Website forms are a great way to let your site visitors get in contact without leaving your website, with the added benefit of cutting out spam!
Here are a few rules to follow which will ensure your web forms are sleek, functional and noticeable.
Webform layouts
Any request for unnecessary visitor details should be removed from your form layout. Simplicity is the key. If you are just asking a visitor to sign up for your email newsletters, you don’t need to know their mother’s maiden name and full postal address! Focus on the essentials, and visitor’s won’t be put off filling in a few form fields.
All elements should be well spaced, and it’s the white space which provides the “clean” look of many great looking forms. Alignment is also important. With a bit of simple styling, it doesn’t take much to make sure everything fits together properly, creating a really attractive web form.
Webform fonts
Although the form fonts should fit the style of your site, try and avoid anything which could be difficult to read. You want the visitor to instantly know what information you are asking for, with essential information in bold to stand out against the background.
Webform buttons
The form button acts as part of the call-to-action of a form. What do you want people to do? “Sign up”, “Contact us”, “Apply now”. These are all suitable for button text, for 2 reasons:
- It’s clear what you want the visitor to do.
- The sentences are only 2 words long and short enough to be used as a button.
The button should be bigger than the fonts used elsewhere on the form. Keep it large, bold and colourful.
When choosing a button colour, take note of the scheme used on the rest of your site. You want a shade which compliments the style of your website, as well as stands out when someone lands on the page.
Webform images
Be careful with images on your forms. Although they can be very good at catching the eye and “speak a thousand words”…they can also take away from the clarity and be distracting. If you really want to use an image, choose a graphic which is subject related, and only of very high quality.