Submittable Reviews

Submittable has made our publishing experience enjoyable, rather than laborious.

Pros:

Its ease of use makes it a joy to work with: it's a clearinghouse, a reply tool, and an organizational tool all in one.

Cons:

As it has in the past two years, I'm sure it will continue to improve it's functionality in a few of its features. For example, I'd like our readers/editors to be able to receive submissions immediately instead of me having to assign everything, but remain on a blind level, and also not be able to decline the work, just leave notes as they currently can.

A solid management system for grant applications

Comments: Overall we've been pleased with Submittable because of its features and capabilities, but the prices is intimidating. That being said, we've felt that it is comparable with other similar services out there.

Pros:

Submittable's application forms are very customizable and they allow for a multi-step application process and submitting grant reports. We're able to create customized reports and export the data easily, although there is a bit of a learning curve to set up the reports. Collaboration is built-in, allowing reviewers and admins to leave notes for each other and see reviews. We also liked that that collaboration can be locked down so that applicants can either see or not see that feedback. The implementation team that worked with us was great and provided very valuable training as part of our implementation project.

Cons:

We've found the email's generated by Submittable have formatting issues and are often blocked by anti-spam software, so there have been some deliverability issues and some problems with reading the system-generated emails. The development team is aware of the issue (for 2 years) but nothing seems to have been done about it. Documentation is limited, and they charge for support after your initial setup period. We end up having to pay for 10 extra user licenses for our grant reviewers beyond the 2 months those licenses are really used. This is because only 10 user licenses are available in our subscription tier, and you can only purchase extra licenses in block of 10 (not individually). So far, Submittable has worked with us on the pricing to be affordable but it would be nice to have the option of adding on temporary licenses for reviewers, or even not having to pay for that level of user since they are typically only needed for 1-2 months.

Submittable is user-friendly, but only for applicants.

Pros:

The product is easy for applicants to use, with simple forms and clear application guidelines. Generally, we have had many applicants have no issues while applying, which is definitely a positive about the platform.

Cons:

For administrative staff who work grant programs on the back-end, features such as advanced reporting are sorely lacking. It's difficult to build these reports and pull through the data you need. Additionally, there are many small issues that Submittable merely provides "work-arounds" for, rather than solving problems. For example - tables that are put directly into an application form export as a separate file, and then would need to be merged in order to package applications. While the platform might make the process of applying smooth for applicants, there seem to always be headaches for our staff when processing applications afterwards.

Why Use Submittable

Pros:

1. Submittable is user-friendly. 2. Preparing to receive new documents for new projects is not time-consuming. 3. Submittable makes it easy to reach a broader audience by making projects searchable within the platform. 4. Readable for users. 5. Ability to generate reports.

Cons:

1. Window to reply to submitters is too small. 2. Difficult to deactivate payment feature if a submitter has paid.

Submittable for Regranting Programs

Comments: Generally, I really like it! It definitely makes my job easier and is a very organized space for me to keep track of hundreds of artists and their information .

Pros:

As an administer of grant funding to artists, this software works great for tracking, reporting and collecting data from artists who apply to our programs.

Cons:

A lot of the times I'm unable to edit the content if needed when an application is live already. Which is understandable however. I have to duplicate and make additional forms which takes longer. It's also hard to assign team members or jurors and help them use the software when I can only see it from an admin's point of view so it's hard to let them know how to navigate the software.

It works!

Comments: It is easy for our applicants to use and our support staff to modify.

Pros:

Submittable really does the job for what we need it for most- reviewing grant applications. We have a diverse and busy review team and this tool allows them to do their work efficiently.

Cons:

Although it is fairly simple to use, it is not entirely intuitive. Some of our users have required a bit of coaching to make it work for them.

Submittable: The Go-To Contest Submission Playform

Comments: Using Submittable seriously cuts down on the amount of troubleshooting or user error, thereby saving us time.

Pros:

Submittable is very easy to use both on the end of the administrator and the individual submitting. People who have used it a lot or are only using it for the first time all express ease at getting their submissions in.

Cons:

There are only a limited number of times that you can export your data per month on the basic plan.

Great flexibility for building a workflow for grant management

Pros:

I like the transparency and the ease with which we were able to implement the software into our grant management procedure. The forms are easy to build, I can create a lot of them to cover the gaps for subsequent applicant communication. We were also able to do blind review to eliminate biases and separate groups of reviewers with different sets of questions.

Cons:

1) The number of seats comes expensive. As a charity, we have a pool of scientific volunteers who give back to the community by reviewing grants with us. But with the limited number of seats, we had to narrow down the pool to the bare minimum and restructure the whole review process in order to fit in our tight budgets. 2) There isn't an open API available for us to integrate into our mobile app. There is only a read-only API that we were able to connect to but it gives limited connectivity and doesn't allow us to sync the internal grant management process with external-facing community commitments.

It Changes The Way I Do Things

Comments: Awesome. Very helpful, easy to use. Simple and straight forward interface. It saves a lot of my time and really help me organize my submissions, and the best of all, which I didn't expect to find, is the plethora of contests I didn't find anywhere else (or it will take me a lot of time to find).

Pros:

I wish I found Submittable earlier. I used to look for writing competitions through google and other search engines. The problem is they are sometimes outdated, inaccurate and very limited search result. I also have tons of bookmarks to help me remember which competitions I sent them too. When I submit a lot, I lost count and all I did was just wait for emails that inform me about the results. I found Submittable when some of the contests required me to use Submittable. It became a delight because the interface is very use friendly and I started to explore more, and I was in for pleasant surprises. I like the way it organizes my contests, I no longer forget which and where I submit them to, and the great thing is I'm also able to track the feedbacks for those contests instead of rummaging through my emails about forgotten or non-existent results. But the best thing is I can find way more contests through Submittable, and filter them the way I want to, from entry fees to genres. It saves a lot of time and effort and there are tons of contests.

Cons:

None so far. I haven't had chance to explore other functions like creating my forms, but from what I use Submittable for, everything is satisfactory. It's an apps that does what it promises and more.

Grant management

Comments: Generally a good experience with Submittable.

Pros:

Ease of use for applicants, volunteer reviewers, and administrators.

Cons:

Not being able to talk live with support when needed. I really don't like that.

Great platform but could work better

Comments: In my opinion, user experience and interface matter. Submittable has a clean look that is welcoming to users. It's not a perfect platform and we've had to work around it. The team is very responsive, however, and seems open to improving their product. If only they could move a bit faster.

Pros:

Submittable is easy to use and intuitive. With drag-and-drop options, creating an application takes minutes. Logic branching also helps when you want to gather more info based on an applicant's response. The file upload features are also very helpful. Once your application is live, you can track and label applications as they come in. This is helpful since a quick perusal of an application can determine eligibility. One quick label and you can filter it out during the full review process. The reviewer portal is equally intuitive. With side-by-side views, your reviewers can read and answer questions or rate the application without having to switch screens. You can also set certain application fields (such as name, gender, etc.) to blind so that there is no bias based on these questions. Overall, Submittable is a great application portal and get your money's worth.

Cons:

Recommendation letter request emails don't get sent out until AFTER the applicant submit their application. This is fine in most cases but you do have to offer a small grace period to recommenders. It would be great if applicants can enter a recommender and hit a button "Request Letter." The forms can also become rather long if you have a lot of questions. It could affect completion rates. Finally, just as you are able to remind reference letter writers through the portal, it would be great to be able to remind those with incomplete application about the upcoming deadline. Right now, you can request a list of incomplete applications but you only get name and email addresses. It would be good to see some of the data that the applicants have completed so far.

Not entirely intuitive, but doable for digital immigrants. "Chat" folks are responsive & helpful.

Comments: Ease of receiving submissions, as opposed to the manual email system we had in place. Also the ability to link donations as an option when paying. It's a timesaver in processing submissions that allows us to get right to the content, rather than shuffling emails back and forth to our editors.

Pros:

It works VERY well for receiving, tracking, reviewing literary submissions. So organized. Helps our statewide editorial team stay connected for working and communicating. Tutorial and articles are helpful tools when setting this up.

Cons:

"Up ad running in 15 minutes"? Not likely. Big down side, is that it is EXPENSIVE for non profits, despite the discount. Monthly plans ding you bigtime for signer and submission allotments. We use Premium plan, the next step up is a GIANT leap up in price but also benefits. But we cannot afford that. I would like to see a product for bonafide all-volunteer non-profits with small budgets. Arts organziations are struggling these days.

This is everything we could have hoped to help keep our submissions on track and organized.

Comments: The only glitch I've had was when the "status" column was not working, but after contacting your service representatives, the problem was fixed within 24 hours. But that's not really a con, more a pro I guess.

Pros:

As an editor, it keeps the entire process of submissions very organized. The ability to archive and track all the submissions that come through here, along with all the automatic data in graph form that Submittable contributes in regards to either our regular day to day submissions or our annual competition, is everything we want it to be. Not to mention that there are numerous places which one can tuck notes about this or that author whose work is on track to be published by us. In addition, allowing the person whose work we're considering to leave notes for us about their submission should parts of it be accepted elsewhere, is a huge bonus for any editor.

Robust workflow,

Comments: Quick response and helpful for the most part. I have heard of a few colleagues across the org, not as lucky in getting timely responses and help on their forms. As noted above, poor communication in some cases.

Pros:

The robust workflow and ease of creating and editing/adjusting the application form are the best feature from our perspective. Little to no need for in-house IT support.

Cons:

Reporting (exporting applicant/form data) is not intuitive but fudgeable. I've grdaully learned to make it work... kind of.We also have several separate Submittable contracts across our org, but we have not been bundled to provide greater cost savings across our groups as would seem more than fair considering the amount of business we give this platform. Also, I've heard from other colleagues that the account manger tends to change frequently, sometime with no notice or handoff.

The people who work at Submittable are knowledgeable, good-natured, and GENUINELY helpful.

Comments: Submittable WORKS, and their customer support is unbeatable!

Pros:

Submittable can handle so many different document types that we never could ourselves. They listen when we have suggestions/requests. Everything can be tracked - no more lost manuscripts! They've made it possible for us to offer books at the same time someone makes a submission, a great option for us. And they can issue refunds with ease.

Cons:

Searches (especially across a lot of categories) sometimes are a bit slow, but we do have a LOT of categories and a LOT of submissions for the software to sort through. We're so glad to have Submittable, a respectable and caring group that has the ability to keep up with technology challenges so we can do the work we love doing.

Grant Management is a breeze!

Pros:

We were nervous about starting this grant program because of the intensity of the management process. Submittable makes gathering, reviewing, and managing applicants and grantees easy!

Cons:

I do wish there was a way to organize all of the information in Submittable (as is, I have many spreadsheets going simultaneously).

Great versatile software

Comments: We have used Submittable to collect forms for auditions and I like that the faculty and coaches are able to review and evaluate the student in the platform. We have also used it to collect event information.

Pros:

I like that you can use this platform for any different reasons and you can create many different forms so that you can really customize them for the right purpose.

Cons:

At the moment there is not anything I dislike.

This product is easy to use and indispensable to my writing endeavors

Pros:

It's ease of use. Straightforward layout. Very user friendly. I like the app. Allows me to organize my submissions to literary journals and keep track of when I need to submit them before deadlines.

Cons:

The navigation within the new "Following" area. I feel like there should just be a direct submit button rather than a "save" button. Right now I find myself having to go to a drop down menu up top to get to the submissions page. This is an easy fix though.

Thank you, Submittable.

Pros:

Submittable saves money and trees and time. It's easy to track submissions (and track exactly how much you're spending on submission fees.) It's fairly customizable -- you can choose whether or not you want to be emailed when the status of your submission changes, which, for a sensitive artist type who tries to stay even-keeled during her 9-5, is key. Uploading documents is very easy.

Cons:

I wish they had an option for users to save a cover letter template -- a letter that would auto-fill and then you could tweak as necessary. It would also be great if you could add a permanent​ bio to your account for prospective publishers -- they generally ask for this in the cover letter so it would save time.

Intuitive software

Comments: From the onboarding team to my account team, I think the service with submittable has been great. It's also easy for the submitter to understand the process as well.

Pros:

This software is easy to understand, easy to deploy, and intuitive for guest users who help us to evaluate the submissions that we receive. From there, it's easy to filter, sort, review and revisit the applicants that have made submissions, and keep track of where they are at each stage of the process. There are so many functionalities that are useful and I'm certain I'm only using a small portion of all that's available! I highly recommend this software as a solution for tracking submissions!

Cons:

Everything that I've experienced with submittable has been a plus.

Indispensable!

Pros:

It allows the applicants to easily submit their portfolio material in a large variety of file types.

Cons:

Of late, it has become less user friendly with the by dividing into project and program, and having a separate qualification step. Mostly I have had tech help when I needed it within a day, but in the beginning this assistance was much quicker and more helpful. Also, this could be a useful platform for research, especially surveys, if there were more ways to analyze the data.

Submittable

Comments: I've used Submittable as a business owner, a submitter, and as someone with access to read submissions. Overall, it's a pretty easy interface that allows you to collaborate and keep submissions organized.

Pros:

I'm pretty sure Submittable is the only well-known service of its type, at least at the moment, but with that said, it is easy to keep track of submissions and their status as they come in, they notify you, and you can have an account with multiple people to split up tasks.

Cons:

There are some things that could be a bit more intuitive, like tagging people and seeing what others have been assigned. It could be nice to have a reminder for older submissions that haven't been voted on or received a response yet, as well.

Submittable is the Best

Comments: Much greater efficiency and tracking ability

Pros:

Clean, efficient interface. Great customer service. Excellent outreach to the customer base. I have used Submittable for years now and almost no problems. The once or twice that I did have a problem, I reached out and they solved it within half-a-day.

The easy way to submit documents

Comments: I've used Submittable to submit manuscripts to literary agents and editors and it's been a very easy and effective process. It's a nice one-stop-shop for my submission materials and nice to be able to check the status of various submissions in the same place. From the first time I used it to the last, it's been a straightforward, easy, experience.

Pros:

It's impossible to format submissions incorrectly because Submittable only accepts the types of docs your recipient wants. It's an easy to use template to uplad the appropriate content and then manage your submission.

Cons:

The only thing that's slightly a downside is that you have to be in Submittable to get all the information about your submission, but that's not really a problem.

Multi Use Software

Pros:

I love that I can use the software both to receive applications and experience reviews!

Cons:

My boss finds it difficult to use causing unneeded issues