Online Enquiry Form Best Practice
Online Enquiry form one of the most important elements of your website as it helps capture leads and starting a conversation with potential clients.
It is not enough to include a form, it is important to follow best practice so once potential customer arrives to the form to enquire, they follow through and complete the form.
Here are my tips for best practice online forms:
The form
Limit the number of form fields as too many fields can be overwhelming and can turn people away.
Best practice is between 3-5 fields. Research shows that reducing the number of form fields to four or less can increase conversions.
Questions to ask:
First, include an introductory text – set expectation for the form – what will happen next (‘please complete for form below and we will get back to you..”
fields to include: name, contact details, reason for contacting, text area for details.
Best to start from easy question (for example name) and end with the harder (i.e enquiry details)
Always make sure to ask for contact details (email and phone) so you can reply / call back.
Remember, don’t ask for personal info you do not need! (and as you are collecting private information, make sure you have a Privacy Policy visible on your website. )
Form Formatting:
Watch out for field settings that are different between regions.
Phone example: preset fields for phone might not work in all regions
Date example: USA / AUS formatting (MM/DD vs DD/MM)
Form Label:
Play with the form button label – it does not always need to be ‘submit’ It can be ‘lets chat’ ‘get started’ play with ideas that work with your communication strategy.
Don’t use CAPTCHA!
CAPTCHA is a tool for reducing spam, but it also have a negative effect on the customer who completes the form as most find it annoying and sometimes fail to complete (as it can be difficult) and the lead is lost.
Form Placement
The main spot for your contact form is the contact page as many will immediately go to the contact page looking for it.
You can add forms to other pages of your site and slightly change them based on the page.
For example, if you offer 2 difference services. This way the customer does not need to tell you what they are enquiring about as the for is specific to this service.
Post Submit
Once form is submitted it is best practice to acknowledge it was submitted. Make it visible and obvious to the customer that the submission was successful.
Post Submit form options:
- One line replacing the form
- Post Submit re-direct to a thank you page (read more in this blog)
- Post Submit automated email
Testing
Test the form on all devices, especially make sure it works well on mobile.
Occasionally go to your website and complete your form or ask family and friends to do this for you – this will not only check that everything is working well and you receive the form but also will help with ideas as you step into your client’s shoes for testing.
