You may be collecting a lot of interest on your website. And of course, you want to ask your visitors many questions to get to know them better and improve your products and services based on their feedback. The question is: if you’re asking them a lot of questions, how are you presenting your long forms? Most users find it daunting to answer a never-ending set of questions in a seemingly endless form. As a result, they will likely abandon the process abruptly. And you’ll lose out on a potential lead here.
Well, the good news is that you can make long forms less intimidating by breaking them down into more manageable steps. While there are tools, such as Typeform and its alternatives that help make your survey questions more user-friendly, using such tools means adding yet another tool (and step) to your regular process. How about creating multi-step forms using existing form plugins instead?
In this article, we’ll walk you through the process of creating an engaging multi-step form in WordPress that ensures a smooth experience for both you and your users.
Table of Contents
What is a multi-step form in WordPress?
How to create a multi-step form in WordPress
Things to consider while choosing the right form plugin for WordPress
The best practices for designing a multi-step form
Creating multi-step forms without WordPress
Final words
What is a multi-step form in WordPress?
A WordPress multi-step form is a digital form that breaks down the information collection process into smaller, more manageable steps. Multi-step forms present users with one question at a time, so they can focus better. This approach allows users to complete forms more efficiently, without feeling overwhelmed by a long list of questions. Advantages of multi-step forms include:
- Improved conversion rates: Multi step forms streamline the form-filling process. This means users are more likely to complete the form, leading to higher conversion rates.
- Better user experience: Multi-step forms provide a more organised and less intimidating form experience for users.
- Enhanced data quality: Breaking a long form into smaller sections allows users to focus more on each question, leading to more accurate and complete information.
How to create a multi-step form in WordPress
Most form plugins support multi-step breakdown of a form. You can create a multi-step form out of your existing WordPress form plugin. If you don’t have one, the first step is to find and install it. Here’s how to create a multi-step form:
Step 1. Choose an appropriate form plugin: The first step to creating a multi-step form is selecting a form plugin that supports it. Some popular options include Gravity Forms, WPForms, Formidable Forms, and Ninja Forms. Make sure the plugin fits your budget and is compatible with your WordPress version.
Step 2. Install and activate the plugin: Go to the ‘Plugins’ section of your WordPress dashboard and click ‘Add New’. Search for your chosen form plugin, then install and activate it.
Step 3. Create a new form: Once you install and activate the form plugin, go to its ‘Settings’ and create a new form by clicking ‘Add New‘. You can either choose a pre-built template or start from scratch.
Step 4. Add form fields and create sections: Add the necessary form fields through the form builder. Now, it’s time to create steps in the form by inserting a ‘Page Break‘ field between the fields that you want to separate. This will create the different “steps” in a multi-step form.
Step 5. Customise your form: Once you complete your form fields, adjust the appearance of your form by customising fonts, colours, and the progress indicator style. You may also configure conditional logic and integrate your form with sales-productivity tools if you need.
Step 6. Embed the form on your website: Once your multi-step form is complete, embed it on your WordPress site. You can generate a form shortcode by clicking on the ‘Embed’ button in the form builder and paste it on a page or post on your website through WordPress Editor. Alternatively, if you wish to display your form in a sidebar or footer, you can do it with the help of a form widget.
Things to consider while choosing the right form plugin for WordPress
Choosing the right form plugin ensures you provide the best form experience for your website visitors. Consider these factors when selecting a plugin:
Compatibility: The first thing you want to consider when choosing a WordPress for plugin is figuring out whether it’s compatible with your current WordPress version and other plugins or tools that you already have. There’s no point installing a plugin that doesn’t work on your current settings. Also, keep in mind that some plugins may have different terminology for multi-step forms. For instance, Gravity Forms call it a multi-page form.
User friendliness: User-friendly and easy-to-navigate plugins help you create your forms efficiently. You may want to choose a plugin based on your tech proficiency. There are form plugins built for everyone, but all may not fit you.
Features: Once you’ve ensured the plugin works for you and is easy to use, figure out if it has the functionality you need. Depending on your business or process, you may look for different functionalities in your multi-step forms, including conditional logic, email notifications, and third-party integrations.
Pricing: And finally, as you know, budget greatly impacts your decision when it comes to choosing a tool. The good news is that you’ll have great form plugin options for every price point, and some are even free (but take note if there are freemium limitations). Research well before trying out a plugin. Some of the top multi-step form plugins for WordPress include WPForms, Formidable Forms, Gravity Forms, and Ninja Forms.
The best practices for designing a multi-step form
Design plays a critical role in making a multi-step form attractive and engaging. Here are the best practices of designing a multi-step form:
- Balance the number of steps and fields: As you might know, too many steps can make a form intimidating, while too few steps can lead to cluttered sections. You can balance out the form by dividing it into logical sections with a reasonable number of fields in each step.
- Use conditional logic: Conditional logic allows you to show or hide certain fields based on users’ input, creating personalised experience for each individual user. This can lead to a more engaging form experience and more accurate data.
- Optimise form for all devices: Different users visit your website from different devices. Therefore, make sure that your form works on all devices.
Pro tip: You can always start simple and then improve your multi-step form as you get responses and notice what’s working and what’s not.
Creating multi-step forms without WordPress
If you have a WordPress website that’s generating traffic and leads, it makes sense to continue using multi-step forms. However, if you’ve built your website on another platform or want to collect interests outside of your website, WordPress form plugins may not work for you. In that case you can use a dedicated form builder tool like TypeForm, Google Forms, SurveyMonkey, etc. These tools help you build and distribute your multi-step forms across different digital platforms.
Final words
Forms are a great way to capture the interest of the visitors on your WordPress site. However, most users don’t feel like completing online forms because of factors such as out-of-touch design and an intimidating number of questions. Therefore, focus on making your forms easy and effortless to complete. Opting for multi-step forms is one of many strategies you can use to address this issue. Also, make sure you have the right form plugin in place before creating forms on your pages.
While you’re collecting leads, did you know that you can use Privyr to quickly access new leads from your WordPress forms? If you’re a small business owner who prefers running sales processes from the comforts of your smartphone, Privyr is a great tool to instantly access your new leads and contact them right away. It effortlessly integrates with your WordPress forms, and popular messaging apps like WhatsApp, iMessage, and SMS to help streamline your process of reaching out to new and existing leads. Plus, it’s a mobile-first CRM, meaning you can run your entire sales process from your phone effortlessly.
