The full-screen contest editor keeps setup, appearance, distribution, and performance in one place. On desktop, use the left rail to move between Build, Design, Launch, and Results.
Working on mobile
On phones and touch devices, the four main stages move to a navigation bar at the bottom of the editor. The current stage stays highlighted while you work.
Each stage adapts to the smaller screen:
- In Build, use Steps, Edit, and Preview. Selecting a setup step automatically opens Edit.
- In Design, use Design, Preview, and Theme to switch between controls, the live preview, and theme presets.
- Launch places the channel setup, sharing tools, and checklist in one vertical scroll.
- In Results, use Overview, Entries, and Draw winners. Results opens on Entries, and entry and referral tables become labelled rows that do not require horizontal scrolling.
The header keeps activation and status controls visible. On mobile, open the More actions menu (…) to find Preview, copy the link, duplicate, archive, or permanently delete the contest.
Editor header
The header shows the contest title and current status. From here you can rename the contest, preview it, activate or deactivate it, open additional actions, or close the editor.
When you make a change, a save bar appears with Save and Discard. Save before closing or moving on to a customer-facing test.
Open More actions (…) and choose Delete permanently only when the contest and its data are no longer needed. After confirmation, UserLoop deletes the contest, all entries, winners, uploaded photos, and statistics. Uploaded entry photos are also removed from Shopify Files. This cannot be undone; use Archive when you need a reversible option.
Build
Build contains the campaign structure:
- Contest settings — choose Fixed dates or Pro-only Ongoing mode, then set the schedule, winner confirmation, prize delivery, URL, description, language, and terms.
- Entry form — optional or required fields, entry limit, marketing consent for active integrations, button text, and display options.
- Prizes — Shopify product and custom prizes with quantities.
- Success — post-entry heading and message.
- Discount code — unique per-entrant Shopify rewards on Pro.
- Bonus actions — referrals, photo uploads, questions, social visits, and more. Photo upload settings include manual approval, email-gated voting, optional voter name, and marketing consent. On Free, you can build and preview actions, but they stay paused for entrants until you upgrade.
- Winners — explains where winner selection happens after launch.
On Free, Add bonus action remains available and each action displays a Pro label. Saving an existing action preserves entrant completions. If you remove an action that entrants have completed, the editor warns that their submissions will be permanently deleted; they keep the bonus entries already earned.
Design
Design combines a live preview with the visual settings:
- Select a theme preset.
- Upload a header image and logo.
- Set primary, background, and text colors.
- Customize button copy and display choices.
- On Pro, override translated storefront labels, placeholders, validation messages, status notices, and action text under Custom text.
- Preview desktop or mobile, entry or success, and every distribution surface.
Launch
Launch brings together your storefront channels and go-live checks:
- Standalone page — copy or preview the hosted contest link.
- Popup — open Shopify's theme editor and enable the Contest Popup app embed.
- App block — add the Contest Form section to an Online Store 2.0 theme.
- Photo gallery block — for a contest with a Photo upload action, add its gallery and public voting to a theme page.
- Share — copy the link, download a QR code, or build a UTM-tagged URL.
- Checklist — review prizes, schedule, form, terms, storefront setup, and activation.
The popup is optional; a contest can still be activated and shared through another channel. If a Free-plan contest contains paused bonus actions, Launch shows a warning that names them and links to Upgrade to Pro. You can still activate the contest; upgrading later makes the actions live without a relaunch.
Results
Results is the operational view after launch. It includes:
- Entries, views, conversion rate, and winner count.
- Search and CSV export.
- All entries, photo entries, identified voters, referrals, and hidden-entry segments.
- Under Referrals, summary totals plus Referred entries and Top referrers views.
- Photo moderation with Awaiting approval and Rejected filters, approve/reject controls, vote totals, visibility controls, Delete photo, and full-entry Delete actions.
- Prize availability, winner-selection tools, and a four-step Notified → Claimed → Order → Fulfilled delivery tracker.
For fixed-date contests, winner selection is available on Free and Pro after the contest ends. If necessary, choose End contest & draw now, then use random, manual, or most-voted selection. For ongoing contests, Results shows Scheduled draws, the next draw and history. Accept or redraw proposed winners there, or use Run draw now while the contest stays open.
For a fixed-date contest, after keeping a winner, use Set up prize delivery. For an ongoing contest, choose prize delivery in Build before launch so each confirmed winner can be handled immediately. For fixed-date contests on Free, choose Handle redemption yourself and I'll contact them. On Pro, you can also use UserLoop-sent winner emails, secure claim details, address collection, and Shopify draft or order creation.
A practical workflow
- Complete Build from top to bottom.
- Check every important surface in Design.
- Save and preview.
- Configure at least one distribution channel in Launch.
- Activate and share the contest.
- Monitor Results during the campaign.
- For fixed dates, select winners after the end date. For Ongoing, review each scheduled draw and any proposed winner in Results.
For referral reporting, see Managing Entries. For the full plan-aware winner workflow, see Sending and Fulfilling Winner Prizes.
For full plan-aware action behavior, see Bonus Entry Actions.
For the end-to-end photo workflow, see Photo Contests and Public Voting.
For reversible status changes and permanent deletion, see Contest Lifecycle.
For the complete recurring-draw workflow, see Ongoing Contests.