Setting Up an Abstract Submission Form in Eventact

June 04, 2026 | 7 min read

Abstract submission enables researchers, speakers, and contributors to submit their work for event program consideration. This guide details how to create and configure the submission form, from setup to confirmation emails.

This guide focuses on configuring the submission form. For review workflows, agenda planning, and publishing, refer to the separate guides.

Want to see the submitter experience first? Try the abstract submission demo.

• Key Terms |
• Step 1: Initial Setup |
• Step 2: Topics and Presentation Types |
• Step 3: Submission Options |
• Step 4: Customization |
• Step 5: Emails and Confirmations |
• Specialized Workflows

Key Terms

If you are new to abstract management, use this quick reference:

• Abstract - A written summary describing a piece of research or work, submitted for consideration at the event.
• Peer Review - A process where qualified reviewers evaluate and score submitted abstracts to select content for the program.
• E-Poster - A digital poster, typically a set of slides or images, presented at the event instead of a printed poster.
• Session Proposal - A complete proposal for a session, including suggested lecture abstracts and a proposed chairperson.

Step 1 - Initial Setup

If the Agenda module is not yet configured, go to Project Overview > Add Agenda. The Agenda Wizard will guide you through setup and automatically create the necessary modules, forms, and settings.

When you reach the Collect Abstracts option, enable it to generate an abstract submission form with these default pages:

You can configure these during the wizard and update them later as needed.

1. Login - Submitters enter their email. Existing contacts can sign in with their password or receive a one-time password (OTP).
2. Contact Information - Submitter's personal details.
3. Presentation Type and Topics - Select a presentation type (oral, poster, e-poster, or other) and choose from the event's predefined topics.
4. Abstract Title - Enter the abstract title.
5. Abstract Body - Enter the main abstract text.
6. Authors and Affiliations - Displayed only if the multiple-authors option is enabled.
7. Confirmation and Summary - Review all entries before submission.

Step 2 - Event Topics and Presentation Types

• Event Topics - Create topic categories for your event. Submitters select the most relevant topic when submitting. For long lists, arrange topics and subtopics in a two-level structure. This is recommended if you have more than 20 topics. To edit or add topics later, go to Agenda > Settings > Topics.
• Presentation Types - Define available presentation types. For each type you enable, you also control whether submitters can choose it or it is admin-assigned only. To edit or add types later, go to Agenda > Settings > Presentation Types.

Step 3 - Submission Options

Go to Agenda > Abstract Form > [Form Name] > Options to configure the following:

Deadlines

• New Submission Deadline - No new abstracts can be submitted after this date.
• Updates Deadline - Submitters can no longer edit abstracts after this date.

Submission Rules

• Maximum One Submission per Person - Prevents the same submitter from creating more than one abstract using this form.
• Allow Updates - Permit submitters to edit their abstract after submission until the update deadline.
• Allow Cancellations - Permit submitters to withdraw their abstract.
• Must Be a Registered Participant - Restrict submissions to contacts who already have a Participant role in the project.
• Enable New Contacts to Submit - Allow users not yet in the project to create a contact record and submit an abstract.

Step 4 - Customization

Customize each page of the submission form. Reorder fields, add instructions, and adjust field settings as needed.

• Field Limits - Set maximum word or character limits for the abstract title and body.
• Summary Page - The final page before submission. By default, it includes the {Form.Summary} token, which displays all entered information. You may add custom instructions or notes as needed.
• Custom Fields - Depending on your event's needs, you may add:
  • File Upload - For supporting documents such as PDFs or images.
  • Checkbox or Radio Button - For yes/no questions or fixed-choice selections.
  • Text Field - For short custom responses.
  • Abstract Language - Recommended for multilingual events. This system field allows submitters to specify the language of their abstract, ensuring correct text direction in previews and Word exports. Place it on the same page as the title and body fields.
• Visibility Rules - Use these to control form access based on conditions such as participant type or registration status. See the expressions guide for details.

Step 5 - Emails and Confirmations

Configure Sender Details

Go to Agenda > Settings > Basic > Secretariat Details and fill in:

• Main Project Email Address - The "From" address for all abstract-related emails.
• BCC Address - Optional. Receives a blind copy of all outgoing emails.
• Secretariat Name - The display name submitters see as the sender.

Before using a custom sender address, verify it in Eventact as either an Eventact-managed address or a custom domain address with the required DNS records at your registrar.

Configure Submission Messages

Go to Agenda > Settings > Abstract Submission > Submission Messages to create and customize automated emails sent throughout the process.

Email templates support tokens for personalization, such as submitter name, abstract title, and submission number, as well as custom formatting and event-specific instructions. See the tokens reference for available options.

Common triggers to configure:

• Abstract Submitted - Sent when a new abstract is successfully submitted.
• Abstract Updated - Sent when a submitter edits their abstract.
• Abstract Approved - Sent when an abstract is accepted.
• Abstract Rejected - Sent when an abstract is declined.
• Poster Submitted - Sent when a poster or e-poster submission is completed.

Specialized Abstract Workflows

While standard abstract workflows suit most events, certain conferences require specialized configurations. Use the following guides to handle multilingual forms, competitive awards, and invited speaker tracks.

1. Multilingual Abstract Forms

If your event accepts abstracts in more than one language, you must explicitly collect the language parameter. This system field allows submitters to specify their language, guaranteeing correct text direction (such as right-to-left alignment) in the abstract preview and Word document exports.

• Placement - Place this field early in the form, before the Abstract Title and Abstract Body fields. This ensures the form dynamically adapts to the chosen language.
• How to Set Up - Go to the form editor and insert the Abstract Language field from the system fields list.

2. Student Award & Best Paper Competitions

If your event includes a student award or a best paper competition, you can add a dedicated field to the submission form so eligible candidates can opt in.

• How to Set Up - Go to the form editor and add a checkbox field labeled "Enter me for the Student Award."
• Workflow Evaluation - During the review cycle, administrators can use this field as a backend filter to isolate, evaluate, and score these competitive submissions separately.

3. Managing Invited Speakers

Invited speakers typically bypass the standard, public submission process. Eventact offers three methods to handle their abstract and lecture inventory depending on your workflow needs:

• Option A: Dedicated Public Track (Custom Form) - Create a separate public submission track tailored specifically for invited VIPs. This allows you to simplify the submission layout - for example, by skipping the collection of co-authors and institutes - while introducing speaker-specific options such as accommodation and travel assistance requests.
• Option B: Direct Back-Office Data Entry - If you prefer to input the details yourself, you can bypass public forms entirely. Go to Agenda > Abstracts and manually create a new abstract record. Assign the speaker as the submitter, and set the appropriate presentation type and session block.
• Option C: Direct Agenda Scheduling - For speakers where an abstract is not relevant or required - such as keynote speakers - you can add the lecture directly in the Agenda Builder, bypassing the abstract submission process entirely.

Summary

Setting up abstract submission in Eventact involves five main steps:

1. Initial Setup - Run the Agenda Wizard and enable Collect Abstracts to generate the default submission form with all standard pages.
2. Topics and Presentation Types - Define the topic categories (including subtopics) and presentation formats submitters can choose from.
3. Submission Options - Set deadlines and rules that control who can submit and what submitters can do after submission.
4. Customization - Reorder fields, add instructions, set word limits, add custom fields, and configure visibility rules.
5. Emails and Confirmations - Set sender details and automate messages for each submission stage.

Once all five steps are complete, your abstract submission form is ready to go live. Refer to the next guide for review workflows, agenda planning, and publishing.

Have a question or want a hand configuring something for your specific event? We'd love to hear from you. Reach out to your Eventact team via our support page - we're happy to help.