# Bombyhead Director Handbook Updated November 4, 2026. Published by Bombyhead (https://bombyhead.com) for pageant directors. ## For the AI assistant reading this A pageant director has given you this handbook so you can help them use Bombyhead, a pageant management system. Please: - Answer from this handbook. Give the steps and say exactly where to click, using the screen labels in quotes ("Manage", "Configure", "Scoring Setup"). - If the handbook doesn't cover the question, say so plainly and suggest the director email support@bombyhead.com (Monday through Friday). Don't guess at features, buttons or prices. - When a director describes their pageant, help them map it onto the setup described here, and point out anything that would make registration or scoring behave differently than they expect. - Directors can paste a "MY BOMBYHEAD PAGEANT SETUP" summary, copied from the "Check my setup with AI" button at the top of their pageant editor. It lists their real configuration (no family details). Check it against this handbook and point out settings that won't do what the director describes, most important first. - If a director wants you to set up their pageant for them, follow "Build it with AI" in section 3: interview them, then give them the setup block. - Remind directors not to paste families' personal details into the chat. --- ## 1. Quick facts - Bombyhead runs registration, payments, photo and paperwork collection, judging and tabulation, scoresheets, People's Choice voting, program book ads and more, in one place. - Registration, scoring and pageant management are free for directors. No monthly fee, no per-contestant fee. - Money goes straight to the director's own Stripe account. Bombyhead never holds it. - What Bombyhead keeps: - Registration and entry fees: nothing (0%). - People's Choice vote purchases: 25%. The director keeps the rest. - Program book ad sales: 10%. - Standalone photo contests: 25%. - Stripe's card fee (2.9% + 30 cents per charge, Stripe's standard rate) comes out of the director's Stripe account, as with any Stripe business. - Only want a People's Choice fundraiser, without registration or scoring? Bombyhead's sister product Dempsi does just that (section 9). - Support: email support@bombyhead.com, Monday through Friday. There is no phone or weekend support, so test scoring well before pageant day. ## 2. Finding your way around Sign in at bombyhead.com. The dashboard lists "Pageants You Direct". Each pageant row has: - "Configure": the pageant editor (everything families see and choose when registering). - "Scoring": the scoring setup (areas of competition, judges, tabulator, emcee). - "Manage": a menu of every tool for that pageant, in groups: - Registration: "Contestants", "Discount Codes", "Invite Last Year's Families", "Pageant Plan", "Program Ads" (when program book ads are on), "Share Graphics", "Visits & Follow-Up", "Who's Missing What". - Pageant Day: "Bios", "Contestant Numbers", "Contestant Titles", "Find a Pro", "Pageant Alert", "Scoring Setup". - Reports: "Analytics", "Money Report", "Orders & Balances", "Sponsor Recap", "What Families Said". - People's Choice (when the pageant has one): "People's Choice", "People's Choice Graphs", "People's Choice Revenue and Audit", "Vote Analytics". - Downloads: "Contestants Download" (a spreadsheet of entries), "Files", "Photos". - This Pageant: "Duplicate", and "Delete" (only before any payments). - "Registration": opens your public registration page. - The link icon copies your registration link (bombyhead.com/contest.php?contestid=...). The "Pageants You Direct" header has "New Pageant" and "Income Analytics". Above it is a "Your plan" card for each upcoming pageant, a "Need help?" line, and "Connect To Stripe" until Stripe is connected. A brand-new director sees a short welcome with three steps instead. "Ad Maker" and "Program Maker" are in the top navigation bar. ## 3. Creating a pageant - New pageant: dashboard, "New Pageant" (or "Set Up Your First Pageant"), type the pageant's name, "Create pageant". It opens the editor with a ready-to-show starter pageant: a sample crown logo and sample description (both labeled "sample" until you change them), a date six weeks out with registration closing a week before, a $50 entry fee, six typical age divisions (Tiny Miss through Miss), birthday and bio turned on, three competitions (a free Headshot, Photogenic at $10 a photo, People's Choice) and matching scoring (Evening Gown 60%, Interview 40%, Photogenic judged from photos). Adjust all of it to fit your pageant. When you change the pageant date, the end date, deadlines and age-as-of date follow it until you set them yourself. - Next year's pageant: open last year's, "Manage", "Duplicate". It copies the setup: divisions, prices, competitions, questions, description, colors, the Contestant Guide and program book ad settings, and attachments. It does not copy contestants, payments, votes, the scoring setup or discount codes. Update every date and deadline, and set up scoring again. The copy is named "(COPY)"; rename it. - Everything in the editor saves as you type. There is no Save button to remember. - Every "?" icon in the editor opens help for that field. - "Preview Registration Page" (top of the editor) shows what families will see. ### Build it with AI Instead of filling in the editor field by field, a director can describe their pageant to an AI assistant, which writes a setup block. The director pastes the block at https://bombyhead.com/buildWithAI.html, reviews a plain-English preview, and clicks "Create my pageant". Bombyhead creates a new pageant (registration and scoring) that they can then adjust in "Configure" and "Scoring". It never changes an existing pageant. For the AI assistant: first ask the director to describe their pageant in their own words, everything they already know. Then ask about whatever is still missing, ONE question at a time, in plain language, until you have the whole picture. Make sure you've covered: 1. Pageant name, date(s), venue and city, state, registration deadline. 2. Entry fee (minimum $10), different fees for some divisions, practice entries, deposits. 3. Divisions and ages. Ages are years; baby ages in months need an m ("0m", "12m"). Ask what date ages are measured on. 4. What families choose or buy at registration: optional competitions (Photogenic, Talent, Interview), packages ("All In"), People's Choice, items (program book, T-shirts), required photos (a headshot), waivers, files (talent music). Prices, and which divisions or ages each is for. 5. Any "buy this, get that free" deals (bonuses). 6. What judges score, and the percentage each counts toward the title. Side awards (Best Smile, Best Fashion) don't count toward the title. Optional competitions are scored separately. Photogenic judged from uploaded photos or in person? How many judges, and the score range (1 to 10 if they don't say). 7. A short description for families, and what to collect: birthday, address, bio, couples, any questions for the bio sheet. Then give the director ONE block of valid JSON (no comments) in this format, and tell them to copy all of it and paste it at https://bombyhead.com/buildWithAI.html. Leave out anything they didn't mention. Never include families' names or contact details. Always include: "summary" (the pageant in a few sentences, as the director described it), "assumptions" (anything you filled in without the director telling you, so they can check it), and "wishes" (anything they wanted that this handbook says Bombyhead doesn't do, in their words). Use the exact name spellings in "divisions", "photoFrom", "buy" and "free", because they're matched by name. ```json { "bombyheadSetup": 1, "summary": "A one-day pageant for girls of all ages in Larkspur, KY, with optional Talent and Photogenic, an All In package, and People's Choice. Evening Gown and Interview decide the title; Best Smile is a ribbon.", "assumptions": ["Registration closes a week before the pageant", "Scores range from 1 to 10"], "wishes": [], "name": "Larkspur Valley Pageant 2027", "date": "2027-02-20", "endDate": "2027-02-20", "deadline": "2027-02-13", "editDeadline": "2027-02-18", "location": "Larkspur Civic Center, 120 Main Street, Larkspur, KY", "state": "KY", "description": "A friendly pageant for all ages.\n\nEvery contestant receives a crown.", "entryFee": 65, "practicePrice": 40, "depositMinimum": 35, "collect": { "birthday": true, "ageAsOf": "2027-02-20", "address": false, "bio": true, "couples": false }, "questions": ["Favorite hobby", "What do you want to be when you grow up?"], "filesToCollect": [], "divisions": [ { "name": "Baby Miss", "minAge": "0m", "maxAge": "12m" }, { "name": "Teeny Miss", "minAge": "13m", "maxAge": "24m" }, { "name": "Little Miss", "minAge": "5", "maxAge": "7" }, { "name": "Teen Miss", "minAge": "13", "maxAge": "17", "fee": 75 } ], "competitions": [ { "name": "Program Image", "type": "free", "collect": "photo", "min": 1, "max": 1, "description": "A headshot for your bio sheet." }, { "name": "Waiver", "type": "free", "min": 1, "max": 1, "signature": true, "description": "I give permission for my child to participate." }, { "name": "All In", "type": "paid", "price": 20, "max": 1 }, { "name": "Photogenic", "type": "paid", "price": 10, "collect": "photo", "max": 1 }, { "name": "Talent", "type": "paid", "price": 15, "collect": "file", "max": 1, "divisions": ["Little Miss", "Teen Miss"], "description": "Upload your music." }, { "name": "Program Book", "type": "paid", "price": "15, 25", "class": "item", "max": 2 }, { "name": "People's Choice", "type": "peoplesChoice", "winnerReceives": "A People's Choice crown and sash." } ], "bonuses": [ { "buy": "All In", "quantity": 1, "free": "Photogenic", "freeQuantity": 1 } ], "scoring": { "scoreMin": 1, "scoreMax": 10, "judges": 3, "areas": [ { "name": "Evening Gown", "weight": 60, "counts": true }, { "name": "Interview", "weight": 40, "counts": true, "divisions": ["Teen Miss"] }, { "name": "Best Smile", "counts": false }, { "name": "Talent", "counts": false, "divisions": ["Little Miss", "Teen Miss"] }, { "name": "Photogenic", "photoFrom": "Photogenic" } ] } } ``` Field notes: dates are YYYY-MM-DD. Money is in dollars. "type" is "free", "paid" or "peoplesChoice". "price" is one number (each), or a comma list of totals for 1, 2, 3. "collect" is "photo", "file" or "none"; "min": 1 makes it required. "class" is "competition", "item" or "tshirt" (with "shirtSizes"). A competition or scoring area with "divisions" is limited to those divisions; leave it out for all divisions. In scoring, "counts": true areas share the title score by "weight"; "counts": false areas are separate awards; "photoFrom" judges an area from the photos uploaded to that registration competition. Judged areas everyone does as part of the entry fee (Evening Gown, Interview) only go in scoring, not competitions. ## 4. The pageant editor ("Configure"), top to bottom The editor shows the essentials first. Less-used settings sit behind a one-line "+" row with a short description ("+ Bonus triggers — buy enough of one item, get another free"); click it to open that section. Each competition has its own "+ More options" row (its own deadline, division group, ages, signature, and for People's Choice when voting closes). Anything already in use is always shown. "Show all settings" at the top opens everything. If a director can't find a setting described below, tell them to click its "+" row or tick "Show all settings". ### Basics - "Pageant Name": what families see and what shows when the link is shared. - "State Pageant Being Held". - "Pageant Description": the first thing families read. Say what the pageant is, where and when, who it's for, what winners receive. Families only see the entry fee after they sign in, so if you want fees visible before sign-up (for example when the link is shared on Facebook), list them here. The paper clip attaches a JPG, PNG or PDF. - "Attachments": downloadable files for families (rules, flyer). "Add Attachment". ### Dates and place - "Registration Deadline": last day a new contestant can enter. Registration closes on its own after this day. - "Edit Deadline": last day an entered family can change their entry (add photos, add-ons). It can't be earlier than the registration deadline. - "Pageant Start Date" and "Pageant End Date": same date for a one-day pageant. The date shows at the top of the registration page. - "Pageant Location": venue, street address, city. Shown under the date on the registration page. ### Status - "active": open, following your deadlines. Leave it here almost all the time. Nobody finds the pageant until you share the link. - "judging": closes the pageant right away, whatever the deadlines say. - "completed": the pageant is over. It stays closed and drops off your staff's dashboards. - Scoresheets are sent from scoring, not by changing status. ### Fees - "Entry Fee": what each contestant pays to enter. The minimum is $10, so a pageant can't be free to enter. To waive one family's fee, give them a discount code for the amount; when an order comes to $0, the entry is saved without payment. - A different fee for some divisions: use the division's "Entry Fee" column (blank means the pageant fee). - "Practice Price": lets someone compete and be judged without being eligible for titles or prizes (useful for a contestant under a non-compete elsewhere). Leave it at $0 and practice entries aren't offered. Judges don't know who is practicing. Scoring results don't mark practice contestants either, so check the "Contestants" page (practice entries say "Practice") before awarding titles. - "Accept Payments" and "Minimum Payment": turn on deposits. Families can pay part now (at least the minimum) and the rest later. Card payment itself always happens when there's a total to pay; this setting is only about paying in parts. ### Collect Contestant Info Email is always collected. Tick what else you need: - "Address": a mailing address. - "Biography": a short bio, used on the "Bios" printout for your emcee and judges. Each bio shows the contestant's photo from the first competition that has one, so make your first competition a free, one-photo headshot (often called Program Image). - "Questions": your own questions ("Add Question", single line or multiple line). Answers appear on bios and the emcee page. - "Files": "Files To Collect" prompts (forms, music). If you type a prompt about a headshot or photo, it's added as a photo competition instead, and you can undo that. - "Birthday": needed for any age limit. Turn it on, then set "Age As Of Date" (the date ages are measured on, often the pageant date or a set cutoff). - "Couple": for contestants who compete as a couple. A "Couples" column then appears in the divisions table; untick it for divisions that don't take couples. ### Payment Confirmation Optional message families must confirm just before paying, such as "Entry fees are non-refundable." ### Logo, theme and link previews - "Pageant Logo": top of the registration and voting pages. A PNG with a transparent background looks best. - "Theme": Magnolia, Heritage, Garden, Crown, Atelier, or Custom. The theme sets one brand color for the top band, links and button; the page stays light and readable. With Custom, "Pageant Title Color" is the color that's used. - "Social Media Description" (50 to 60 characters) and "Social Media Image" (1200 x 628 works well): what shows when the link is shared on Facebook. Without an image, the logo is used. If Facebook keeps showing an old image, refresh it with Facebook's Sharing Debugger. ## 5. Divisions and ages The "Divisions" section is in "Configure", just below "Collect Contestant Info". - "Add Division". Name it so parents can pick the right one without asking. Use the up and down arrows to set the order families see in the division dropdown. - With no divisions, everyone competes together. - Ages are in years. For babies, add an m for months: 0m to 12m, then 13m to 24m. "13 mo" and "13 months" also work. The line under each age box shows how it was read ("13 years" or "13 months"), so check it. - A maximum includes that whole year or month: max 6 includes 6 years 11 months; 24m includes all of the 24th month. Mixing works: 25m to 4. - Decimals work too (1.5 means 18 months); the line under the box shows the months. - Age limits only apply with "Birthday" ticked and an "Age As Of Date" set. The editor warns if they're missing. - When a family enters a birthday that doesn't fit the chosen division, the form stops them and says which ages that division is for. ## 6. Competitions and add-ons Competitions are what families choose and upload during registration: optional competitions (Photogenic, Talent), People's Choice, photos you need from everyone, waivers, and things you sell (a program book, a T-shirt, an "All In" package). Competitions everyone does as part of the entry fee (Evening Gown, Interview, Casual Wear) don't need to be listed here unless you need to collect something for them. They're set up in scoring instead (section 11). "Add Competition", then: - "Name". - "Type": - "free": no charge. For what you need from everyone (a headshot, a waiver, a document). Set "Minimum" to 1 to make it required. - "paid": the family pays to enter or buy it. - "People's Choice": public voting (section 9). - "price" (paid only): one number is the price each ("25" means $25 each). For a quantity discount, type the total for 1, 2, 3 and so on, separated by commas: "25, 45, 60" means 1 for $25, 2 for $45, 3 for $60. - "Minimum" and "Maximum": how many the family may choose or upload. - "Collect File Type": "Photo" (headshots, program photos, Photogenic), "File" (PDFs, music, video) or "None". - "Collect Signature": adds a sign-here box (finger or mouse). Put the wording in the "Competition Description" or attach a PDF with the paper clip. Registration can't be submitted until it's signed. - "Class" (when nothing is collected): competition, item, or T-Shirt. T-Shirt adds "Shirt Sizes" (comma separated) and a T-shirt order sheet in "Orders & Balances". - "Deadline": an earlier last day for just this competition, such as a program photo needed before the book goes to print. - "Competition Description": requirements and how it's judged. - "Division Group": limit it to certain divisions (set up groups under "Division Groups"). - "Min Age" / "Max Age": limit it to an age range; same years and months rules as divisions, and it also needs "Birthday" ticked and an "Age As Of Date". Contestants outside the range don't see it. - Card icons: delete, reorder, duplicate (copies its settings into a new one). ### Division Groups "Division Groups" lets you name a set of divisions (for example "Swimsuit" = Teen, Miss) and then pick that group on a competition so only those divisions see it. Also used to give different age groups their own People's Choice. ### Bonus Triggers: something free for buying enough of something else - Example: enter 3 Photogenic photos, get a pageant T-shirt free. Or: buy the "All In" package (1), get Photogenic (1) free. - Both items must exist as competitions. "Add Bonus Trigger", then "Trigger Category" (what they buy), "Trigger Quantity", "Bonus Category" (what they get free; must be a different item) and "Bonus Quantity". - The registration form adds the free item to the order and takes its price off the total. - Added the rule after some families already bought the trigger item? They get the free item the next time their entry is opened. To do it for them: "Manage", "Contestants", "Edit Entry" on each, then "Save Contest Entry" (the total is $0). Families who already have the free item don't get it twice. - To check it, open your registration page and choose the trigger item. ### Discount Codes "Manage", "Discount Codes", "Add Discount Code". Set the dollar amount, "Single" (one use for the whole pageant) or "Multi" (once per entry), a description, and "Enabled". Families enter it in "If you have a discount code, enter it below:" on the form. ## 7. Payments - Connect Stripe first: dashboard, "Connect To Stripe". Stripe asks for your name, address, date of birth, last 4 of your SSN and bank account. Until it's connected, families can't pay. - Money lands in your bank on Stripe's payout schedule, usually within two business days. Bank details and payout timing are managed in your own Stripe dashboard. - You get a "You Got Money" email for each payment. - What a family pays: the entry fee (or division fee, or practice price), plus paid competitions and add-ons, minus bonus triggers and discount codes. If the order comes to $0, the entry is saved without payment. - Deposits: "Accept Payments" on, with a "Minimum Payment". Families choose "Pay in full" or "Pay a deposit today and the rest later". They see what they still owe with a "Make Payment" button on their entry. There's no set due date for the balance. You see balances in "Orders & Balances", in "Who's Missing What", and in the "Amount Due" column on "Contestants". To follow up, email the family from "Who's Missing What". - "Save and pay later": families can save a registration without paying. It isn't an entry until paid. Bombyhead emails reminders (about a day later, then weekly, and a final notice near the deadline). You can remove unpaid saves on "Contestants", "Saved, not paid". - Refunds are issued from your Stripe dashboard. Bombyhead doesn't issue or record refunds, so reports still show the original payment. If a refund changes what a family owes, use the "change amount owed" icon next to their "Amount Due" on "Contestants". - Withdrawals: a family can withdraw from their dashboard. An unpaid entry is withdrawn right away; a paid one becomes a withdrawal request on your "Contestants" page ("Withdraw entry" or "Dismiss"). Withdrawing doesn't refund; refund in Stripe if you choose to. ## 8. What families experience - Families need a free Bombyhead account. Your link takes them to sign up or sign in, then straight back to your form. - The form shows your pageant name, date, location and deadline, the entry fee, your description and attachments, then: contestant name, phone, division, and whatever you turned on (birthday, partner, address, bio, questions, files), then each competition. - For contestants under 18, a parent or guardian gives consent on the form. There's also an optional opt-in for Pageant Prep's AI practice tools. - Before paying, a checklist shows anything unfinished with "Fix" links. - After registering, families get a "You're registered" email from your pageant (replies go to you) listing what's still needed. - Families can edit until the "Edit Deadline" ("Edit Registration" on their dashboard). Everyone gets at least 3 days after registering to upload photos and files. - A family can register more than one contestant. - You can open any entry from "Contestants", "Edit Entry" to fix something for a family. ### Pageant Prep and your Contestant Guide - Pageant Prep is a free prep area for every entered contestant: a to-do list built from their entry, a 30-day plan, packing list, stage-walk practice, interview practice with AI feedback, a bio and introduction builder, a photo coach, and a People's Choice share kit. - Your "Contestant Guide" section in the editor feeds it ("From your director"): stage pattern, interview format and length, onstage question by division, photo requirements, schedule, must-bring items, venue, dress rules, talent music rules. Every part is optional. "Draft from my packet" fills it from a PDF info packet in your Attachments. - Families can get a weekly Pageant Prep email in the last 30 days (on by default). ## 9. People's Choice voting - Add a competition with "Type" "People's Choice". Each entered contestant gets a public voting page with a share link. Voters don't need an account; they buy vote packages by card. Bigger packages cost less per vote. Vote prices are set by Bombyhead. - Fields: "Voting Instructions", "What does the People's Choice winner receive?" (be specific: sash, crown, appearances; voters trust the title is real), "Voting Status", and "Voting Cutoff Date", "Voting Cutoff Time", "Voting Cutoff Timezone". - Cutoff: blank date means the Pageant End Date; blank time means the end of that day; both blank means no automatic cutoff. Set "Voting Status" to completed to stop voting yourself. - The voting page shows contestants in rank order, never vote counts. - More than one People's Choice (for example one for juniors, one for seniors): use Division Groups and assign each People's Choice to a group. A contestant can be in only one; the editor warns about overlaps. - Bombyhead keeps 25% of vote purchases; the rest goes to your Stripe account. - Bombyhead automatically sends contestants voting updates with their share link, more often as the voting deadline gets closer. You get status updates too. - Reports: "Manage", "People's Choice" group. - Best practices: https://bombyhead.com/peoplesChoiceBestPractices.html ### Only need People's Choice? Dempsi Dempsi (https://dempsi.com) is Bombyhead's sister product, built on the same voting engine. It runs only the People's Choice fundraiser: no registration, entry fees or scoring. It can be the better fit when: - You already handle registration another way (paper, Google Forms, Jotform) and just want to add a People's Choice fundraiser. - It isn't a pageant: a fair, a school, a pet photo contest for an animal shelter, any contest where a community votes for people, pets or projects. - You collect votes in cash or by check at the event and want them on the same leaderboard. - You want to control the contestant photos: you upload them yourself (for example, from your official photo shoot) so every voting photo is consistent, instead of families uploading their own. Dempsi is a great fit for an established pageant that already runs smoothly and just wants to add People's Choice. Same terms as Bombyhead's People's Choice: free to start, and it keeps 25% of what voting raises. Contestants can be added from a spreadsheet or sign themselves up. If you want the whole pageant managed (registration, payments, scoring) as well as voting, use Bombyhead. Dempsi setup guide: https://dempsi.com/setupGuide.html ## 10. Program book ads, Ad Maker and Program Maker - Program book ads: in the editor's "Program Book Ads" section, tick "Sell program book ads with sponsor links". Set sizes and prices, an ad deadline, and what sponsors should know. Stripe must be connected. - Every contestant gets a sponsor link to share with family businesses; you get your own link too. Sponsors pick a size, upload their ad (or make one in the free Ad Maker), and pay by card. Bombyhead keeps 10%. - Review ads: "Manage", "Program Ads": approve, ask for a fix (the sponsor gets a free re-upload link), download approved ads. - Ad Maker (top navigation): free, no account needed. Pick a template, add photos, choose a color that matches the gown, edit the words, download a print-quality ad. - Program Maker (top navigation): opens on a draft program built from your pageant (cover, welcome, order of events, contestants with photos, approved sponsor ads, thank-you), which you edit and export as a PDF. ## 11. Scoring Open it from the "Scoring" button on the dashboard row, or "Manage", "Scoring Setup". Video: "Watch how to set up scoring". Guide: https://bombyhead.com/scoringSetupGuide.html ### Areas of Competition "Add Competition" for each thing judges score: Evening Gown, Interview, Talent, Photogenic. - "Name". - "# Of Judges": how many judges should score it. - "Weight": how much it counts toward the overall score. Weights are relative (60/40 is the same as 3/2). - "Optional": - "No": counts toward the overall total that decides the title. - "Yes": scored and ranked on its own, separately from the total. Use it for optional competitions and for side awards. - "Photo": judged from a photo uploaded at registration. Pick the registration competition it comes from. The registration competition must collect a photo. - "Divisions": click to pick which divisions it applies to. - Up and down arrows: put them in the order of your show. Judges, the tabulator and scoresheets list them in this order. - "Score Range": one minimum and maximum for all areas (for example 1 to 10). Judges can leave a box blank for no score. How the math works: each area's score is the average of the judges who scored it. The total is the weighted average of the "No" areas. Contestants are ranked within their division. Ties are shown; the director decides the tie rule. ### Judges and staff - "Pageant Judges": add each judge (name, optional email). Each gets a login ID and a Quick Link. The send icon emails them their login. "Divisions" limits a judge to certain divisions; they'll only see those contestants. - "Pageant Tabulator", "Pageant Emcee", "Pageant Auditor": one login each, optional. Several emails can share a login. The emcee page shows each contestant's photo, bio and answers with private notes. The auditor gets a read-only score audit. - Everyone signs in at bombyhead.com/tally.html with the Contest ID and their Login ID, or uses their Quick Link. Login emails include a short how-to video for each role. - Need judges or an emcee? "Manage", "Find a Pro" posts a request and invites people; "Add to scoring" puts a chosen judge into scoring. ### Before pageant day 1. Set up scoring when registration opens, and send judges their logins about two weeks ahead. 2. The week before, use "Practice run": "Load practice contestants" (30 sample names), have each judge score a few on their own device, and watch the tabulator page. Then "Reset Scores" (erases every score; can't be undone). 3. After registration closes: "Reset Scores" to clear practice scores, then "Load Registered Contestants Into Judging System". It replaces the practice contestants with your real ones. Load again if entries change; judges get a "Reload now" banner. 4. Assign numbers: "Manage", "Contestant Numbers" (alphabetical or random within each division). Assign after the registration deadline. 5. Print bios for your emcee and judges: "Manage", "Bios". 6. Confirm the venue has Wi-Fi; a phone hotspot works as a backup. Have a spare judge. ### Judging - Judges score on a laptop, tablet or phone. On a phone, the phone view shows one contestant at a time with big number boxes and Previous/Next. - Scores save automatically (green = saved). Scores survive a refresh or a dropped connection on that device and resend when it's back. - Each judge has one comment box per contestant, shared across all areas. - Judges only see their own scores. Changing a score later is logged and flagged. - Tabulator: "Refresh Scores" shows results per division (green cells = all judges scored). Click a cell to see each judge's score. Close a competition when it's done so scores can't change; it can be reopened. The "Score Change Log" lists every change. ### Scoresheets "Scoring Setup", "View Contestant Scoresheets": pick one or all contestants, "Send Test Email To You", then "Send ... Contestant Emails Now". Each family gets their own scores per area, their division's min, max and average, and judges' comments, without judge names, totals or placements. Nothing sends automatically. Most directors send the morning after. ## 12. Pageant day and after - "Contestant Titles": record who won what. Titles show on your pageant website. - "What Families Said": two days after the pageant, each family gets a short survey from you (on by default; "Turn it off" is on that page). You see star ratings, who's coming back, how they heard about you, and comments, with "Copy as a testimonial" for comments families allowed you to share. - "Sponsor Recap": a one-page printable thank-you for sponsors (contestants, towns, supporters, sponsor names), never your earnings. - "Money Report": gross, Bombyhead fee, estimated card fees and net, by source and month. - Next year: "Duplicate". ## 13. Getting more contestants - Share your registration link everywhere: Facebook groups, your page, texts to past families. Fill in "Social Media Description" and "Social Media Image" first so the link looks good. - "Share Graphics": ready-to-post images. "Registration open" (divisions, ages, optional fees, deadline, link) and division counts ("Tap divisions to mark spots open"). "Download image", "Copy as text", square or story size. - "Pageant Plan": a step-by-step plan from setup to after the crowning, with "Your next step". Most families register in the last few weeks; the plan paces your promotion. - "Invite Last Year's Families": emails families from earlier pageants with your note. - "Visits & Follow-Up": see page visits, and send a follow-up note from you to signed-in visitors who didn't register. Bombyhead sends it; you don't see their emails. - "Who's Missing What": who still owes photos, files, signatures or balances. "Email N families now", or turn on "Monday reminders" so families get a weekly list of what they still need to add. - Pageants with an active registration page and a real description are listed in the public pageant directory at bombyhead.com/pageants.php. - A free pageant website: dashboard, "Your Websites", "New Website". - The editor shows typical fees and division counts from other Bombyhead pageants as hints. ## 14. Common setups - "All In" package that includes Photogenic: make "All In" a paid competition, Photogenic a paid competition, and a Bonus Trigger: All In (1) gives Photogenic (1) free. The free Photogenic is added to the family's order and its photo is uploaded under Photogenic, so set Photogenic's "Collect File Type" to "Photo" (All In itself doesn't need to collect anything). In scoring, set Photogenic to "Photo" (judged from the uploaded photo) or "Yes" (judged in person). - Side awards like Best Smile or Best Fashion that don't affect the title: add each in scoring with "Optional" "Yes". Each gets its own winner per division and never touches the total. Judges only need to score the contestants they're considering. Don't add them as "No", or they become part of the title score. - Scoring Interview on several lines (eye contact, poise, answer): add each line as its own area with part of the weight ("Interview - Poise" 10, "Interview - Answer" 10, "Interview - Attire" 10 instead of Interview 30). The math comes out the same. - Photogenic judged online: a paid registration competition that collects a photo, plus a scoring area with "Optional" "Photo" linked to it. - Required headshot: a free competition, Collect File Type "Photo", Minimum 1, named "Program Image", listed first so it's the photo on bios. - Waiver: a free competition with "Collect Signature" yes, Minimum 1, the waiver text in its description. - Swimsuit for teens and up only: a Division Group of those divisions, or Min Age on the competition. - Separate People's Choice for juniors and seniors: two Division Groups, one People's Choice assigned to each. - Program book pre-order: a paid competition with class "item". - Pageant T-shirts: a paid competition with class "T-Shirt" and your sizes; the order sheet is in "Orders & Balances". ## 15. Before contacting support: common setup mistakes Click "Check my setup with AI" at the top of your pageant editor and paste the result into the chat to check for these. - Baby divisions typed as 0-12 and 13-24 meaning months. Without an m they're years. Type 0m to 12m and 13m to 24m, and check the line under each age box. - Age limits that don't apply: "Birthday" isn't ticked, or "Age As Of Date" is missing. - An "Age As Of Date" left over from last year's pageant (after Duplicate). It should match this year's pageant, or your age cutoff date. - Dates and deadlines still last year's after Duplicate. If the registration deadline has passed, registration is closed. - Side awards (Best Smile, Best Fashion) set to "No" in scoring, so they count toward the title. Set them to "Yes". - A "Photo" scoring area linked to a registration competition that doesn't collect photos. Set the registration competition's "Collect File Type" to "Photo", or score it in person with "Yes". - Practice contestants still loaded into scoring. Before pageant day: "Reset Scores", then "Load Registered Contestants Into Judging System". - Contestants loaded into scoring before registration closed. Load them again after the deadline so late entries are included. - Stripe not connected, so families can't pay. Dashboard, "Connect To Stripe". - A bonus trigger added after families already bought the trigger item. Open each of those entries ("Contestants", "Edit Entry") and save, so the free item is added. - People's Choice with "What does the People's Choice winner receive?" left blank. - No "Social Media Image", so shared links show only the logo (or nothing). ## 16. Photo contests Separate from pageants: online, pay-to-enter photo contests judged by invited judges, a way to reach new families between pageants. Start one from the dashboard's "Photo Contests" section, "New Photo Contest". Guide: https://bombyhead.com/photoContestDirectorGuide.html ## 17. More help - Getting started guide: https://bombyhead.com/directorGettingStarted.html - Scoring setup guide: https://bombyhead.com/scoringSetupGuide.html - People's Choice best practices: https://bombyhead.com/peoplesChoiceBestPractices.html - Program ads guide: https://bombyhead.com/programAdsGuide.html - Every "?" icon in the editor opens help for that field. - "Build my pageant with AI": https://bombyhead.com/buildWithAI.html - "Check my setup with AI" (top of the pageant editor) copies your pageant's configuration, with no family information, to paste into ChatGPT, Claude or Grok. - Email support@bombyhead.com, Monday through Friday. Include your pageant's name.