Creating user-friendly lead capture forms for your website is so important for converting visitors into potential customers. They help generate genuine, high-quality leads and any business owner will understand the need for capturing these leads effectively to grow their customer base, as well as move them through the sales funnel.
In this blog, we’ll share four essential tips to help you create lead capture forms that are not only user-friendly, but also optimised for maximum conversions, ensuring your lead generation process is seamless and efficient.
What is a lead capture form?
A lead capture form, also known as a lead generation form, is essentially an online form displayed on a website typically consisting of fields where users can input their information. They’re used to capture the contact information, such as names, telephone numbers, and email addresses, of potential customers who have shown an interest in a product or a service.
They should be strategically placed across different pages of your website to encourage visitors to share information for something of value, like a newsletter, a free trial, or a discount code for example. Using lead capture forms to collect valuable data on your audience allows you to follow up with them and nurture them into loyal customers later down the line.
Common lead generation forms examples
There are so many ways in which you can incorporate lead capture forms on your site, but it’s important to consider the type of information you want to collect and what you’ll do with that data once collected. Some of the most common lead generation forms examples include:
- Newsletter sign up forms – you can encourage visitors to subscribe to your newsletter by offering valuable content or exclusive offers in exchange for their email address.
- Contact forms – make it easy for visitors to get in touch with you by providing a simple contact form with fields for name, email, and message.
- Free trial sign up forms – if you offer a product or service with a free trial, you can streamline the sign up process with a clear and concise form that captures essential information.
- Downloadable content forms – you can gate valuable resources like e-books or white papers behind a form that collects visitor information.
- Registration forms – if you offer webinars, events, or premium content, registration forms can help gather attendee information and manage sign ups efficiently.
- Feedback forms – gathering feedback through easy-to-fill forms can provide valuable insights into customer preferences and help improve user experience on your site.
These are just some of the most common examples of lead generation forms that can be used singularly or as a combination throughout your site. Which one(s) you use will ultimately depend on your business goals.
4 tips to creating user-friendly lead capture forms
Ensuring your forms are user-friendly is vital for maximising conversions. Below are four simple tips to help you create an effective lead generation form and streamline your data capture process.
1. Simplicity is key
There is nothing more frustrating than an overly complicated form. When trying to encourage potential customers to fill out your lead generation form, simplicity is vital. Including only the necessary fields you need to collect the data you want will make the form shorter and quicker to complete for your users.
By making the form quick to complete, potential customers are more likely to fill and submit the form on the spot, and less likely to forget to come back to it later. Basic information such as name, email address, contact number, and their enquiry is worth asking on the form, and any additional information you need may be better asked in a follow-up email or phone call.
2. Keep your layout straightforward
Following on with the simplicity theme, you should keep your form layout as straightforward as possible. By keeping your form simple and easy-to-navigate, you can reduce friction and make it more appealing for users to complete it.
You should avoid overwhelming users with too many fields or complex instructions. Instead, focus on asking for essential information only, as we’ve highlighted previously, as this will help you qualify leads effectively. With a clutter-free design that has clear labels and easy-to-understand instructions, it can also ensure that no vital information is left incomplete.
3. Avoid error frustration at all costs
It’s impossible to promise there will never be any errors when completing an online form. While encountering errors is out of your control, the way your users perceive these errors is however in your hands.
No one wants to feel like they’re talking to a robot, so you should ensure that your error messages are using accessible and easy-to-understand language, as this can help quell frustration. Filling them with technical jargon your users may not understand can easily frustrate them, and this may lead to them aborting your forms. Instead, opt for clear (and human-like!) error messages that will inform them of what the issue is.
As well as this, using microcopies may avoid errors being made in the first place. Microcopies are small pieces of information used to explain what each field requires. In these microcopies, you can inform users of the layout something needs to be in, such as a valid email address, or add a small description of what information they should put.
4. Never keep your users guessing
As we’ve mentioned through this blog, making things as clear as possible is essential. This can include several things such as being clear about what information you need and why, avoiding using confusing jargon or language, and providing easy-to-understand instructions. It also includes highlighting when fields have been completed correctly, incorrectly, or is missing essential information, and this can be achieved by using an inline form-field validation.
This gives your users clear indication of successfully completed fields or if there are errors in real-time. Notifying users of potential errors as they go stops them from having to manually go back to search for errors. This will make filling out the form much quicker and result in less users aborting before completion.
As well as that, positive validation also ensures users know they’re completing the form correctly. This gives them a sense of achievement, making them more likely to complete the form.
Want more tips for your lead capture forms?
Ensuring your lead capture forms are user-friendly not only benefits your website visitors, but also increases the likelihood of capturing genuine and valuable leads for your business. Implementing these simple, yet effective tips will enable you to create a user-friendly lead generation form while boosting conversions.
If you’d like more tips on optimising your online forms, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us. Our team of digital marketing professionals and specialist web designers and developers can provide you with expert and tailored advice on how to maximise your form submissions.
