Contact forms people actually complete

The contact form is usually the last thing designed and the only thing that matters commercially. Small changes to it move real numbers.

Ask for less

Every field reduces completion. For a first enquiry you need a name, a way to reply, and what they want. Company size, budget range, "how did you hear about us" and a phone number are things you can ask in the reply, once a conversation exists.

If you must qualify, do it with one optional select rather than four required text inputs.

Make it easy to fill

• Labels above fields, always visible. Placeholder-only labels vanish the moment someone types and are unusable for screen readers.
• Correct input types so phones show the right keyboard.
• Autocomplete attributes so browsers can fill it in.
• One column. Side-by-side fields slow people down.
• Validate on blur, not on every keystroke — and never mark a field red before it has been touched.

Say what happens next

Under the button: "We reply within one working day." After submission: a real confirmation with a summary of what was sent, not a flash of green that disappears. Uncertainty after pressing send is why people submit twice.

Spam, without CAPTCHA

A honeypot field hidden from humans, plus a check that the form was not submitted within two seconds of loading, stops the overwhelming majority of automated spam. Both are invisible, neither costs a real enquiry, and neither sends your visitors' data to a third party — which reCAPTCHA does, and which you would then have to declare.

The failure nobody tests

The form that says "thank you" and sends nothing. Server email misconfigured, SMTP credentials expired, the notification quietly going to spam. We have found this on live business sites more than once. Test it monthly, store submissions in the database as well as emailing them, and set an alert if a week passes with none.

Consent, done properly

One unticked checkbox with a plain sentence and a link to the privacy policy. Not a pre-ticked box, not a wall of text. Store what was agreed and when — under the GDPR you have to be able to demonstrate consent, not merely claim it.