FAQ, Help & Documentation

What is Gala Assist

Gala Assist is a combination of 2 things...
A web based admin Dashboard and an easy to use iPad app

• With the web dashboard you can get started early. Enter your guest information, Enter your auction items. Customize and preview the bid sheets, website, and email receipts with your logo and text... You get the point.

• On the day of your event use the custom iPad application to check guests in. Enter your auction results, and check guests out with the built in credit card readers, check , or cash. It is seriously simple, and seriously fast

Once you have your username and password you are ready to log in to the admin dashboard. This is where you do all the preparation for the event. Adding all your guests, auction items, tables, and other event specific settings. Here you can also preview all the printed materials like bid sheets, and the customized auction website.

The Dashboard

After logging in you will be redirected to your dashboard. 
The dashboard has some key stats about your event including:

• The event date

• The number of guests currently added to your event

• The number of auction items currently added to your event

• A pre-event check list

• The number of guests that currently possess a Fast Pass.

• The check in status of guests to your event.

• A pre-event checklist

The Pre-event Checklist

At the bottom of the dashboard page is the pre-event checklist section. Here you will find some very helpful links.

• Logo Check

• VIP SMS Number Check

• Minimum Bid & Bid Increments Check

• A link to download and print your bid sheets

• A link to download and print a backup paper guest list

Lets go into a bit more detail about each of these

Logo Check

The logo check will show an error or a checkmark depending on if you have uploaded your events logo. If you have an error symbol see the section on how to upload a logo

VIP SMS Number Check

The VIP SMS check will show an error or a checkmark depending on if you have added a phone number to receive SMS notifications for VIP check-ins. If you have an error symbol see the section on how to add a VIP SMS phone number

Minimum Bid & Bid Increments Check

The Minimum Bid & Bid Increments check will show an error or a checkmark depending on if you have any auction items missing required fields. These fields are the minimum bid field and the bid increment field. Without these two fields filled in your bid sheet for this item will be useless. If you have an error symbol we will cover how to fix this in the Adding and Editing Items sections.

Paper Guest List

We want to make sure you are prepared for anything so here is where you find the link to download a CSV/Spreadsheet file of all your guests

The best place to get started is on the event settings page. You will find the link to this page at the top right corner of every page . This page has a few simple settings that need to be changed only once. These tasks can be completed quickly and easily.

The event settings page allows you to set event specific settings. These include:

• Phone number for SMS ViP notifications.

• Event logo

• Organization/Event name

• Event date

• Event tagline

• Event contact email

• Event address

Below is some more information about some of these sections.

On the event settings page you will see a section to choose a file to upload. Uploading your logo will replace the default image with your custom image in several places including:

• Bid Sheets

• The website of auction items sent to your guests

• All email communications sent to your guests

On the event settings page you will also see a section to enter a SMS number to receive VIP alerts. If no number is entered then no VIP alerts will be sent. We will cover how to mark a guest as a VIP in the adding a guest section.

Event Specific Information.

The event settings page also allows you to update event specific information including:

• Organization name

• Event Date

• Event Address

• Event Tagline

• Event Contact Email Address

This information may be displayed to guests in email communications or on the auction website. Simply update the information and click the “Update Information” button to save the changes.

On the event settings page you will also see a link to your customized auction website. There is also a button that will send the link to all of your guests currently in the guest list.

The next section on the event settings page is a place to upload an auction sponsor logo. This will be used on email communications about the auction, the auction website, and bid sheets. 

*A sponsor is not required and if it is not set there will be no image used on the communications mentioned above

The last section on the event settings page allows you to see what your email to your guests will look like. Just click on one of the options to see how it will display in your guests inbox.

It is easy to see the list of guests, add guests, edit guest information and remove guests on the website. After logging in you are taken to your dashboard. On the left side of the screen is the main navigation links. Simply click "Guests" 

On the main guests page there are a few things to note:

• The add guest button

• The guest search box

• The guest list

• The send verification emails button

Lets go into a bit more detail about each of these

The Add Guest Button

This is of course the button you press to add a new guest

The Guest Search Box

Located directly below the add guest button you will find the guest search box. It's exactly what you think it is. When you have a bunch of guests you can start typing in that box to see the results in the table.

The Guest List

Here is a list of all your guests. They are sorted alphabetically by last name

The Send Verification Email Button

Clicking this button will send an email to all of your guests that have an email address entered. This email allows the guest to update and verify their information and save it to your database of guests. This is a handy way to allow your guests to ensure you have the most up to date information

To add a guest navigate to the "Guests" page. At the top click on the "Add Guest" button. 

You will be taken to the Add A Guest Form. This is where you enter the information you have for this guest including some required fields

• Table Number

• First Name *required

• Last Name *required

• Address

• City

• State

• Zip

• Email

• Phone

• VIP?

Table Number

If you know the table number go ahead and enter it. All this information can be changed later. If not that is fine too. We can add it later

First & Last Name

These are the only 2 required fields. 

VIP?

If you would like to receive SMS alerts when this guest checks in mark the VIP Status of this guest to "yes"

Saving the Guest

once you are satisfied with the information you have entered for the guest click the "Add Guest button at the bottom of the form. This will save the guest and return you to the full guest list.

To edit a guest simply navigate to the "Guests Page. Find the guest in the list that you want to edit and click the name highlighted in green 

This will take you to the form used to add the guest with the information you entered already filled out. Simply update the information and click the "Update Guest" button

Here is some information on the other sections on this page

Send Verification Email Button

As discussed earlier in the Guests section this button will resend the email to your guest to allow them to update their own information.

This button can be used after the event is over to resend an email receipt of all the auction items won by this guest

To remove a guest go to the "Guests" page and click on the name of the guest you would like to remove. The edit guest page will be displayed. Above the form there is a "Delete Guest" button. Click this button and the guest will be deleted and you will be returned to the full guest list.

Verification Emails

You can re-send the verification email allowing guests to complete their contact information at the bottom of every edit guest page.

Fast Pass

You can manually send a Fast Pass Email at the bottom of each edit guest page. Guests that have completed all their contact information from the verification email will receive a Fast Pass email automatically.

Resending Auction Receipts

You can manually resend an email receipt of items paid for at the event. Simply click the Resend Email Receipt button at the bottom of any edit guest page. 

To see a list of all your auction items you can click the "Items" link on the main navigation. This will take you to the Auction Items main page. Here are the sections you will find on this main Auction Items page.

• The "Add Item" button

• The Search Items Box

• The Auction Item List

Here is a little more about each of these

Add Item Button

This is of course the button you press to add an auction item.

The Item Search Box

Located directly below the Add Item Button and above the items list is the box used to search the auction items. This will help you filter a large list of auction items

The Auction Item List

The auction item list displays all the items you have entered for your event sorted by item number

To add auction items click on the "Add Item" button on the items main page. This takes you to a page where you can fill out the item information. The fields are listed below.

• Item Name

• Category

• Description

• Minimum Bid

• Bid Increment

• Value

• Visible on auction website

• Item Image

Let's go into a little more detail about these fields 

Item Name

The name of the item. Usually a short title is best because this title will be used at the top of bid sheets and under the pictures on the auction website. This is the only required field

Category

You can use this however you like. It is mostly used to filter the main items page to group similar items for browsing. Examples could include things like "Art", "Trips" or even more broad such as "Silent Auction" or "Live Auction"

Description

This is a more detailed description of the auction item. It is used on the website of auction images as well as on the bid sheets. Recommended length is a couple of sentences.

Minimum Bid & Bid Increment

The minimum bid is the smallest amount of money that you would sell this auction item for. The bid increment is how many dollars you want to increase by each bid. These numbers are used heavily by the bid sheets to automatically fill out the bid sheets for each item

Value

The estimated value of this auction item.

Visible on auction website

This will allow you to choose weather this item is displayed on your public auction website.

Item Image

You can upload an image of the item that will be used on the website of auction images that you send to your guests. If no image is uploaded a default image will be used in its place.

Saving the Item

When you are satisfied with all the information you have entered, simply press the "Save Item" button. You will be returned to the full list of auction items

To edit an item simply click on the item name in the full list of auction items. Update the information in the fields and click the "Update Item" button

To remove an item simply click on the name of the item in the full auction item list and click the "Remove Item" button at the top of the page.

To see a list of all your tables you can click the "Tables" link on the main navigation. This will take you to the Tables main page. Here are the sections you will find on this main Tables page.

• The "Add Table" button

• The Search Table Box

• The Table List

Here is a little more about each of these

Add Table Button

This is of course the button you press to add a table.

The Table Search Box

Located directly below the Add Table Button and above the table list is the box used to search the tables. This will help you filter a large list of tables

The Table List

The table list displays all the tables you have entered for your event sorted by table number

To add Tables click on the "Add Table" button on the items main page. This takes you to a page where you can fill out the table information. The fields are listed below.

• Table Number

• Number of seats

• Table Name

• Contact First Name

• Contact Last Name

• Contact Email

• Contact Phone

Saving the Table

When you are satisfied with all the information you have entered, simply press the "Save Table" button. You will be returned to the full list of tables

To edit a table simply click on the table name in the full list of tables. Update the information in the fields and click the "Update Table" button

To remove a table simply click on the name of the table in the full table list and click the "Remove Table" button at the top of the page.

The application will create your bid sheets for you automatically. The bid sheets will have your logo, the item name, item number, and item description at the top. Under this information are lines pre-filled with the next bid price so your guests will only need to write their bidder number next to the price they want to bid.  If you have uploaded a auction sponsor logo on the Event settings page it will be shown at the bottom of each bid sheet.

From the main navigation click the reports link to view a breakdown of some key metrics including:

• All payments

• Payment Status

• Items not yet paid

• All auction items with the winning bidder and payment status

As a part of the Gala Assist Service we provide 4 iPads with the Gala Assist app installed. These iPads will be shipped to your location the Monday before your event. You must return the iPads within 7 business days using the prepaid return shipping label included in the box. Fees for late returns can be found on the pricing section of the website. 

The iPad app is simple and easy to use. On the day of the event you will no longer use the web dashboard, you will switch to the iPad app. The iPad application allows you to check in guests, edit and add new guest information. Enter auction bid results. Send Auction winners an SMS alert. Check Guests out including taking payments with credit card, check, or cash.  

Below we will discuss the sections of the application and how to use them. 

After logging into the application using the same username and password you used for the website you will be taken to the check In screen. This screen has a few different sections.

• Check In Status

• Guest List

• Scan Fast Pass

• Add A Guest Button

Below we will discuss these sections in a little more detail

Check In Status

On the top left of the screen you will see the ‘Check In Status” button that will take you to a pie chart of your check in status. This will show the number of guests left to check in in red and if the green section is big enough the number of guests that have checked in.  

Below the pie chart you will see the percentage of guests that have checked in.

The main section of this screen is your guest list

At the top of the guest list is a search box. This is the fastest way to search through the guests and find the guest you are looking for. 

In the gust list you will see a green dot before the name of the guest if they are already checked in

When you have found the guest that you would like to check in, simply click the guests name in the list. This will take you to the details for this guest. 

At this point you will ask the guest to confirm that you have the correct information and/or add missing information. If you would like to edit the information see the Editing A Guest section.

A star next to the guests name indicates the guest is marked as a VIP

Once you are satisfied with the information you have for this guest, Write the bidder number and table number on a table and bidder card and hand it to your guest. Then press the Check In Button. 

A new button will appear that will allow you to send the bidder and table number to your guest as an SMS message.

A green check mark will indicate that this guest has been checked in.

When you click on a guest in the guest list to check them in it is important to verify you have the correct information. If the guest would like you to modify the information it is simple and fast to do so within the iPad application.  

At the top right of the guests information detail screen you will see an “Edit” button.  

Tap the Edit button to enter the guest information edit mode.  

You will be asked to edit the information in two different sections. 

• The guests name and address

• The guests email, phone, and table number

Sometimes you don't have all the guests that will be attending before the event starts 

You may have an organization that has purchased an entire table and not provided the guests that will be at the table.  

This is where you will add the guest at the door. 

To add a guest at the door simply click the "+" button at the top right of the main guest list screen. This will take you to a screen where you can choose how to enter the guests information. You can quickly capture the guests Name and Address by scanning the barcode on the back of a drivers license or you can enter the information manually.

When you close sections of an auction or when you close the auction completely, you will need to enter who won each item and how much they bid on that item.  

This can be a tedious process but the iPad application makes short work of it.  

The first step is to collect all the bid sheets of the items that are now closed for bidding 

Hand the bid sheets to your event staff and on the main navigation of the iPad application click on "Auction Entry" 

This takes you to the auction results entry mode. It has been designed to make entering results quick and easy. It is also a three step process involving, entering the item number at the top right of the bid sheet,. Entering the winning bidder number, and finally the price next to the winning bidder number. Then you press save which will store this result for that item. The application saves the result and takes you back to the beginning of the process so you can start on the next item. Repeat these steps for each bid sheet.

After you have entered all auction results into the application you are ready to start checking out your guests. The first step in this process is to let your guests know if they have won any auction items.  

In the main navigation of the iPad application click the "Check Out" item. 

At the top right of the screen you will see the “Notify Winners” button. This will take you to a screen where you can notify all winners by SMS.

After you send the SMS notifications you should be prepared to start checking out guests.  

In the main navigation of the application click on the "Check Out" item. 

This will present you with a list of all your guests much like the check in section. There is the same search bar at the top that allows you to search for guests by first name, last name, or bidder number. Simply start typing and the list will be narrowed down to the guests that match your search. 

At the top of the Check Out screen you will see a button that will show you the status of your checkout process. This will give you an idea of how many guests have yet to check out.

Check Out Details

When you find the guest in the list that is ready to check out simply click on the guests name. 

This will take you to a screen where you can see all the items won by this guest, the bid for each item, and the total due. If the guest has items that have not yet been paid for you will also see a total amount due at the bottom of the list. If the guest has multiple items you may have to scroll down the list to see the total amount due. 

If the guest has items not yet paid for you will also see a “Pay Now” button. Click tis button to select one of the payment methods, Credit Card, Check, or Cash.

Details on taking payments can be found in the "Accepting Payments" section below

If for some reason the guest informs you that they did not bid on one of the items they have won you can remove this item from the guests list of won items. 

This will alter the total amount due for this guest

To remove an item from a guest at check out simply swipe the item from right to left and hit the delete button.

There are three payment types accepted from within the application

• Credit Card

• Check

• Cash

Below are some details about each payment type.

Credit Card Payments

When a guest has items they have won but have not yet paid for, there will be a “Pay Now” button visible on the check out details screen. Tapping this button will show the payment methods available. Credit Card" , "Check", and "Cash". 

This section will focus on credit card payments. 

All major forms of credit cards are accepted including...

• Visa

• MasterCard

• American Express

• JCB

• Discover

• Diners Club

When you click the "Credit Card" button the text on the screen will let you know when the reader is ready for you to Swipe/Tap/Insert the card. 

Simply follow the on screen instructions and the application will fill in the required credit card information. Now you can press the "Pay Pay Now" button. 

If the transaction was successful the iPad application will let you know with a notification on the screen and you will be returned to the main check out screen. If it was not you will be notified with instructions on screen

Check Payments

When you choose the "Check" button you will be presented with the check payment screen.

Simply enter the check number in the text box and press the "Pay with Check". button.  

The transaction is recorded and the items are marked as paid.  

The application will let you know that the transaction is complete and return you to the main check out screen

Cash Payments

When you choose the "Cash" button you will be presented with the cash payment screen. Simply press the "Pay with Cash". button.  

The transaction is recorded and the items are marked as paid.  

The application will let you know that the transaction is complete and return you to the main check out screen

After a successful transaction a receipt of the transaction will automatically be emailed to the email address on file for that guest.  

If you need to resend the email receipt later you can see the "Resending Email Receipts" section above 

You can refund the payment for a guest by logging into your Stripe account and finding the transaction you would like to refund.  

If you need help refunding a transaction please let us know and we can do this for you.

Help is Always Available

If there is anything we can do to help you further please don't hesitate to Contact Us  

Good luck on your event!