Forms are one of those features that come in handy on just about every website. You can use them to collect information from visitors, provide an easy means of contact, and much more. However, WordPress doesn’t offer an easy, built-in way to create those forms.
Fortunately, the right plugin can make putting together customized forms a simple task. For instance, the Quform plugin is a premium form builder tool that’s highly popular among WordPress users. With this plugin, you can create forms using a drag-and-drop builder that packs a wide range of options and settings.
In this post, we’ll briefly discuss why you might need a WordPress form builder plugin in the first place. Then we’ll introduce Quform, and show you what it can do. Let’s talk!
Why Your WordPress Website Needs a Form Builder Plugin
With a little searching around, there’s a good chance you can find a form on nearly any site you visit:
Forms have become so ubiquitous that we often don’t notice them. However, many first-time (and even veteran) website owners fail to include them on their own sites. That’s a shame, because a quality form is one of the most useful and versatile tools you have access to.
Since a form is merely a set of fields that gather custom information, you can use one to do just about anything you’d like. A few of the most common uses for website forms include:
- Contact forms. A contact form not only provides you with the address you’ll need to get in touch with a visitor or customer, it also lets you collect details about their question, concern, or proposal (so you can respond quickly).
- Account sign-up forms. If you run a membership site, or a store with user accounts, a form gives you an easy way to help new visitors sign up.
- Newsletter sign-ups. Email marketing is a powerful tool, but it won’t do you much good without a list of addresses. A simple sign-up form helps you collect emails from interested parties.
- Customer feedback surveys. You can also use forms to gather questions, suggestions, and other types of feedback from your website’s users.
Given how useful website forms are, it’s a little surprising that WordPress doesn’t include a solution for building them out of the box. Fortunately, there are tools out there that can help bridge the gap.
The Quform Form Builder Plugin: Key Features and Pricing
While there are plenty of form builder plugins out there for WordPress users, in this post we’d like to draw your attention to Quform:
This premium plugin is a top seller on CodeCanyon, boasting over 22,000 downloads and an average user rating over 4.7 (out of 5). It’s been available and regularly updated since 2011, and a new version with enhanced features released in 2017.
What Quform does is enable you to create forms using an intuitive drag-and-drop builder. This lets you put together a form from pre-made blocks, and see your changes in real time via a live preview. There’s even an adjustable split-screen view, so you can see the builder and preview interfaces at the same time:
Along with being easy to use, this plugin offers a variety of handy features. They include:
- Lots of elements for building your forms, from simple text fields to drop-down menus, multi-select boxes, time- and date-pickers, and file upload options
- Tools for putting together complex layouts, as well as organizing each form using groups and columns
- The option to create multi-page forms, with pages that are shown or hidden on a conditional basis
- Plenty of content to get you started, including 11 form themes, 11 button styles, 3 label styles, Font Awesome icons, and importable example forms
- A ton of customization options, letting you change form styles, field sizes, colors, and much more
Quform also comes with some useful back-end options. For example, you can have form entries displayed in the WordPress dashboard, and/or sent to specific email recipients. You’ll also benefit from auto respond options, an entry labeling system, editable form entries, and the ability to import and export form content.
What’s more, the forms you build will be fully responsive and user-friendly. Plus, you’ll get access to three ways to prevent spam entries to your forms via CAPTCHAs – whether you prefer the ‘honeypot’, image-based, or reCAPTCHA method.
Due to its breadth of features and functionality, Quform is a premium-only WordPress form builder plugin. At the same time, it’s very affordable, costing only $29 and letting you create unlimited forms. This plugin is also consistently updated, with some exciting additions planned (such as a MailChimp add-on, to be released in December 2018).
How to Get Started with the Quform Plugin
If you decide to give Quform a try, you’ll find that it’s simple to get started with. This plugin provides a clear and easy-to-understand UI, which will have you up and running quickly.
After installing Quform, you’ll get access to a new dashboard that’s home to all of the plugin’s features and options:
From here, you can build a new form from scratch, or start from a template. Either way, you’ll want to begin by including all the elements you’ll need:
Keep in mind that each element has individual settings, which you can customize to fit your exact requirements:
If you like, you can even upload media files to your form (for instance, if you want to include a video):
You can also tweak the way your form looks, by trying out different themes. As an example of the distinct visuals you can achieve, here’s a form using the Hollow theme:
Then, here’s the same form with the Dark theme applied:
Your options for personalizing the forms you create are just about endless. Feel free to keep tweaking until your first form is just right, using the Live Preview feature to see it in action. Then, you can embed it on your site using the shortcode at the top of the page:
That’s all you need to know in order to start using this WordPress form builder plugin effectively!
Conclusion
A form can be an incredibly valuable tool on your site – but only if it’s designed well. Your form should fit your site’s style, solicit only the information you’ll need, and be easy for visitors to understand and use.
With the Quform plugin, you can achieve all of those goals. You’ll be able to create unlimited forms, customize them to your heart’s content, and embed them on your WordPress pages and posts (as well as in sidebars, footers, and so on). For a clearer picture of how this plugin works and what it can do, we’d suggest checking out the full online demo.
Do you have any questions about Quform, or how to design effective forms for your website? Ask away in the comments section below!
Image credit: Cytonn Photography.
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