If you’ve ever found yourself juggling multiple forms or getting bogged down with clunky workflows, you’re not alone. Zoho Forms offers a plethora of features designed to simplify data collection, automate processes, and improve overall efficiency. But like any powerful tool, knowing how to use it effectively is key to unlocking its full potential. In this article, we’ll dive into the Zoho Forms best practices that will help you maximize the platform’s capabilities—whether you’re gathering leads, handling approvals, or simply looking to streamline your day-to-day operations.
Ready to make your Zoho Forms experience a breeze? Let’s dive into the seven best practices that’ll help you do just that!
1. Use Hidden Fields to Your Advantage
Sometimes, less is more, and hidden fields in Zoho Forms are a perfect example of that. These fields allow you to capture data without cluttering the form with too many visible fields. Want to track user behavior, capture pre-filled information, or include context-sensitive data without it being visible? Hidden fields are your best friend.
For example, if you’re collecting user information across multiple forms, you can automatically pass data like the user’s ID or source campaign to a hidden field. This allows you to maintain consistency without requiring the user to input the same data twice.
Example. The above example is from our Zoho Team Training Course Feedback Form. In this example we can see that there are two hidden fields being used Course and User Type. Rather than creating a feedback form from each course, we can pre-populate the form with the course as a hidden field. This can be done using a pre-generated URL for the form. See the image below.
Why use hidden fields?
- Keep forms clean and user-friendly.
- Automatically pass data.
- Streamline data collection without overwhelming your users.
2. Use One Form Instead of Many (If You Can)
It’s easy to think you need a separate form for every little use case, but that often leads to confusion, inefficiency, and increased maintenance. One of the best Zoho Forms best practices is to consolidate related information into a single, versatile form.
Instead of creating a separate form for every different product inquiry, consider combining multiple options into one, and then using Page Rules to display relevant fields based on the user’s selection. Not only does this keep things tidy, but it also enhances the user experience by showing them only what they need to see.
Much like the example above, based on fields selected, you can change the fields displayed on the form. The same technique can be used to pre-fill hidden fields as well to change the logic of the form.
Here’s why you should consider using one form:
- Ensure users only see questions that are relevant to them.
- Reduce form abandonment by keeping things streamlined.
- Tailor the form experience for more targeted responses.
3. Settings: Tweak Your Form for Maximum Efficiency
If you haven’t explored the settings options in Zoho Forms, you might be missing out on some useful features. These settings allow you to customize your form’s behavior, including notifications, submission limits, and even confirmation messages.
For example, you can adjust the submission limit to prevent users from submitting the form more than once (if needed), or you can set up email notifications to alert you when a form is submitted. Fine-tuning these settings can ensure a smooth experience both for you and your respondents.
A few settings worth adjusting:
- Set up email notifications for instant alerts.
- Choose a custom confirmation message to engage users post-submission.
- Control who has access to form submissions with privacy settings.
4. Customize Your Theme for Branding
The way your form looks can have a huge impact on its user engagement. Thankfully, Zoho Forms gives you full control over your form’s theme. With just a few clicks, you can change the color scheme, fonts, and layout to match your brand’s aesthetic.
If you’re looking to integrate your form seamlessly into your website or landing page, you can also embed Zoho Forms with a custom theme that aligns with your site’s design. This helps you maintain a consistent user experience across your entire platform.
Why customizing your theme is a must:
- Reinforce your brand identity.
- Enhance the user experience with a clean, consistent design.
- Create a visually appealing form that encourages submissions.
5. Embed Tricks: Boost Form Engagement
Embedding your form directly into your website or landing page is a powerful way to boost engagement. But did you know there are tricks to embedding your Zoho Form that can make it even more effective?
For instance, you can use lightbox embedding—where the form appears in a pop-up when a user clicks on a button—making it less intrusive while still accessible. Another trick is embedding the form within a modal or sliding panel, which can be great for capturing information without disrupting the user’s flow.
iFrame is a go to choice to embed a form on your website. If you want to remove the scrolling bar on your form, there is a code for no-scroll you can add to your form, however, generally adjust the height will fix this issue. See the bolded code example.
<iframe aria-label='Team Training Feedback Form' frameborder="0" style="height:500px;width:99%;border:none; overflow:hidden;" src='https://forms.zohopublic.com/YourFORM'></iframe>
or
<iframe aria-label='Team Training Feedback Form' frameborder="0" style="height:500px;width:99%;border:none;" scrolling="no" src='https://forms.zohopublic.com/YourFORM'></iframe>Why embedding matters:
- Increases form visibility without interrupting the user experience.
- Allows users to fill out forms without leaving your page.
- Customizable options to suit your website design.
6. Turn On Track Entries for Better Insights
If you’re running marketing campaigns and using Zoho Forms to capture leads, turning on Track Entries can provide you with invaluable insights into the performance of your forms. By enabling this feature, you can track UTM parameters, like source, medium, and campaign, which are appended to your form’s URL. This allows you to see exactly where your form submissions are coming from, how users found your form, and which marketing efforts are yielding the best results.
With Track Entries, you’ll be able to correlate form submissions with specific marketing campaigns or promotional activities. This data is crucial for refining your campaigns, understanding your audience better, and optimizing your marketing strategies for even better results.
For more on UTM’s see our detailed blog.
Key benefits of using Track Entries for marketing:
- Monitor UTM parameters to see where your leads are coming from.
- Get clear insights into which marketing channels (email, social media, PPC, etc.) are most effective.
- Fine-tune your marketing efforts by understanding what works and what doesn’t.
By tracking this data, you can make smarter, more informed decisions and improve the ROI on your campaigns. Plus, you’ll have the detailed information you need to optimize future marketing strategies!
7. Properly Configure Your Integrations
Integrating Zoho Forms with other tools like Zoho CRM, Google Sheets, or third-party applications can save you a ton of time. Setting up these integrations properly ensures data flows seamlessly from your form directly into the systems you use daily.
For example, connecting Zoho Forms with Zoho CRM automatically adds form responses to your contact list, eliminating manual data entry. This helps you create automated workflows, follow-ups, and even trigger notifications or actions based on form submissions.
Why integrations are essential:
- Automates data flow, saving time.
- Integrates with various tools for a smooth workflow.
- Reduces human error by ensuring consistency in data entry.
FAQs
Q1: How do I customize the appearance of my Zoho Form?
You can customize your Zoho Form’s theme by going to the Theme section within the form editor. From there, you can change fonts, colors, and layout to match your branding.
Q2: Can I track how users interact with my form?
Yes! Turning on Track Entries in the form settings allows you to monitor submissions, track user behavior, and see where users may be dropping off.
Q3: How do I set up email notifications in Zoho Forms?
Simply go to the Settings tab of your form and click on Email Notifications. From there, you can customize who gets notified and when they’ll receive the email.
Conclusion
Mastering Zoho Forms best practices can truly take your data collection, form management, and automation to the next level. From simplifying the user experience with hidden fields and page rules to boosting workflow efficiency with integrations and approval processes, these best practices will help you get the most out of Zoho Forms. By implementing just a few of these tips, you’ll create more seamless, user-friendly forms that improve data accuracy, reduce friction, and enhance the overall experience for both you and your respondents. So, why wait? Start applying these strategies today and see the difference!
