We talk a lot about the importance of a website and how it is by far one of the most useful tools that you have at your disposal, but have we discussed the contact form? A contact form is just a formality that allows people to inquire if they are interested…right?
Nope! Let’s rephrase that. A contact form is way more than a formality IF you use it correctly. Very few business owners understand that a contact form can be a useful tool for security, marketing, convenience, and quantifying and qualifying your audience. If you maximize all that your contact form can do, you will be amazed at the power it holds!
10 Gifts Stemming From a Properly Created Contact Form
Defining Your Audience
When creating your contact form, you get to choose what fields you want to collect. Companies that use more fields to get information learn more about their potential audience. For instance, just a simple “message” field box will give people an avenue to share their thoughts, preferences, experiences, and other opinions that can then help you to shape your business practices and target your audience more proficiently.
Security
Having a contact form will help to weed out spam messages and scams. Why? On a contact form, you don’t have your physical email address published for the world to see. The consumer simply sees a button that says “submit” and it goes directly to your email address. By hiding your email using a contact form, it will reduce the risk of spam and scams!
Email Gathering
Contact forms are an excellent way to gather data and information for marketing tactics. Simply compiling emails will give you a database that you can use for marketing, advertising, and promotions. The more emails you gather, the bigger your audience becomes. Being successful is all about having multiple pathways to reach potential consumers on as many platforms as possible.
Convenience
No one wants to pick up a phone to contact a business anymore. In fact, many people will bounce to another site or competitor if they have to do more than click a button. For convenience’s sake, a contact form spells it out for an audience with a decreasing attention span. Users don’t want to have to search your site to find out how to reach you, and they probably won’t take the additional step of calling you. Patience is a hard commodity to find these days, so don’t test your potential clients’ patience…it won’t get you very far!
Maintains High Degree of Communication
Not only do you make it easier for potential clients to reach out to you; you have one place to receive and organize emails and data, which will help keep you on track. In an age where we are all shifting gears constantly, having everything you need in one place is a godsend.
Cut to the Chase
The fewer steps that it takes for a consumer to get what they need, the more likely they are to follow through. The problem with most contact forms is that they are open-ended, meaning that if all you collect is someone’s name and email, it doesn’t provide you with the information that you need to really “help” probable consumers.
If you add more depth to your contact form and weed through commonly asked questions and standard things that you need to know, you cut back on the steps to hooking them. Using categories to sort and define are a great way to cut to the chase and reduce the risk you will lose them along the way from visitor to consumer.
Personal Data Isn’t Required
Putting your name, phone number, or email on the internet can be a recipe for spam and scam disaster. By using a contact form, you control how people get to contact you and the information they have. When used properly, a contact form gives you all the information you need about your consumer while keeping most of yours under wraps.
It Makes Responding Easier
When you lay out your contact form properly, it makes EVERYTHING easier! Nothing is a bigger time-waster than going from one thing to the next or continually searching for pieces of information that you need. By designing your contact form and collecting all that you need in one place, all you have to do is click to respond and it’s done. In today’s busy world, we all know if we don’t do it NOW, it usually won’t get done – so make it as easy for yourself as possible!
Professionalism is Everything!
A contact form says to potential consumers that you are “official and interested.” What do we mean by that? Not using a contact form is like showing up to class without a pen and paper. It may send an impression to your consumer that you really aren’t that “into” them. No one wants to have to chase a business down, so don’t make them. When you have a contact form front and center, it is like standing at the front door – all ready and waiting!
Collect Feedback
Nothing helps a business keep up with the demands and preferences of their customer more than feedback. Feedback is a helpful tool to enhance your service or product. If you ask for people’s feedback, they are usually more than happy to provide it. But…you do have to ask!
We talk about the importance of a website all the time, but it isn’t an entity; it is a series of tools that all need to be maximized for their full potential. Thinking “It’s just a contact form” is like saying the Titanic just hit a little block of ice! If you ask, you shall receive, and if you approach your contact form with that in mind, you can keep your mind in the game, increase your lead generation and bottom line, and increase your favorability with both existing and potential consumers.
Fu Dog Media is committed to providing you with all the tools, hacks, skills, knowledge, and savvy you need to dominate the web. We have so many ways that we can take your business to the next level, we don’t even know where to start. Oh wait…we do: at the beginning! Contact us today and let us help you use every bit of your website resources. Together, we can do some really amazing things!
