Forms are where leads die. Form analytics in Freshmarketer reveal exactly where, which is the difference between guessing and fixing. Configure it on every important form on your site.
Setup per form
Freshmarketer tracks any form on a page where the tracking script is installed. By default, it captures form open, field interactions, errors, submission, and abandonment.
For named tracking (so you can find this form in reports), assign a form ID via the tracking code or the Freshmarketer admin. Without naming, all forms aggregate into “unnamed form” and analysis is impossible.
Form funnel metrics
The form funnel report shows:
- Form views (page loaded with form visible).
- Form starts (user interacted with first field).
- Field-by-field completion rate.
- Submissions.
- Abandonment points.
Pay attention to the gap between views and starts. A low view-to-start rate means the form is intimidating before users even try.
Field-level abandonment
The killer chart: percent who completed each field. If 80 percent complete fields 1-3 and 30 percent complete field 4, field 4 is the problem.
Common high-abandonment fields:
- Phone number (asks for personal data).
- Company size (forces user to reveal context they may not want to give).
- Job title (pickers with too many options).
- Address fields (too many sub-fields).
Each is fixable. Phone: make optional. Company size: use buckets, not exact number. Job title: short list, “Other” option. Address: combine into fewer fields with autocomplete.
Time per field
Slow fields indicate confusion. If the average user spends 15 seconds on a field that should take 3 seconds, the field is unclear.
Causes:
- Unclear label.
- Validation rules not visible.
- Format expectations mismatched (date format, phone format).
Fix the label, expose the rules, or accept multiple formats.
Validation errors
Form analytics tracks per-field validation errors. High error rates indicate:
- The field validation is too strict.
- The format requirement is not communicated.
- The user is providing wrong data because they misunderstand the question.
A 30 percent validation error rate on email field usually means users are typing typos but the validator does not catch them helpfully. Add inline suggestions (“Did you mean .com?”).
Mobile vs desktop
Form completion on mobile is typically half desktop. The diagnosis is usually the same: too many fields, too small tap targets, intrusive keyboards (telephone vs email).
Configure mobile-specific input types (email, tel, number) so the right keyboard appears. This alone lifts mobile completion by 5-10 percent.
Multi-step forms
Long forms split into steps perform better than single-page long forms. Each step needs its own funnel measurement.
Track step-to-step drop-off. The step before the worst drop-off has the friction. Move the friction field to the last step (after they have invested effort) or remove it.
Error message quality
Bad error messages frustrate. “Invalid input” tells the user nothing. “Please use the format YYYY-MM-DD” tells them what to do.
Audit every form’s error messages. Specific, actionable, friendly.
Submit button placement
Heat-and-form-analytics combined reveal: many users click around the submit button area but not on it. Common cause: the button is below the fold, cluttered with disclaimers, or visually weak.
Make the primary submit button the most prominent visual element on the form section.
What to do this week
Pick your highest-volume conversion form. Pull form analytics for last 30 days. Identify the worst-performing field. Form one specific hypothesis, ship a fix, measure the next 30 days.
