Lead Generation > Using Doorway Forms
     
 

Using Doorway Forms

 
     

While embedding contact forms into the pages of your site in various ways is an excellent tactic to generate leads, sometimes you may want to use a form as a "doorway" that blocks access to a page of your site unless your visitor fills it out. And still in other times, you might just want to periodically remind your prospects that they can contact you for assistance on your site. Both of these tactics form the basis of your site's doorway forms tools.

 

     
 

Blocking Doorway Forms

 
     

Blocking doorway forms allow you to prevent access to a specific page of your site OR to further access to your site by requiring the visitor to supply a password OR fill out a form before continuing through your site. To set up a blocking form that "prevents" access to a specific page of your site...

  1. From your site's lead capture tools, click PowerView in the Lead Tools menu on the left.
  2. Find the page you wish to block in the list provided. As necessary, use the options at the top to filter the pages listed in the PowerView so you can find the page you need more quickly. Options include:
    • Filtering by State - To filter the pages by whether you've activated them on your site by checking them in My Content, choose Show Active Pages option to limit the pages to just activated pages. Otherwise, choose Show All Pages.
    • Filtering by Page Type -To filter the list of pages by the page category (e.g. listings pages, provided pages, custom pages) in My Content, choose an option from the Show the Following XSite Pages drop-down list.
    • Filtering by Form - If you're using the same form on multiple pages on your site, you can filter list of pages by those that use a particular form. Just choose the form from the Show Pages that Use this Form menu.
    • Filtering by Contact Group -To filter the list of pages by the contact group into which you're enrolling new leads, choose the contact group from the Show Pages Where Leads Are Added to this Group menu.
  3. When you find the page you wish to block with a lead capture form, you can either password protect the page to generate leads through password requests OR select a specific doorway form to block the page.
    • Password Protecting Pages - To password protect the page, click the lock icon by the Password Protection section for your page. In the box that appears, type a page password and then click Submit to save it.
    • Blocking Pages with Specific Forms - To select a specific form with which to block the page, click the Edit Settings link beside its title. Then, choose the form you want to use to block the page from the Doorway Form menu and select a Contact Group into which to enroll the contact from the Contact Group menu. By default, the form is optional for your visitors, but if you also want to use your blocking form to force the visitor to provide certain information, check the Required box on the right. Then, click Save to apply your changes.

           
        Note: Doorway forms and, in particular, required doorway forms are effective lead generation tools when used properly. But if you use them excessively or require too much information, they're often more frustrating to your visitors than they are useful. For best results, use doorway forms sparingly, and only in places where you've justified the value of what you're offering in exchange for the visitors' contact information.  
           

 

     
 

Reminder Doorway Forms

 
     

Reminder forms are forms that periodically pop up to prompt the visitor for information. Unlike traditional blocking forms, they aren't attached to any specific page of your site. Instead you specify how often the forms should appear as the visitor browses your site to control when it appears. You can also use reminder forms as blocking forms by capping the number of pages a visitor can view on your site without providing contact information. To set up a reminder form on your site...

  1. From your site's lead capture tools, click Global Settings in the Lead Tools menu on the left.
  2. In the screen that appears, check the Activate the Page Counter Trigger box and specify the number of pages that you will allow visitors to view on your site before "reminding" them with a form.
  3. From the drop-down menus on the right, select a form to use as your reminder form and a contact group into which to save the leads from the reminder form.
  4. To use the reminder form as a blocking form that prevents your visitors from browsing through your site until they fill it out, check the Require the visitor to complete the form box.
  5. If you're not using the reminder form as a blocking form, you can specify a maximum number of times to show the form to your visitor by checking the Until the visitor fills out this form, show it a maximum of box and specifying a maximum number of times to show the form.
  6. To tell your site which pages to "count" as a gauge for how often to show your reminder form, check the boxes in the Pages to Count section. Options include:
    • Include Content Pages in Count -Content pages are all of the pages of your site with the exception of those pages that display a list of your listings. Check this box if you want to show your reminder form even while your visitors are casually browsing your site.
    • Include Listing Pages in Page Count - Listing pages are pages that display a full list of the listings you're providing through your site. Check this box if you want to display the reminder form as your visitors browse through the different types of listings you're providing on your site.
  7. If you want to use a reminder form as your clients are browsing the full listing details for various listings on your site, check the Activate the Listing Detail Trigger box and repeat steps 4 and 5 for the Listing Detail Trigger.
  8. When finished, click Save to apply your changes.


a la mode and its products are trademarks
or registered trademarks of a la mode, inc.
Copyright © 2009 a la mode, inc. 1-800-ALAMODE