After your jury has reviewed submissions, it's time to make selections. Crafted Call lets you change submission status—one at a time or in bulk—and automatically notify artists of acceptance, rejection, or waitlist placement. This guide covers the complete workflow.
Understanding Submission Statuses
Before you start changing statuses, understand what each means:
Accepted
The submission is selected for the exhibition. When you mark a submission as Accepted:
The artist receives a notification email (customizable)
The submission appears in your exhibition builder (where you plan the layout)
The artist can see their acceptance in their Crafted Call account
The work moves to your active exhibition pipeline
Use for: Work that has passed jury review and will be included in the show.
Rejected
The submission is not selected. When you mark a submission as Rejected:
The artist receives a rejection notification (with optional feedback)
The submission no longer appears in exhibition planning
The artist can see their rejection status and read any feedback you provide
The work is archived from the active view but the record remains
Use for: Work that did not meet the call criteria or jury standards.
Waitlisted
The submission is ranked but not yet confirmed. Waitlist entries have a ranked position (e.g., "Waitlist position 3"). If an accepted artist withdraws or there's budget/space for more work, waitlisted submissions are automatically promoted.
When you mark a submission as Waitlisted:
The artist receives a waitlist notification with their position
The submission is held in a pending state
If space opens, you can auto-promote the highest-ranked waitlist entries
Waitlist entries expire after a set period (e.g., 30 days) if not promoted
Use for: Strong submissions that you'd include if you had more space or budget.
Under Review
A juror is currently evaluating this submission. This status appears automatically when a juror starts scoring a submission in the jury tool.
Submitted
The default status immediately after an artist submits. The submission awaits jury review or admin decision.
Changing Status Individually
Step 1: Open the submission
Click any card in the intake view to open the full submission detail.
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Step 2: Change status
In the submission details, locate the Status selector (a dropdown or button, depending on your view). Click to open status options.
Step 3: Select new status
Choose Accepted, Rejected, or Waitlisted.
Artists will see this if you choose to share feedback.
If waitlisting:
Waitlist rank: You assign a position (1, 2, 3, etc.). Lower numbers are higher priority for promotion. The system will promote the lowest-numbered entries first if space opens.
Step 5: Send notification
By default, Crafted Call sends an automated email:
Acceptance: Congratulates the artist and provides next steps (drop-off info, payment details, etc.)
Rejection: Thanks them for submitting and includes your optional feedback
Waitlist: Informs them of their rank and timeline for final decision
Toggle "Notify artist" if you want to skip the automatic email (e.g., you're sending a custom message separately).
Step 6: Save
Click Save. The status updates immediately. The artist receives their notification.
Tip: If sending rejections, always include something positive. "We received strong submissions and could only select 50 works. We encourage you to apply to future calls" helps artists feel valued.
Bulk Status Changes
For efficiency, change the status of multiple submissions at once.
Step 1: Select submissions
In the intake view, check the boxes next to submissions you want to update. You can:
Select a few specific cards
Check "Select all on this page" (loads all visible; useful if filtered)
Use filters + "Select all" to select all submissions matching criteria (e.g., "Select all 'Submitted' status")
Step 2: Open bulk actions menu
A toolbar appears at the top with actions. Click Change Status.
Step 3: Choose new status
Select Accepted, Rejected, or Waitlisted for all selected submissions.
Step 4: Add optional details for rejections
If rejecting in bulk, you can set a default rejection reason that applies to all selected. Example: "Selection focused on representational painting this year."
If you want different reasons for different submissions, you'll need to reject them individually or edit after bulk assignment.
Step 5: Confirm and send
Click Confirm. Crafted Call updates all selected submissions and sends notifications.
A progress indicator shows the status. Once complete, you'll see a summary: "25 submissions marked Accepted, 0 email delivery failures."
Best practice: Test your notification email text before sending. Accept one test submission first, review the email it generates, then bulk-process the rest.
Waitlisting & Auto-Promotion
Waitlists are powerful for managing uncertain space. Here's how they work:
Creating a waitlist
As you accept submissions, you may hit a space or budget limit. Mark the next batch as Waitlisted with positions:
Waitlist position 1 (highest priority)
Waitlist position 2
Waitlist position 3
Etc.
The artist sees "Waitlist position 2" and knows where they stand. Most galleries keep waitlists with no more than 50% overflow (if you're showing 50 works, waitlist 25).
Auto-promotion when space opens
If an accepted artist withdraws, you have space. Instead of manually promoting the next waitlist entry, use Auto-Promote:
Navigate to the submissions view
Find the accepted submission that withdrew
Change its status to Archived or Withdrawn
Click Auto-promote next waitlist entry
Crafted Call promotes the highest-ranked waitlist entry (lowest position number) to Accepted and sends an acceptance notification to that artist.
Waitlist expiration
You can set a deadline (e.g., "Waitlist decisions by March 31"). After that date, any unpromoted waitlist entries automatically convert to Rejected, and artists are notified with a "Waitlist position expired" message.
Tip: Set a clear waitlist expiration date. Most artists won't wait indefinitely. Give them 2–4 weeks from the notification date to hear final news.
Sending Custom Messages
Beyond the standard acceptance/rejection email, you can send personalized messages to artists.
Example use cases:
"Your work was accepted! We'd love to interview you for our newsletter."
"While we didn't select your submission this year, we found your work compelling and invite you to [next call]."
"Congratulations on acceptance! Please confirm your drop-off date by [date]."
To send a custom message:
Open a submission detail
Scroll to Communications or Messages
Click Send Message
Compose your message
Click Send
The message is sent immediately and logged in the submission record. You can send the same message to multiple artists by selecting them in bulk and using Bulk Message.
Tip: Draft custom messages in a text editor first. Long, nuanced rejections should be personal and thoughtful. Take time to craft them.
Undoing a Status Change
If you accidentally mark a submission with the wrong status, you can undo it.
Step 1: Open the submission
Click the submission card.
Step 2: Change status back
Select the correct status from the status dropdown.
Step 3: Manage notifications
Toggle "Notify artist" to OFF so they don't receive conflicting emails. (They received the first incorrect notification; a second one will confuse them.)
Step 4: Save
The status reverts. You may want to send a follow-up message: "We sent you a conflicting notification—please disregard. Your actual status is [X]."
Best practice: Double-check status before saving, especially if making bulk changes. A few seconds of review saves artist confusion.
Workflow Tips
Tip 1: Accept first, waitlist second, reject last
Process your acceptances fully before starting rejections. This gives you a clear picture of space remaining for waitlist size.
Tip 2: Group rejections by reason
If you rejected a category of work (e.g., "We selected sculpture this year, not painting"), bulk-reject that group with the same reason. Saves time and ensures consistency.
Tip 3: Use jury scores to guide decisions
If running a scored jury round, sort submissions by average jury score. Accept the top X scores, waitlist the next batch, reject the rest. This removes human bias from final ranking.
Tip 4: Communicate timeline clearly
In your notification emails, state exactly what happens next: "Accepted works must confirm drop-off date by [date]. Waitlist decisions will be announced by [date]."
Tip 5: Archive old submissions after the call closes
Once your call is complete and all notifications sent, archive submissions you're done with. This keeps your intake view clean for your next call.
Next steps: For calls with formal jury panels, set up your jury process in "Setting Up a Jury."
