How to Optimise Form Conversion Rates: The Ultimate Guide to Boosting Submissions
Online forms are essential elements for both lead generation and data collection. Whether you’re looking to gather customer information, connect with your target audience, or process orders, having a well-optimised form is crucial to driving conversion rates.
In this comprehensive guide, we will explore the best practices and strategies for optimising form conversion rates. Learn how these proven techniques can boost your online form submissions and drive more conversions.
Why you should optimise form conversion rates
A low form conversion rate could indicate poor design, a misaligned user interface, or a lack of valuable incentives. By optimising your forms, you can increase the number of leads, sales, and overall engagement, ultimately leading to better business results. With higher conversion rates comes increased ROI, creating a streamlined customer acquisition process.
How to optimise form conversion rates: Key strategies and best practices
Here are the fundamental strategies and best practices for optimising form conversion rates:
1. Keep it simple and concise
Long, complex forms are known to discourage users from submitting.
Ensure your forms are simple and concise, asking only for the necessary information and reducing the number of fields. Where possible, use single-input fields and auto-fill options to make it even easier for users.
Real-world example: Expedia increased their annual profit by $12 million after removing a single unnecessary form field (source).
2. Reduce friction with a clear call-to-action (CTA)
Users need to know what they’re supposed to do after completing the form.
Create a clear and compelling CTA that indicates what users can expect upon submission. Make the CTA button stand out and use text that elicits a sense of urgency or value, such as "Get Started Now" or "Claim Your Discount".
3. Divide the form into manageable steps
Breaking down the form into smaller steps can ease the cognitive load on users.
Implement a multi-step form, which allows users to complete one section at a time. This can increase conversion rates and improve the user experience. Additionally, using a progress bar can give users an idea of how much time is left until the form is complete.
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4. Use conditional logic to personalise the form
Conditional logic helps tailor the form content based on user input.
By using conditional fields, you ensure that users only provide information relevant to them, improving the chance of form completion. This not only simplifies the process but also increases engagement.
5. Ensure mobile optimisation and responsiveness
Mobile users now account for over 50% of online traffic, making mobile optimisation crucial.
Design mobile-optimised forms to boost conversion rates by catering to smartphone users. Increasing font size, using touch-friendly buttons, and testing on multiple devices will improve the user experience.
6. Gain trust with security and privacy measures
Users are more likely to submit forms if they trust their information is secure.
Include trust signals such as SSL certificates, privacy policies, and well-known security badges to reassure users that you prioritise their data privacy and security.
7. Test and track form performance
A/B testing and performance tracking can help you identify opportunities for improvement.
Using tools like Flowpoint.ai can provide valuable insights like funnel analytics, user behaviour analysis, and AI-generated recommendations to enhance your forms. Perform tests to determine which form designs, field layouts, and CTAs yield higher conversion rates.
Applying the strategies: A real-world example
Let’s explore how one company optimised their form conversion rate by applying the best practices mentioned above:
Company: SaaS startup that provides marketing automation tools to small businesses.
Issue: Low form conversion rate for their product demo request form.
Solution: The marketing team decided to optimise the form by implementing the following changes:
- Simplified the form by reducing the number of fields.
- Repositioned the CTA button and changed the copy to "Show Me the Demo".
- Implemented a two-step form with progress indicators.
- Added conditional logic for personalised questions.
- Optimised the form for mobile devices.
- Added a well-known security badge and linked to their privacy policy.
- Conducted A/B tests and used Flowpoint.ai for insights and recommendations.
Result: After applying these changes, the company saw a significant improvement in their form conversion rate, ultimately leading to an increase in product demos and customer acquisition.
Conclusion
Optimising form conversion rates is essential for any business looking to collect valuable information, generate leads, or process orders. By applying the best practices and strategies discussed in this guide, you can boost your online form submissions and drive more conversions. Begin implementing these techniques today and start reaping the rewards of well-optimised forms. And remember, when it comes to optimising form performance, don’t hesitate to leverage powerful tools like Flowpoint.ai to gain valuable insights and recommendations.