets you mark individual entries or bulk-update multiple entries at once. See Platform API Access for setup instructions, or contact us if you'd like help getting started.

Reminder emails to artists

Artists who haven't submitted yet will receive EntryThingy's standard deadline reminder emails (3 days before, 1 day before, 7 hours before). These emails include a note explaining that this gallery handles payment directly, so artists know to submit first and then contact you to pay.

Artists who have already submitted (and are waiting for your confirmation) do not receive these reminders.

Things to keep in mind

Artists can't pay through EntryThingy. There is no payment button on the submission page — artists are directed to contact you. Make sure your gallery account has a contact email configured so artists know how to reach you.

You control the confirmation. An entry is not counted as submitted until you mark it so. This means your submission reports will only show entries where payment has been confirmed.

Switching from a paid call mid-run. If you switch an existing call from Paid (PayPal) to Off-Platform after artists have already submitted and are waiting to pay, those artists will see the "contact gallery" message on their next visit instead of the PayPal button. There is no automatic notification to artists when the payment method changes, so if you make this change mid-run, consider sending a message to affected artists explaining the new process.

Coupon codes are not available for Off-Platform Payment calls — the coupon field is only relevant for PayPal-based calls.