NextPress documentation

Forms

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Add a form to a page, set up its fields and send button, and read, export or delete the answers in the Forms screen.

On this page

A form collects answers from visitors, such as a contact request or a sign-up. Answers are stored in NextPress and shown in the Forms screen. NextPress sends no email when a form is answered, so check the Forms screen for new answers.

Add a form to a page

  1. Open the page in the page builder.
  2. In the Blocks panel, open Form fields and drag Form onto the canvas. A new form already holds Your name, Your email (required), Message, and a Send button.
  3. To add more questions, drag Text field, Text area or Dropdown into the form.
  4. Select the Form block. In Form name, type a name such as "Contact". Each answer in Forms is labelled with it.
  5. In Message after sending, type what visitors see once the form is sent, such as "Thanks. We reply within two working days."
  6. Press Save, then Publish. A form only accepts answers on a published page.

Set up each field

Select a field to see its settings:

  • Label: the question visitors see.
  • Placeholder: faint example text inside the box.
  • Help: a short line under the field.
  • Required: the form will not send until this field is filled in.
  • Input type (text field only): Text, Search, Email, Password, Number, Phone or URL. Email checks for a valid address.
  • Options (dropdown only): the choices.
  • Rows (text area only): its height.

Under More:

  • Answer name: the name the answer is stored under. Use a short, clear name such as email.
  • Default value: text filled in before the visitor types.
  • Accessible label: words read by screen readers when the visible label is not enough.
  • Disabled: shows the field but stops changes.

Set up the send button

The form is sent by a Button inside it with Sends the form turned on. The button in a new form already has it on. If you add your own button, select it and turn on Sends the form.

What visitors see

  • When a required field is empty: "Please fill in" followed by the field's label.
  • When an email is not valid: "Please enter a valid email for" followed by the label.
  • When an answer is longer than 5,000 characters: the label followed by "is too long. Please shorten it."
  • When one address sends more than 5 forms in a minute: "Too many messages at once. Please wait a minute and try again."
  • When it works: your Message after sending.

Read the answers

  1. Open Forms in the sidebar, under Content.
  2. Use the Form list to choose one form, or All forms.
  3. Use the Status list to show All, New or Read answers.
  4. Click a row to open the answer. Opening it marks it as read. Press Mark as new to mark it unread again.

Export or delete answers

  • Press Export CSV to download the answers of the chosen form, or of all forms, as a spreadsheet file. It is greyed out when there are no answers.
  • To delete one answer, open it, press Delete, then confirm. It is removed for good and no longer appears in exports.

Answers can hold personal details. Keep exported files somewhere safe.

Forms inside templates

A form can sit inside a template, such as a footer sign-up. It accepts answers on every published page that shows the template, and the answers arrive in Forms like any other.

Next steps