Website enquiry form: which fields you need and which get in the way

A person who has read as far as the form has almost made up their mind. Everything that happens next either brings them to an enquiry or gives them a reason to put it off. The form is the cheapest place to improve: no redesign is needed, it is enough to remove what is extra.

Why does an enquiry form lose clients?

A form scares people off when it asks for more than the client is ready to give at this stage. They have not bought anything yet - they want to find out the price or ask a question. When they are asked for an address, a company, a budget and a convenient time to call, the enquiry turns into a questionnaire, and it gets put off "for later", which never comes.

Which fields are required in an enquiry form?

The minimum without which an enquiry is useless:

Name - so you can address the person by name, not with "Dear customer".

Contact - a phone number or a messenger. It is better to offer a choice than to make someone who prefers writing pick up the phone.

That is enough to get in touch. Everything else can be clarified in conversation.

Which fields are better removed?

Email next to the phone number - if you reply in a messenger, email is unnecessary.

Company name and job title - important in complex sales, but not when you are just getting acquainted.

Budget - the client does not know what figure to give and is afraid of naming too much.

Separate fields for surname and patronymic - a "Name" field is enough.

Captcha - make spam protection invisible to people, not a puzzle before sending.

For every field, ask yourself: what will I do with this answer before the call? If nothing - the field is not needed. Instead of asking about the budget, it is better to show a price guide - more on that in Prices on your website: show them or hide them.

Do you need a comment field?

Yes, but make it optional. A free-form field like "What do you need?" or "Describe your task" gives you context: you call back already understanding the question. If the field is required, a person who just wanted to find out the price will get stuck on it. For a narrow task, the comment can be complemented with a choice: a service from a list, the car make, the type of premises - whatever speeds up your reply right away. An example of such a form is in Website for an auto repair shop: what it takes for clients to book.

How should you label the submit button?

"Submit" promises nothing. The button should say what the person will get:

"Get a quote" - if the form sits next to your services.

"Book a visit" - for a service business and appointment booking.

"Get expert advice" - if you sell something complex.

Next to the button - a short line about what happens next: who will get in touch and how. It removes the worry "now they will start calling and spamming me".

How should the form work on a phone?

On a phone, the form is filled in on the go, with a thumb. Check:

The right keyboard - a numeric keypad for the phone field, a keyboard with the "@" symbol for email.

Large fields and button - so the thumb hits them without missing.

Phone number in any format - with spaces, brackets, a country code or without. The form should not complain about the format.

The button stays visible - the keyboard does not cover it or the fields.

Clear error messages - next to the field and in plain language, not a red frame with no explanation.

For how to check the whole website on a phone, see Website acceptance checklist: what to check before the final payment.

What should you show after an enquiry is sent?

After sending, the person should understand that everything worked. You need:

Clear confirmation - "Request sent", not an empty form.

What happens next - who will get in touch and how.

Protection against duplicates - the button locks, so that pressing it again does not send the enquiry again.

The next step - a link to case studies or a useful article while the person waits for a reply.

How do you check that enquiries actually arrive?

A form can look like it works and still lose enquiries. Check:

A test enquiry - send it yourself, from a phone and from a computer.

All fields in place - no text is cut off in the enquiry you receive.

Analytics sees the submission - the enquiry counts as a goal, not as a page view.

The source of the enquiry - you can see which page and which ad the person came from.

If there are no enquiries at all, the problem may not be the form - see Why Your Website Gets No Leads.