Would you classify Google Forms as no-code? What about Typeform? The no-code database Airtable also has its own forms - that would be no-code, wouldn't it? Even though it has fewer features than SurveyMonkey, for example? Some tools even allow custom code to be included. 😯
So forms are not such a trivial matter. Especially because today, thanks to the plethora of new tools, you can build pretty cool and interactive experiences.
Here are a few tips that can help you make the right choice of no-code form tools:
Why do you need a form? It could be just about anything: Newsletter sign-up, lead generation, contact form, support requests, but also user onboardings, employee onboardings and even custom configurations of products can be represented in forms. The Californian company Dollar Shave Club shows the way. A simply designed and clearly structured form experience for individual recommendations.
You could build such a form including conditional logic yourself in no-code builders like Bubble or similar, but you would probably make your life unnecessarily difficult. Tools like Typeform, SurveyMonkey, Fillout, Tally and others already offer exactly that and are really good at it. The best thing is to build such a form there and embed it into your website or app.
Before you choose a tool, you should be clear about what you want to do with the collected data. Do you need it for your KPIs in Google Looker Studio? Do you need it in your Mailchimp account to send emails?
If you want to save your data to multiple endpoints at once (e.g. Airtable, HubSpot, and Looker Studio), you should see if the form tool already offers integrations. If not, you should see if it can at least link to an automation tool like Make or Zapier. Because from there, again, you can send your data pretty much anywhere. If you just want to collect your form responses in a Google Sheet, Google Forms, for example, will do. If you want to store them in Airtable, you can use Airtable Forms.
However, the latter two have significant limitations on your very important point: design freedom.
If you just want to send out a short survey where speed and nothing else matters, you'll be very fast with Google Forms. But Dollar Shave Club probably wouldn't be where they are today if their website led to a Google Forms.
User experience will play a crucial role in whether your form succeeds. But UX isn't just about beautiful design, it's also about how it feels to fill out the form. Is it seamlessly integrated into your website or app? Are the questions broken down into steps? Are the transitions smooth? Do you get a progress bar? Are questions connected by conditions? Can the individualize the questions based on old answers? etc.
Of course, everything has its place. That's why you have to decide for yourself how much freedom you need in design and functions and whether the extra effort and price is worth it.
Finally, a few more criteria to consider when choosing your form tool.
i. Price: How much does the tool cost and what are the limitations of the different plans?
ii. Collaboration: Is there the ability for multiple users to collaborate in teams?
iii. Privacy: where does the company come from and how and where does it process the data?
iv. Analytics: does the tool itself offer the ability to get me information about submissions?
In our free No-Code Fundamentals course you will work with Softr forms, but you will also learn about forms in Airtable. You'll also learn about Make - the automation tool that lets you link any form tool to other tools.
