Free response fields, multi select picklists, dropdowns–when to use what? Sure a free response field is the easy way to quickly add a property but it’s not the best way to keep your data tidy and easily-segmentable. 

For example, do you want to target people with specific job roles or titles? Or perhaps you want to email prospects who own a specific brand of competitive product? If you use a free response field it will be impossible to segment any of that data. Take the extra time to make sure you’re collecting data that you can use in the future. 

HubSpot Form Hacks

We’re a HubSpot agency partner so HubSpot forms are our JAM! He’re a few don’t-skip pro tips:

• Form Types
  HubSpot forms can be used for embedded forms on your own site, landing pages that you build in HubSpot, or pop ups on your website. No matter which type of form you are using, make sure you’re not using free response fields for critical data points such as state, country, or job title.
  
  

• Don’t Go with the Defaults
  So speaking of states…we know, we know, HubSpot defaults the state field to a free response. We’re not sure why they do this…but they do. Our first order of business when bringing any client onto HubSpot is to mark that field DO NOT USE and to implement a state field that is a dropdown of every US state as a two cap dropdown. Yes it’s an extra step for onboarding. Yes it’s worth it. Remember we don’t use state data just to segment email lists–we also use it for lead assignment rules, so spend as much time as it takes to get any dropdowns right that are related to lead assignment. Nothing bums out a sales and marketing team like leads falling into a black hole.
  
  

• Hidden Fields for the WIN
  HubSpot forms enable you to use hidden fields and they’re amazing! For example, say you host both veterinary and human medical content in your HubSpot (very common for our client base). You can use a hidden field with a dropdown property to mark which division that form submission belongs to. This eliminates a field that your prospect has to fill out and improves data integrity. You can use hidden fields for all kinds of things, if you haven’t explored them, you should!
  
  

• Reduce Form Drops
  Dropdowns make forms faster to fill out, this reduces abandoned forms. So if you're on the fence about dropdowns that should be enough to make you give them a second look. On the topic of form abandonment, data also suggests that 1-column forms convert better than 2-column forms because they are easier (and faster) for the user to navigate.
  
  

• Progressive Fields
  Progressive fields allow you to collect new data each time a prospect converts on a form. This allows you to build out their contact record as they continue to engage with your contact overtime. For example, if you already know their job title and industry, perhaps you’d like to ask them about their decision making power (pssssstttttt….also…use a dropdown for all of those questions!).

When Not to Use Dropdowns

So now that you’ve drank the dropdown Kool-Aid, there are a few times when we don’t want to use them:

• If the list of options is incredibly long (and your dropdown doesn’t allow the user to search), this can create a frustrating user experience.

• If the list of options is incredibly short. We still don’t want a free response field but if you have less than 5 options use a radio select field instead.

• If the list of options changes very regularly and you have no chance of being able to keep up with it.

• If the data is data that you don’t intend to use, that is just contextual information that sales reps use on a 1:1 basis. For example, comments or meeting notes.

What to do with Your Dropdown Data

Here’s how we leverage the data that we collect from dropdowns that are utilized in forms:

• To assign leads to reps in real-time.

• To create dynamic lists of prospects by job title, competitive product owned, job role, or geographic location.

• We use the dynamic lists to then enroll prospects into specific nurturing sequences based on specific criteria such as job title, competitive product owned, job role, or geographic location.

• To collect market intel.

• To analyze which types of content which types of prospects are interested in based on job title, and job role.

In short–dropdowns are important. Don’t jump straight for the free response field when a teammate says “we need this new field and we need it now!”. Take the extra time to make sure you are getting the most out of every question you ask on your forms.

Looking to up your veterinary marketing game? 

Red Brick Partners, a veterinary marketing agency with over 14 years of B2B and B2C veterinary marketing experience can help. Whether you are searching for ways to generate leads, automate sales and marketing processes, or boost awareness, we’ve got you! Discover how we help our clients. 

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