How to create online forms

Creating a good online form can be a difficult task but the following steps will take you through the basics of good form design.

Follow these steps to ensure you are collecting the right type of information from your users and that your form is concise, well designed and secure.

Step 1 - establish requirements

Before you start designing the form, you should establish what the aim of the form is and what information you wish to gather from your users. Keep in mind that users generally do not like filling out forms and that is wise to keep forms short and relevant.

Long forms that ask questions that don't relate to the task can frustrate users. Only ask for data that is really needed and be clear which information is required and which is optional.

Step 2 - group information logically

After establishing the information requirements of the form, group form questions logically together. For example place all fields relating to the users contact details together. Grouping information helps the user to understand which section of the form they are completing.

Step 3 - Design the form

Download one of the example forms from the templates style guide section and customise it to suit your requirements.

Note: a reset button is generally an unnecessary element on a form unless the user is likely to want to refill out the form completely from scratch.

Step 4 - Ensure the form is accessible

You will want to make the form available to the largest number of users possible. This will mean making sure that the form is accessibly to users with a disability or users with older software or hardware.

Check the forms section of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 on the W3C site to maximise the accessibility of forms and form controls.

Step 5 - Test the form on users

Test your form on real users and take note of the things that frustrate, confuse or please them about the form. Don't be afraid to make changes if your user testing shows that there may be problems with the form.

Step 6 - Security and privacy

Ensure that information that is captured by the form is stored securely and is safeguarded to ensure the users privacy is maintained in line with the university's privacy policy.