Do your forms function?

Does your business or organization have forms that employees or clients need to fill in? I’d be surprised if it doesn’t. Everything from job applications to new accounts to requests for customer support use forms these days. How much time does your staff spend following up on incomplete—or incorrectly filled in—forms? How much business do you lose because prospective clients, suppliers, or employees lose patience filling in your forms?

I recently consulted with an organization that provides grants to charities and community organizations. They wanted a plain language review of their application form and the guidelines for applying for their grant.

I was really pleased that this was where they chose to start their formal plain language journey. Forms are rarely given the attention they deserve, and the results can cost organizations and companies a surprising amount of both time and money.

For example, a number of years ago Alberta Agriculture used plain language to revise their forms and found that “with 1,034,530 forms processed a year, and savings in staff time of at least 10 minutes per form ... the annual saving to the government is an astounding $3,472,014.”

Plain language forms also increase fairness and access to justice. Many people attempt to settle disputes in small claims court without hiring an expensive lawyer. Court forms in traditional legal text can be nearly impossible to understand for someone with no legal background, but plain language forms allow everyday people to have their day in court. California rewrote its court forms in 2003 using plain language principles. A follow-up study using one form, a subpoena, showed that 90% of readers understood exactly what the plain language form was telling them to do, while only 60% of readers understood the traditional legal form. 

Even if your organization wants to improve its forms, few have any idea where to start. Here are some questions to ask yourself (and your team) when you review forms for plain language:

What information are you gathering? The form should ask for all the information you need, and nothing more. People are becoming more concerned about data privacy, so before you ask for details like a social insurance number or date of birth, consider whether you really need them.

Do the sections flow logically? Your form should begin with basic contact information and build from there. Look at the questions and think about the logical order they should be presented in. If it’s a long form, think about grouping questions on a similar topic into sections. 

Can the questions be misinterpreted? Forms are often littered with ambiguity because the organization is trying to keep the text brief. User testing is the best way to find out whether your questions are unclear. Does everyone fill it in the same way, or do some people not understand what you asked? If your forms have been in use for a while, look back at old submissions and see which questions got filled in incorrectly most often. These ones need clarification.

Have you provided instructions? Very short forms are usually self-explanatory, but complex forms often need instructions to help people fill them out correctly. There are various ways to present instructions, and the best way depends on the complexity of both your form and your instructions. Brief instructions can appear right above the question they apply to. Instructions that may help the form-filler prepare the documents they need, or understand which information you want them to include where, can be listed at the beginning of the document. If you need to provide a lot of explanation about how to correctly fill in the form (like a tax return, for example), you may need a separate document that acts as a guide. If you create a guide, use a numbering system that helps readers understand which instruction applies to which part of the form.

Do they know what you’re talking about? Jargon exists in most industries, and it can be a time saver when people in the know are talking among themselves. However, using unfamiliar terms in your forms will confuse and intimidate people. Avoid using in-house terms that are not common outside your organization. Look at your wording from the reader’s point of view. They may not know what your departments or programs are called, for example. By using everyday words or adding explanations, you give them a better chance of providing the answer you need.

These are just a few of the ways your forms can be assessed and improved. Other considerations include how forms are filled in (on paper, online, in a document), how they are submitted (by mail, by email, online), and how you acknowledge and respond to them (auto-replies, confirmation emails, timelines for when they will hear back from you). Whenever possible, test your revised forms with representative users (preferably from outside your organization). It can be difficult to predict what people might find hard to understand.

When you get your forms right, you’ll get far fewer requests for assistance, follow-up calls for updates, incorrect submissions, misunderstandings, and other time wasters. You’ll also create the impression of a professional, competent, well-organized business or organization. 

Need help with your forms? Send me a message and I’ll be happy to chat about them.