If I had to guess, I would say that most of my network already have some clue that if you have fewer form fields, the higher is your conversion rate.
The problem with this fact is that to become more relevant to your audience, you need to get to know their interests, get to know them better.
This means that you need to have more information about them. So, what can you do about it without losing more conversions?
One tactic that has worked well for me is to keep the conversation going — I’ll explain it better, don’t worry.
Newsletter Subscription Form
✅ email address field only.
👍 email address and name form fields work ok too.
❌ Don’t ask anything more except the usual privacy policy agreement AND if you can track their behaviour.
What can you do to get more information about them granularly?
1️⃣ When they click subscribe, they go to a different thank you page where you tell them that you can tailor a newsletter according to their interests if they click on some topics checkboxes there.
2️⃣ If they allow you to track their behaviour, you can assign segments in your list depending on which CTAs they clicked on your newsletters previously.
3️⃣ Some subscribers don’t even give us their names. If you’re subscribed to the sendXmail newsletter without any name, I make sure always to place a variable called “stranger”. So, they see, “Hey, stranger.” Then, you can create an automated rule that after X amount of emails are sent, they get one asking them not to be strangers anymore and get more personal. It works like a charm.
Lead Gen Form
✅ Name, email address mandatories, phone number optional.
👍 All of the above, plus optional fields of instant messaging, etc.
🤷♂️ You may ask for company information if you want to qualify it better.
❌ Don’t ask anything more except the usual privacy policy agreement.
This is one of the most controversial forms because one size doesn’t fit all. I’ve been getting better lead to sales conversions with longer forms (qualify their buyer intent) than with fewer form fields but way less quantity. It is the famous “it depends”.
1️⃣ Make it a multi-step form. You ask for the essential information first, and then you ask for good-to-have information in the following steps. You’ll see it in action if you ever try our sendXmail forms.
2️⃣ Make it automated. When they fill in the first form, send an immediate reply by email or SMS (if you have their info) and ask them to answer a few more questions. Send it like it was Anna or John, your lovely account managers, to keep the conversation flowing between the two parties.
3️⃣ Use a chatbot like Landbot to keep asking for information from a conversational perspective. People are more willing to provide much more information if they’re in a conversation.
What would you add? Let me know in the comments, please.
