Hackathon Messaging Templates

The following templates are suggested messages to send to your hackathon participants. They consist of reminders, announcements, and promotional messages. We recommend using the Announcement feature to send specific messages to hackathon participants.


Launch | Ideation



Submission Period 



Judging Period



Winner Announcement



Welcome to Devpost for Teams!
Purpose: Sent to coworkers/employees to introduce DFT and explain how to sign up and navigate around the site
When: Preparation for Launch
To: Coworkers / Organization Employees
From: Hackathon Managers

Subject: Join {{organization}} on Devpost for Teams!


{{organization}} is excited to begin using Devpost for Teams, a private enterprise product developed specifically for hosting internal employee hackathons. You will be able to create impactful projects for the organization by networking and collaborating with your coworkers.


How do I sign up for Devpost for Teams?


Keep an eye out for an email inviting you to join {{organization}} Devpost for Teams Hackathon Center. Once you click the link to join, you’ll be prompted to create an account and verify your email address. You’ll then be able to finish the onboarding process, to then:



and more! You can find out all about your Hackathon Center here.


How do I register for a hackathon?


Visit the Active hackathons section of your hackathon center or click on Hackathons within the navigation menu and you'll be able to view and register for hackathons that have not recently ended. Click the blue Register button on the top of the hackathon page. If applicable, you may be prompted to respond to various hackathon registration questions and after inputting your response, click Complete registration — you are now registered for the hackathon.


What if I have other questions?


You can find out more about registration, creating a project, forming teams, and uploading images to your project in the Participants section of the Devpost for Teams Help Center. Alternatively, you can email [email protected] for any questions or issues you might have.


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Announcement - CTA to register’


Purpose: Sent to Participants to encourage them to register and start thinking about team building

When: Day of Publish / Launch

To: Coworkers / Organization Employees

From: Hackathon Managers


Subject: Register for the {{hackathon}} today

The {{hackathon}} is now open for registration. 🎉

Network and collaborate with your colleagues to get started on creating impactful projects for the organization.

>> Register & learn more here <<

Looking for a teammate? Browse the Projects section to view projects that are open for team building then click "Join Project" to contribute your expertise.


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Reminder to register, submit ideas, and join teams


Purpose: Sent to organization employees to remind them to register

When: 1-3 days into the submission period or Mid-day if hackathon is <24 hours

To: Employees / Coworkers

From: Hackathon Managers


Subject: Did you register for {{hackathon}}?


There's still time to register for {{hackathon}}! ⏰

Have an idea but need a team member? No problem, we got you covered. Submit your idea and toggle the Team Building option to Open — your colleagues will be aware that you're looking for team members.

When creating your project, be sure to add the problem or issue you're trying to solve the area of expertise you are looking for in teammates, and a proposed solution.

The deadline is on {{submission deadline}}. Register now.


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Register & Team Up


Purpose: Sent to organization employees to remind them to register & team up

When: 1-3 days into the submission period or Mid-day if hackathon is <24 hours

To: Employees / Coworkers

From: Hackathon Managers


Subject: Register for the {{hackathon}} today


The {{hackathon}} is now open for registration. 🎉

Network and collaborate with your colleagues to get started on creating impactful projects for the organization.

>> Register & learn more here <<

👫 Looking for a teammate or a project to join? Browse the Projects section to view projects that are open for team building or post your own idea for others to join. 


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Workshop Announcement


Purpose: Announce workshop / webinar / mentoring session

When: 1 day prior to scheduled workshop

To: Registrants

From: Hackathon Managers


Subject: Join our workshop {{date, time, time zone}}


🧑‍🏫 Join our host {{name, title}} as we talk about {{theme}} and how it can help you with your hackathon project. Listen, learn, and ask questions!

{{Workshop name}}

{{Date, time, time zone}}

Attend the workshop {{link to Zoom or list physical location}}


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Deadline reminder ~1 hour (Slack / Community Chat OR Schedule Notification Message)


Purpose: Deadline reminder message

When: 1 hour before deadline

To: Community Chat participants

From: Hackathon Managers


There's one hour left in the {{hackathon}} - add your final touches to your projects! 🚨

Don't forget, as part of the requirements, you need to add {{assets}} to your project.


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Demo & Judging announcement reminder


Purpose: Kick off project demos and judging

When: Before demos start

To: Everyone

From: Hackathon Managers


Subject: Project demos & Judging are starting now!

Join our video chat {{Zoom link}} at {{demo start time}} to showcase your work!

After the demos are complete, rank your favorite projects on the form that we’ll share at the end of the demos — your responses are due BEFORE {{time}} tomorrow. 

Remember not to vote for your own projects!


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Winner announcement


Purpose: Winners announcement message

When: Winner Announcement

To: Everyone

From: Hackathon Managers


Subject: Announcing the {{hackathon}} Winners!


The votes are in — {{organization}} is happy to announce the following winners of {{hackathon}}!

Here is the lineup:

  • Winner
  • Winner
  • Winner

Congratulations to the teams behind these winning projects!

Be sure to check out the rest of the projects on the hackathon page {{view all projects link}}. 



Winner announcement - Email 2 | Personal > Participation Swag


Purpose: Sent to Winners to inform them about swag 

When: Winner Announcement

To: Winners

From: Hackathon Managers


Subject: Thank you for participating in {{hackathon}}!

Hi {{First Name}},

Thanks for participating in {{hackathon}} and helping to make it such a huge success.

While you weren’t selected as a winner this time around, we appreciate your hard work! As a thank you, we’d like to offer you company swag. Click here to claim your swag.

And don’t worry! You’ll have another chance to showcase your skills in our next hackathon.



Winner announcement - Email 2 | Personal > Participation Swag > Survey


Purpose: Sent to Winners to inform about swag and participation survey

When: Winner Announcement

To: Winners

From: Hackathon Managers


Subject: Thank you for participating in {{hackathon}}!


Hi {{First Name}},

Thanks for participating in {{hackathon}} and helping to make it such a huge success.

While you weren’t selected as a winner this time around, we appreciate your hard work! 

We also would like to hear from you as we continue to host hackathons — do you have a few minutes to answer some questions about your experience? As a thank you for your feedback and participation, we’d love to send you company swag.

Click here {{survey_link}} to leave your thoughts and claim your swag.

We look forward to hearing from you.




Winner announcement & prize info


Purpose: Sent to Winners & list steps for prizing

When: Winner Announcement

To: Winners

From: Hackathon Managers


Subject: {{hackathon}} winners are…

Hi {{name}},

Congratulations, you've won {{prize}} in {{hackathon}}! Here are some steps to claim your prize:

{{list steps}}

{{Swag claim form}}

We appreciate your participation and hope you continue participating in future hackathons. If you have any questions, please reach out to {{email}}.


Winner announcement Facebook / LinkedIn Post


We’re excited to announce the winners of our internal company hackathon! We had {{number_of_participants}} participants and {{number_of_projects}} projects submitted! Among these projects we selected {{number_of_winners}} winners:


Congratulations


  • Winner
  • Winner
  • Winner

Thanks to everyone who took part and helped make this hackathon a success. If you missed this hackathon, be sure to check out our hackathon center {{hackathon_center_link}} and register for upcoming challenges or create your own!



Winner announcement Twitter


Congratulations to the winners of our internal company hackathon! With {{number_of_participants}} participants and {{number_of_projects}} projects submitted, we’re so impressed with the creativity and ingenuity of our employees. 

#hackathons #devpostforteams 



Winner announcement blog


The internal company hackathon is now over and the projects that were submitted were truly impressive! 


In this hackathon, participants were asked to submit projects that solved {{problem}}. A total of {{number_of_participants}} registered and {{number_of_projects}} projects were submitted. From all of the projects submitted, the judges selected the below winners: 


  • Winner - description - award
  • Winner - description - award
  • Winner - description - award

Congratulations!

{{quote}} - {{CEO}}


We also wanted to express our sincere appreciation to all those that participated. Thank you for your optimism, creativity, and fresh ideas.

To learn more about these projects, be sure to visit the hackathon page {{hackathon_site}} and scroll down to the projects.