After the Event

Once judging is complete and you've assigned awards, it's time to publish results and give your participants something to celebrate. This page covers everything that happens after you flip the publish toggle, and how to make the most of it.

Publishing results

The Results & Certificates Published toggle on the Results tab controls everything. When you turn it on, three things happen at once:

1. The leaderboard goes public on the event page and project gallery
2. Award badges appear on winning projects' pages (gold, silver, bronze)
3. Certificates become available for every participant with a submission

The first time you publish, a confirmation dialog shows how many participants will be emailed and flags any unassigned awards. Clicking Publish & Notify sends a one-time email to all participants with submissions, letting them know results are live and their certificates are ready.

You can toggle results off at any time to temporarily hide the leaderboard, badges, and certificates. Turning it back on restores everything without re-sending notifications.

Certificates

Every team member on every submission gets their own certificate, not just winners. This is one of the most valuable things your participants receive from the event.

What's on each certificate

• Participant name and their team members
• Project name
• Event name, dates, and hosting organization
• Award badges for any prizes won (or "Certificate of Participation" for non-winners)
• A unique verification URL that anyone can visit to confirm the certificate is real

LinkedIn integration

Each team member's certificate has an Add to LinkedIn button that opens LinkedIn with the details pre-filled:

• Certificate name (event name and any awards)
• Issuing organization (your event's hosting organization)
• Issue date (based on your event dates)
• Credential URL (the verification link back to HackHQ)

This makes it effortless for participants to add the hackathon to their professional profile. For students and early-career professionals, this is especially valuable.

Verification pages

Each certificate has a unique, publicly accessible verification page. Employers, recruiters, or universities can visit this URL to confirm:

• The participant attended the event
• The project they worked on
• Any awards they won
• The event details and hosting organization

This gives your certificates real credibility, something participants (and their employers or schools) will appreciate.

Where participants find certificates

Certificates appear on the manage page (the private link participants received by email after submitting). They are intentionally not shown on the public share page, so only team members can add certificates to their LinkedIn.

If a participant can't find their certificates, they need to use the link from their original submission confirmation email. You can also look up their submission in the Submissions tab, click Manage submission, and share the link with them.

Project gallery

Once submissions close, a project gallery automatically becomes available for your event. It showcases all submitted projects with their descriptions, team members, and links.

After you publish results, winner badges appear on the gallery cards too.

Who to share the gallery with

The gallery is a great asset for showcasing what your event produced:

• Participants: So they can browse what other teams built and share their own project
• Sponsors and stakeholders: To demonstrate the event's output and quality of projects
• Social media: Post the link to celebrate winners and highlight standout projects
• Future participants: Show prospective teams what past events looked like to build excitement
• Company leadership or university administration: As proof of engagement and innovation outcomes

The gallery is an unlisted link, so it stays private until you choose to share it. You control who sees it and when.

Communicating with participants

Your participants may not read the docs, so proactive communication makes a big difference. Here's what to share at each stage:

When results go live

Send a message through your event's communication channel (Slack, Discord, email, or your registration platform) that includes:

• The project gallery link so everyone can browse all projects and see winners
• A reminder to check their email for the results notification with their certificate link
• A note that every participant gets a certificate, not just winners, and they can add it to LinkedIn

For winners specifically

Let award winners know that:

• Their project pages now show the award badge publicly on the share page
• The badge also appears in the project gallery
• Their certificates include the specific award they won

Tips for maximum engagement

• Announce results in your community channel first, then let the email notification serve as backup. Participants are more likely to act on a message they see in context.
• Highlight the LinkedIn feature explicitly. Many participants won't discover it on their own. A simple "Don't forget to add your certificate to LinkedIn!" reminder goes a long way.
• Share the gallery on your organization's social media. Tag participants if possible. This increases visibility for both your event and your participants' work.
• Save the gallery link for future events. It serves as a portfolio of past events and helps recruit participants for your next hackathon.