10 easy ways to create forms that convert

When you run an eCommerce store, online forms make it easy to collect data from your customers and integrate it into your backend systems.

However, there is a knack to creating good forms. Build a form that’s too long, too confusing, or comes across as too untrustworthy, and your customers won’t want to fill it in.

As an eCommerce agency with over twenty years of experience, we’ve created thousands of online forms that get the right results for our clients.

In this article we’ll share ten ways you can build high-quality forms for your online store, and answer some of your most frequently asked questions about getting started with forms.

Article topics

1. Only ask for the data you need
2. Use clear and concise labels
3. Choose the right field type for your questions
4. Make your forms mobile-friendly
5. Think about your error messages
6. Consider your call-to-action
7. Design your form well
8. Show customers that they can trust you
9. Use your brand’s style throughout
10. Say thank you
11. Creating a form online: Frequently asked questions

1. Only ask for the data you need

When you’re building an online form, you’ll want to collect as much data from customers as possible. For example, if you want to find influencers or affiliates to work with, you’ll want to know about the social media channels they use and how many followers they have.

However, asking for too much information can be counterproductive. If it’s going to be too much of an effort to complete your form, customers will bow out.

It’s far better to only ask for the information you’ll use. Not only does this provide a better user experience, but it’s better for data security – the less personal data you have, the easier it is to look after.

For example, unless you sell age-restricted products or want to send customers a gift on their birthday, you don’t need to ask for their date of birth.

Is there an ideal number of fields you should use in a form?

The general consensus is that three to five fields yield the best results.

However, the optimal number depends on what you want to achieve, the products or services you sell, and how motivated your users are to complete the form. People are usually more willing to provide additional information if there’s a bigger reward for filling out the form.

Try different combinations and see which your users respond best to.

2. Use clear and concise labels

In a form, a label describes the specific purpose of each form field, so users are aware of what information to enter. So in the example above, users know to enter their name, email address, and the message they want to send to you.

Keep your labels as short and scannable as possible; under two words is ideal. If you want to provide additional information to help users complete your form, you can do this with help text.

This is displayed in the form of an icon, which provides more details when a user clicks or hovers over it.

3. Choose the right field type for your questions

When creating your form, there’ll be lots of different types of form fields to choose from.

It’s essential to choose the optimal form field to help users complete your form as quickly and as friction-free as possible.

Take this unsubscribe form from Interflora. It uses radio buttons to help users make an informed choice as to whether they want to temporarily pause their emails, as well as checkboxes they can select to opt out of marketing for specific occasions.

Let’s run through some of the standard options available to you:

4. Make your forms mobile-friendly

38% of people in the UK use their mobile phones to shop online every day, and this figure is even higher in other countries!

This means it’s essential to make sure your online forms are as easy to complete as possible on mobile devices.

Ways you can do this include:

• Making the most of pre-fill responses, which automatically fill specific fields with known data, like an address, name, and payment details. This can increase form submissions by 25%
• Using a single-column layout that fits neatly onto a mobile device, like the support form above
• Keeping open-ended questions to a minimum. Focus on question types like radio buttons, checkboxes, and dropdown menus that are easier to use
• Creating large form fields and buttons that users can easily tap with a finger
• Offering shortcuts. For example, rather than customers entering their payment details, they can pay in one click with a PayPal or Google Pay button
• Testing your form thoroughly across a range of mobile devices before publishing it

5. Think about your error messages

We’ve all made mistakes when filling out online forms, whether that’s missing a mandatory field or entering our email address incorrectly.

Making your forms as intuitive and easy to use as possible will increase the chances of your users successfully completing your form. However, your error messages, which appear when users make a mistake, play a massive part too.

Good, helpful error messages show users where they’ve gone wrong and what they need to do to correct the problem. Poor-quality, unhelpful error messages frustrate them and may mean they choose not to complete your form.

Ways you can make your error messages as helpful as possible include:

Regularly check your forms to identify where users are struggling with them. If multiple users get stuck on the same part of a form repeatedly, it may be a sign that you need to review the design.

6. Consider your call-to-action

Your call-to-action (CTA) is the button at the bottom of your form, which users click to submit.

Creating an engaging, eye-catching CTA will help increase your conversion rate.

You can showcase your brand personality in your CTA, like Old World Christmas has in this email sign-up form.

Alternatively, you can use the fear of missing out (FOMO) to encourage people to complete your form as quickly as possible, as Neil Patel Digital has for this webinar.

Here are some additional things to consider when identifying which CTA to use:

• Keep your CTA short and sweet – six words maximum
• Show users what will happen after they click on your CTA and what benefits they will receive
• Think about the colour, shape, and size of the CTA, as well as the wording 10 ways to write a call-to-action that gets the right results

10 ways to write a call-to-action that gets the right results

7. Design your form well

Odds are that your users will determine whether they want to fill out your form or not within a few seconds of viewing it. If it’s well-designed and looks easy to complete, they’re more likely to make it all the way to the end.

Here are some ways you can ensure your form has a high completion rate:

• Use white space to space all your fields and other elements out, so they look more visually pleasing
• Stick to a single column format where possible. Studies have shown that single-column layouts are easier to read, complete, and review, meaning they’re more likely to lead to conversions
• Consider the order of your form. It’s best to start with the fields that drive the least friction (for example, name and email address) and end with the fields that drive the most friction (for example, payment details), as this minimises the risk of users dropping out
• Group related form fields together to make the form easier to complete
• Avoid using a reset or clear button – users often click these accidentally!

8. Show customers that they can trust you

When you have a form on your website, you need to do all you can to persuade customers to fill it in. Using social proof or trust signals can give users a reason to trust you.

A trust signal is a piece of evidence or an asset that shows customers that you’re a credible and reliable business. Adding these elements to your form can increase conversions by 26%!

The right trust signal will depend on what you’re selling and the purpose of your form. For example, during the checkout process, showing the logos of the payment providers you use and the cards you accept provides a sense of familiarity.

If you want to encourage people to sign-up to your email newsletter, telling them how many other people have already signed up can be a powerful trust signal.

9. Use your brand’s style throughout

Consistent branding and design are a must across not only your eCommerce store, but also your marketing channels. It makes customers remember your brand and establishes trust.

In fact, brand consistency can increase revenue by up to 33%.

If you have multiple forms across your website, make sure they are similar in layout and design, from the form fields you use to the colour and shape of your CTA buttons.

A style guide is helpful in detailing how your forms should look and is ideal if you work with third parties or are a large business with many employees working across your website.

10. Say Thank You

Once a user completes a form on your website, you should confirm that their response has been received and what will happen next.

This provides customers with peace of mind that they have submitted their form successfully. It also makes customers feel valued and encourages them to take further action.

For example, following you on social media, buying a specific product, or providing feedback about their experience.

Creating a form online: Frequently asked questions

Want to know more about how to build an online form that gets the right responses? You’ll find all the answers here.

What type of online forms can I create?

The great thing about online forms is that you can use them for a variety of purposes. You can use them to get people to:

• Sign up for your newsletter
• Ask for help or submit a support request
• Ask for a quote or for more information about your products or services
• Have their say or tell you more about themselves
• Share their experiences and provide feedback
• Register for events, webinars, and programs
• Pay for products or services

Why are well-optimised forms so important?

Well-optimised and user-friendly forms are easier to complete, both on desktop and mobile.

This means you’re more likely to get all the information you need to help your customers, as well as see increased sales and conversions.

On average only two out of three people who start a form complete it, so it’s essential to do everything you can to encourage users to get all the way to the end!

You can also use forms to segment your customers so you can personalise your marketing to them.

For example, this pop-up from Schuh asks users if they’re interested in hearing about womens, mens, or kids shoes.

How can I build forms on my website?

Many website platforms have their own native form-building software, meaning you can easily create forms without needing to know code.

There are also third-party tools you can use. For example, you can use email marketing platforms like Mailchimp to create forms for gathering email addresses and embed these forms into your website.

The bonus of using form-building software and tools is that they let you integrate other apps into your form, improving the user experience and saving you time.

You can automatically add new contacts to your email marketing list or CRM system, accept payment, or create a brand new task in your project management tool of choice.

How can I make my forms accessible?

Making your forms accessible ensures everyone can use them. Some of the ways you can make your forms accessible include:

• Providing simple instructions in plain English to help users complete the forms, as well as helpful guidance to correct any errors
• Using readable fonts and clear colour contrast
• Not relying on colour alone to convey meaning (for example, if you put error messages in red, make them bold or add an icon so users with colour blindness can spot them)
• Removing time limits (or giving users the option to extend the time limit) so they can complete the form at their own pace

How to make your website accessible

How can I stop spammy responses from coming through my for?

There’s nothing more frustrating than seeing someone has completed a form on your website, only to discover that it’s spam.

Automated software (‘bots’) crawl the internet, looking for forms they can complete, promoting their services or worse, trying to scam you.

The good news is that you can put measures in place to encourage real users to fill in your form and stop bots in their tracks.

Implementing a rate limit puts a cap on how often a certain IP address can submit forms in a particular time period. This can help reduce the strain that bots place on your website and can stop them from sending lots of responses in a short amount of time.

If you’re using a form to encourage people to sign up to your mailing list, implement a double-opt-in. This means users receive a confirmation email, checking that their email address is valid and confirming that they want to subscribe.

For other types of forms, consider a reCAPTCHA. These work by identifying patterns that determine whether a user is human or a machine. If it identifies an issue, it challenges the user to prove they are human.

However, one issue with reCAPTCHAs, especially older iterations, is that they’re not always accessible; people who are visually or hearing impaired may find them hard to use.

A more accessible alternative to a reCAPTCHA is a honeypot. A honeypot is a hidden form field that only bots can see and fill in. If a bot fills in the field, the submission is automatically rejected.

Xigen: perfect forms for eCommerce stores

Creating forms that drive conversions may seem like hard work, but a lot of it is common sense. Make sure your forms have clear instructions, a logical order, and are as short as possible, and you’re onto a winner!

Let us leave you with one final piece of advice – test your forms and regularly make small improvements to optimise them for maximum conversions.

A/B testing is brilliant if you’re not sure if a change will have an effect – try two different versions of your form and see which one gets the most submissions.

If you want to give your online store a clean-up, we’re the eCommerce agency you can count on. Our experienced team will audit your existing website, assess the customer journey, and make changes that lead to more sales and improved customer loyalty.

Just one reason to add Xigen to your shopping cart! Contact us today to get started.