Designing a contact form: more enquiries, fewer fields

Which fields are needed

• Name
• Email (and a telephone number if a call-back is wanted)
• Message

Anything further, such as company, budget or timeframe, can help to classify the enquiry, but should be optional or clearly justified.

Design

• Labels always visible, not just as placeholders
• Large fields and buttons for the phone
• Clear error messages right at the field
• One unambiguous button (“Send enquiry”)
• A friendly confirmation after sending

Keeping spam out

• A hidden field (honeypot) that only bots fill in
• Limiting how often each sender can submit
• Server-side checking of the entries

Data protection

• A reference to the privacy policy (whether consent is needed for a simple enquiry is a matter for legal advice; usually the information is enough)
• Use the data only for the purpose of the enquiry and do not store it for longer than necessary

A decision aid: which fields, and when?

• Required: everything without which you cannot reply, usually name, email and message.
• Telephone: only as a required field if you reply exclusively by phone. Otherwise optional, with a note on what you use the number for.
• Subject selection: useful if enquiries go internally to different people. Keep the list short.
• File attachments: only offer them if you really need them, for example photos for a quote. State the size and format.
• Multi-step forms: with many questions they can seem less daunting than one long form, but they need a visible progress indicator.

Typical mistakes

• A captcha that shuts people out: distorted characters are a hurdle for many visitors, especially those with poor eyesight. Invisible methods such as a honeypot are usually more pleasant.
• An error message that wipes the input: anyone who has to retype everything after a typo often gives up.
• No feedback after sending: without a confirmation, visitors send twice or doubt whether it arrived.
• An unclear sender address: if the email lands in spam, you will not notice. Test the delivery route regularly.
• A form only, no alternative: also give a telephone number and email address; not everyone wants to use a form.

Practical example: from seven required fields to three

Suppose a plumbing firm asks on its contact page for name, company, address, telephone, email, subject and message, all required. Many enquiries are emergencies from a mobile phone, typed with one thumb. The revision: only name, telephone or email (one of the two) and message are required. The address is asked for in the follow-up conversation. The effort for visitors drops noticeably, and the follow-up call clears up what the form would otherwise have asked. How much the number of enquiries changes cannot be said in general; measure it before and after over a few weeks.

Checks before going live

1. Fill in the form wrongly on purpose and read the error messages.
2. Use the form with the keyboard.
3. Send a message and check that it arrives, including in the spam folder.
4. On a phone with the keyboard showing, check that the send button can be reached.

For data protection in the wider context: Cookie banners and data protection.

What happens after sending

A form is only the beginning. Decide who reads the enquiries, by when they are answered and where they are documented. An automatic confirmation of receipt by email tells the sender that the message has arrived and when to expect a reply, but only if you keep that promise. Do not name a deadline you cannot meet. Also check that enquiries are stored in a data-minimising way and deleted again after processing, unless there is a retention obligation.

Myth versus fact

Myth: More required fields bring better enquiries. Fact: They also filter out serious prospects who have no time to fill in a long form. Better quality comes rather from a good description of what you offer and for whom, and from an open message field with a short note on which details speed up the quote.

More ideas on the page Landing pages.