Tip of the fortnight 10: The DOs and DON'Ts of web form validations you need to know

Tip of the fortnight 10: The DOs and DON'Ts of web form validations you need to know

Hello fellow form builders,

I'm sure you've been reading a lot of how-to articles about creating stunning forms, automating your favorite integrations, and how to reach the epitome of perfect form building. 

What if I told you there's a common pitfall that can bring down your conversions? That's right—if your responders encounter several errors as they fill out a form, they can easily grow frustrated. On the contrary, you don't want your customers to leave you with a blank form either. A solution for this can be found in field validations.



If you're already familiar with field validations inside Zoho Forms, this article will cover the DOs and the DONTs of it. If you're new to this topic, there's no need to stress—I'll pitch why you should start using them.
 
The DOs of field validations

Provide dynamic errors in preferred languages
Being clear while communicating errors is pretty important. In Zoho Forms, we have a list of error messages  that instantly appear when a user incorrectly fills in a field. This is shown before they even move on to the next field. Be that as it may, there may be a need to personalize these errors in a specific language based on your audience. Construct your error messages on par with language and style of your field labels.

 

Provide clear instructions  
It's common to neglect adding instructions. But instructions or hints are likely to improve your form's usability. Displaying instructions and the exact format of an answer when a form loads can help customers finish up the form quicker. This reduces the likelihood of errors and, ergo, improves your form's conversion rates.   



Here's a list you can keep in mind while constructing errors: 
  1. Keep the language simple and clean : Clear-cut instructions work best. Keep your audience in mind during construction and use language they'll understand.
  2. Keep jargons at bay : Avoiding jargons is your key to better communication. Sentences with jargons can cause confusion and may sometimes lead users to misunderstand the context.
  3. Keep the form's length in mind : Long sentences can go beyond the width of the field box, making your form look ugly. Try to use minimal words while delivering what has to be said.   
Mark required fields 
Getting hit with spam or unfilled submissions is the last thing you'd want for your forms. Solve this by marking a field as Mandatory, leaving the user no choice but to give an answer for that field in order to advance further with the form.



This leaves an asterisk (*) sign at the end of the mandatory field's name. It also helps users know what fields they need to enter to quickly wrap up the form. This will help them avoid frustration. You can also use it to your advantage while creating Sign up, Subscriptions, Event Registrations, and more where contact information must be captured. 

Positioning of field labels
You can structure your form by changing the form field's position based on the form you are creating. By default, the field labels are fixed on top of the input box. I will explain the effects each brings, and you can decide based on that.



  • Top : Your respondents will be able to see the field name and the label at a glance. They'll also be able to quickly move from the label and the input of the field. One disadvantage would be that it makes the form appear longer that it already is. 
  • Left : For shorter field labels, you can use this position. This does create strain for the users though, as they find it hard to match a label to its field.
  • Right : This position has less cognitive strain compared to the Left alignment as users easily know which label goes with which input box. This also serves as a good choice for shorter field labels. 
With both left and right alignments, the form size will appear smaller than the top positioned case we discussed above. One of the constraints is that when you are translating your form, the field label's length may or may not fit into the given space.   

The DON'Ts of field validation 

Ignoring sensitive data handling 
As you collect sensitive data (like social security numbers) from your respondents, you may need to perform  data encryption  to handle it securely. How is this helpful in securing the information? The data will be encrypted at your database level and will be encrypted in rest as well as transit. It will also be masked while printing or downloading. When you go to share it with others, whether through email notifications, PDFs, printing, downloading, document merge, or integrations, you will be prompted with an alert to question your decision. At this point you can decide on your actions. 




Ignoring personal data handling 
When you're collecting personal information from your customer—say an email address, phone number, bank details, etc.—in an Insurance Form, you can add an extra degree of sensitivity by marking it as Personal . Zoho Forms became GDPR compliant, allowing you to create more secure forms. It treats personal information as any information related to the directly identified/unidentified person. Similar to data encryption, you will be prompted with an alert if you go to share any personal information.  





Though field validations can be pretty easy for you to implement, they have a major impact on the user's experience. And, ultimately, aren't we always on the lookout for ways to provide an easy form-filling experience for our respondents? 

So try this out and let us know how useful you found it in the comments below—we'd love to hear from you! 

Until next fortnight, 
Prasana


To get updated every fortnight on useful form tips, click follow under our community learning series.








      • Sticky Posts

      • Tip #10: Automatically add tags to Zoho CRM records using form responses

        You may be using tags to filter records, create reports based on specific tags, or let your sales team to know which clients to give priority to. Don't skip tagging for the crm records added via forms. The tags can be set to be automatically captured during the form submission. How it works When you set up a configuration to push form entries into CRM, you can add a tag to them automatically. The tag value can vary based on the respondent's input (captured using form fields), or you can include a

      • Tip #2: Prefill forms automatically with existing Zoho CRM data

        How to automatically prefill a form with existing Zoho CRM data? Prefilled forms can be useful when you want your prospects to view and confirm their data, and in a wide range of other situations. In Zoho Forms, we prefill the fields with the values from Zoho CRM using the Zoho CRM field. What is a Zoho CRM field? A Zoho CRM field acts as a two-way communication channel, by sending data to Zoho CRM from forms and fetching information from CRM into Forms. The field will look up data from your CRM

      • Tip #8: Pass Adwords data (GCLID) and UTM parameters to Zoho CRM using forms

        When you are using forms to capture leads, you may wonder: " How did they find me? Which marketing campaign worked best?"  You can answer this question by capturing the Google Adwords data (GCLID) or the UTM parameter details in your CRM using forms. This can be a great way to gauge the effectiveness of your campaigns and identify the most effective ways to capture leads.  Capturing GCLID parameters How it works If a person finds your form by clicking an ad, a GCLID gets created. When they fill out

      • ZUG (Zoho User Group) In-person Meetups - Maximize Data Efficiency with Zoho Forms & Beyond

        Hello Zoho Community, Join us for our upcoming meetups in ANZ, where we'll dive into seamless data handling and maximizing efficiency through Zoho Forms and beyond. Explore the potential of Zoho Forms customization and integration, from mastering the

      • Tip #9: Modify deal properties in Zoho CRM using form responses

        How to modify deal properties of Zoho CRM records using form responses? Deal properties in Zoho CRM records are constantly modified based on the status of the deal. You can automatically modify deal properties (like the deal closing date, or deal name) and even update the deal stage, using form inputs. This can drastically reduce the work your team would otherwise do to search and change individual record details manually. How it works This works by integrating the form with the Deals module of Zoho

        • Recent Topics

        • Introducing Multi-Asset Support in Work Orders, Estimates, and Service Appointments

          We’re excited to announce a highly requested enhancement in Zoho FSM — you can now associate multiple assets with Work Orders, Estimates, and Service Appointments. This update brings more clarity, flexibility, and control to your field service operations,

        • [Product Update] Locations module migration in Zoho Books integration with Zoho Analytics

          Dear Customers, As Zoho Books are starting to support an advance version of the Branches/Warehouses module called the Locations module, users who choose to migrate to the Locations module in Zoho Books will also be migrated in Zoho Analytics-Zoho Books

        • Introducing Schedules for smarter availability management

          Greetings from the Zoho Bookings team! We’re excited to introduce Schedules, a powerful enhancement to manage availability across your workspace. Schedules are reusable working-hour templates that help you define and maintain consistent availability across

        • Why Zoho Contracts Prefers Structured Approvals Over Ad-hoc Approvals

          Approvals are one of the most important stages in a contract’s lifecycle. They determine whether a contract moves forward, gets revised, or needs further discussion. The approval process also defines accountability within the organization. Zoho Contracts

        • Whatsapp Connection Status still "Pending" after migration

          Hello, I migrated my WhatsApp API to Zoho from another provider a day ago. So far the connection status is still “Pending”. There is a problem? How long does it usually take?

        • Kaizen #226: Using ZRC in Client Script

          Hello everyone! Welcome to another week of Kaizen. In today's post, lets see what is ZRC (Zoho Request Client) and how we can use ZRC methods in Client Script to get inputs from a Salesperson and update the Lead status with a single button click. In this

        • How to Filter timewise question to check uploaded one month or two months before in these community question ?

          i want to find the question that is asked some month or before any particular year, so how can i filter it ?

        • Proposal for Creating a Unique "Address" Entity in Zoho FSM

          The "Address" entity is one of the most critical components for a service-oriented company. While homeowners may change and servicing companies may vary, the address itself remains constant. This constancy is essential for subsequent services, as it provides

        • Workflow Down/Bug

          We have a workflow that sends an email to one of our internal departments 10 minutes after a record is created in a custom module. The workflow actually works correctly. However, we have now noticed that on January 8, between 3:55 p.m. and 4:33 p.m.,

        • Service Locations: Designed for Shared Sites and Changing Customers

          Managing service addresses sounds simple—until it isn’t. Large facilities, shared sites, and frequently changing customers can quickly turn address management into an operational bottleneck. This is where Service Locations deliver clarity and control.

        • Can I re-send the Customer Satisfaction Survey after a ticket closure?

          Hello, Some customers does not answer the survey right after closure, is it possible to re-send after a few days or weeks? Best Regards!

        • Filter contacts based on selected category in Zoho Desk ticket

          Hello community, I’m setting up the Tickets module in Zoho Desk and I need help implementing the following: When a category is selected in a ticket, I want the Contact field to be filtered so that it only displays contacts that are related to that category.

        • Profile Page View Customization

          I need to change the fields, sections from the profile view of an emplyoyee.

        • Zoho Desk Android app update: Filter, Sort and Saved filters Enhancements

          Hello everyone! We are excited to introduce the below features on the Android version Zoho Desk mobile app: 1. Filter & Sort support has been introduced for the Contacts and Accounts modules. 2. Sort options is now available in Custom Modules as well.

        • Accessing shared mailboxes through Trident (Windows)

          Hi, I have a created a couple of shared mailboxes. The mailboxes are showing up on the browser based Zoho workplace, but I cannot seem to figure out how to access my shared inboxes through Trident (Windows). Am I missing something or is this feature not

        • filtering lookup field options based on information in another module.

          In our CRM system. We have the standard Accounts and Deals modules. We would like to introduce the ability to classify Accounts by Sector. Our desired functionality is to have a global list of all sectors that an Account can select, with the ability to

        • Service op locatie organiseren met Zoho FSM: waar lopen organisaties tegenaan?

          Bij organisaties met service teams op locatie merken we vaak dat de complexiteit niet zozeer in de planning zelf zit, maar in wat er rond die planning gebeurt. Denk aan opvolging na interventies, consistente servicerapporten, en het bijhouden van installaties

        • Introducing Assemblies and Kits in Zoho Inventory

          Hello customers, We’re excited to share a major revamp to Zoho Inventory that brings both clarity and flexibility to your inventory management experience! Presenting Assemblies and Kits We’re thrilled to introduce Assemblies and Kits, which replaces the

        • Does the ability exist to make tax on the customer profile mandatory?

          I am reaching out to inquire about the possibility of making the "Customer Tax" field mandatory when creating a new customer in Zoho. We want to ensure that all customers have their tax information recorded to maintain compliance with our internal processes.

        • email association with CRM

          Why is it 2024 (almost 2025) and Zoho has not figured out how to integrate email with CRM? It is so inconsistent at associating emails within CRM. I am an attorney. I have clients and work with other attorneys. Attorney John Doe is associated with multiple

        • Credit Note for Shipped and Fatoora pushed invoices

          We have shipped a Sales Order and created an Invoice. The Invoice is also pushed to Fatoora Now we need to create a credit note for the invoice When we try it, it says we need to create a Sales Return in the Zoho Books, we have already created a Sales

        • FSM - Timesheet entires for Internal Work

          Hi FSM Team, Several of my clients have asked how they can manage internal timesheets within Zoho FSM. Since their technicians already spend most of their day working in FSM, it would be ideal if they could log all working hours directly in the FSM app.

        • Add a way of clearing fields values in Flow actions

          It would be great if there was an option to set a field as Null when creating flows. I had an instance today where I just wanted to clear a long integer field in the CRM based on an action in Projects but I had to write a custom function. It would be

        • Role Management

          I am creating an analytics dashboard for a company that will be utilized by its various departments such as Finance, Marketing, and HR. My goal is to design the dashboard with separate tabs for each department. Additionally, I plan to implement role-based

        • Announcing new features in Trident for Windows (v.1.37.5.0)

          Hello Community! Trident for Windows just received a major update, with a range of capabilities that strengthen email security and enhance communication. This update focuses on making your mailbox safer and your overall email experience more reliable.

        • Early Payment Discount customize Text

          Hi, I’m currently using Zoho Books and am trying to customize the standard “Early Payment Discount” message that appears in the PDF invoice template. I’ve reviewed the documentation here: https://www.zoho.com/books/help/invoice/early-payment-discount.html

        • Deprecation of SMS-based multi-factor authentication (MFA) mode

          Overview of SMS-based OTP MFA mode The SMS-based OTP MFA method involves the delivery of a one-time password to a user's mobile phone via SMS. The user receives the OTP on their mobile phone and enters it to sign into their account. SMS-based OTPs offer

        • DKIM Now Mandatory - Changes to Zoho Forms Email Policies

          Hello Zoho Forms Users, This post is to inform you about an important update regarding the authentication of all email domains in your Zoho Forms account. This year, we are doubling down on our commitment to deliver a secure, seamless, and empowering

        • Call description in notes

          When completing a call, we type in the result of the call in the description. However, that does not show up under the notes history on the contact. We want to be able to see all the calls that have taken place for a contact wihtout having to go into

        • Email Address for Contact not Populating

          When I click "Send Mail" from a Contact's page, their email address does not auto populate the "To" field. How do I make this happen?

        • New in CRM: Dynamic filters for lookup fields

          Last modified on Oct 28, 2024: This feature was initially available only through Early Access upon request. It is now available to all users across all data centers, except for the IN DC. Users in the IN DC can temporarily request access using this form

        • Why hybrid project management might be the best fit for you?

          Project management techniques are designed to equip teams with proven methods for easy and efficient project execution. While management teams may have apprehensions about adopting the hybrid method of project management, we’ve compiled the top reasons

        • Allow all Company Users to view all projects, but only owner/admins can change projects

          I was wondering if there was a permission setting I could adjust to allow all our company users to see all projects created. Then, only the project owners and admins with the change permission. Thanks

        • Seeking help to be able to search on all custom functions that are defined

          Hello I have a lot of custom functions defined (around 200) and i would like to search some specific strings in the content of those. Is there a way to accomplish that? If not, is there a way to download all existing custom functions in some files locally

        • Totals for Sales Tax Report

          On the sales tax report, the column totals aren't shown for any column other than Total Tax. I can't think of a good reason that they shouldn't be included for the other columns, as well. It would help me with my returns, for sure. It seems ludicrous

        • Add Bulk Section / Grid Layout Duplicate Feature in Zoho Forms Builder

          Currently in Zoho Forms, users can only duplicate individual fields. There is no option to duplicate an entire section or two-column/grid layout with all internal fields. This becomes inefficient when building structured forms such as Family Details,

        • Leistungsdatum in Rechnungen (Zoho Books)

          Hallo, ist es irgendwie möglich den Leistungszeitraum in der Rechnung aufzuführen? Beste Grüße Aleks

        • Zoho Trident Windows - Streams Not Visible

          Namaste We’re having an issue with Streams not being visible in Trident (Windows), which is important for us as we share many emails internally. It appears that the feature to show Streams above the Inbox folder, as seen in the default mailbox view, is

        • Sales IQ Chat Widget is Only Displaying Last Name

          Can anyone suggest why the widget is only displaying "last name"?! We have the latest version of the wordpress plugin installed. Thanks Thanks!

        • Shopify - Item sync from Zoho Inventory

          Hi team, We’ve connected Shopify with Zoho Inventory. We want that when an item is created in Zoho Inventory, it must create a product in Shopify. But currently, new items created in Zoho Inventory are not getting created in Shopify even after clicking

        • Next Page