How to Embed a Google Form in WordPress

As businesses and bloggers seek deeper engagement with their audiences, the demand for effective data collection tools intensifies. Google Forms stands out as a widely used tool that simplifies the gathering of information, feedback, and responses.

By deciding to embed a Google Form in WordPress, you can enhance interactions, ensuring a seamless experience while maintaining full functionality. This integration makes it easier to connect with users and streamline communication without adding complexity to your website operations.

FAQ​​

An overview of Google Forms

What is Google Forms?

Google Forms is a versatile tool that provides users with the capability to design and distribute forms, quizzes, and surveys without any associated costs. It’s a popular choice among educators, business professionals, and casual users alike because of its straightforward design and powerful data management features.

The main appeal of Google Forms lies in its seamless integration with the Google Suite. Responses to forms are collected in real-time, allowing for instant feedback which can be crucial for time-sensitive data collection. The responses are not only stored within the form but can also be automatically populated into Google Sheets. This integration facilitates deep analysis through sorting, chart creation, and other spreadsheet functions, which can be pivotal for data-driven decision-making.

Another notable feature is the ability to customize forms with different themes, images, and fonts, enhancing the user experience and keeping forms consistent with organizational branding or personal style preferences.

Google Forms vs. WordPress form builders

While WordPress offers powerful plugins like WPForms, Gravity Forms, and Contact Form 7, each comes with its own learning curve and cost implications. These plugins are highly customizable and integrate deeply with WordPress, offering features such as lead data routing, multi-page forms, and conditional logic.

However, Google Forms stands out for its simplicity and ease of use. It doesn’t require any installations or ongoing updates, making it an ideal solution for users who value simplicity or those managing their own sites without extensive technical support. The no-cost nature of Google Forms also makes it accessible for users on a tight budget or for those who need a straightforward solution without advanced customization.

Why use Google Forms with WordPress?

Advantages of integrating Google Forms:

• Cost-effective: Google Forms is completely free, providing a robust data collection tool without any premium upgrades or hidden fees.
• Ease of use: The user interface is intuitive, featuring drag-and-drop elements that make form creation simple for users of all skill levels.
• Scalability: Google Forms efficiently handles large volumes of responses, making it an excellent choice for high-traffic sites, as it does not impact site performance or require additional server resources.

Comparisons with WordPress form builders:

Google Forms may offer fewer customization options and integrations specific to WordPress functionalities compared to dedicated WordPress form builders. However, for those who need straightforward forms without complex workflows, Google Forms provides a more than adequate solution. It’s particularly beneficial in environments where quick deployment and ease of use are prioritized over deep customization.

Use cases in WordPress:

• Contact forms: Quickly gather visitor contact information straightforwardly and efficiently.
• Surveys: Deploy surveys to gather user feedback on a range of topics such as customer service, product satisfaction, or website usability.
• Event registrations: Manage event sign-ups directly through your website without the need for additional plugins or tools, streamlining the process and ensuring efficient data collection.

By embedding Google Form in WordPress, users can leverage the strengths of both platforms: the robust, user-friendly form-building capabilities of Google Forms and the powerful content management system of WordPress. This integration not only enhances the user experience but also simplifies the backend management of data, making it a practical choice for website owners and managers.

How to embed a Google Form in WordPress in three steps

Embedding Google Forms in your WordPress site can significantly enhance its functionality, especially if you’re looking for a reliable solution for handling forms. While this method isn’t as straightforward as installing a plugin, it is still relatively simple and can be done in three steps.

Step 1: Create your Google Form

1. Log into your Google account and access Google Forms from the Google apps menu, where you’ll find a purple icon. If you are familiar with Google workspace, the interface will resemble Google Docs and Sheets.
   
   
2. Choose either a blank form or a template to start your form.
3. Input a title, description, questions, and answer choices, selecting the type of answers via a dropdown menu.
4. Use the right-hand toolbar to add more questions, import from other forms, insert media, and organize sections.
   
   
5. Customize the theme, preview your form, or adjust advanced settings using icons on the editor.
6. Add team collaborators by entering their email addresses or using a share link. Changes will auto-save to Google Drive.

Step 2: Obtain your Google Form’s embed code

1. Click the Send button at the top of the form editor.
2. Select the HTML option by choosing the < > tab to access the embed code.
   
   
3. Adjust the form’s size if necessary before copying the code.

Step 3: Embed the code on your WordPress site

1. Navigate to the post or page in your WordPress dashboard where you want to add the form.
2. If using the WordPress Block Editor, insert a Custom HTML block.
   
   
3. Paste the code into the block.
   
4. Preview the form in the Block editor to see how it will appear on your site.
   
   
5. Alternatively, in the Classic editor, switch to the Text editor to paste your code, then switch back to the Visual Editor to view the form.
6. Optionally, Preview the page to see the end result on the frontend.

These are three easy steps that will help you embed a Google Form in WordPress without any coding skills.

Enhancing Google Forms in WordPress

While Google Forms provides essential functionality for creating and managing forms, you can greatly expand its capabilities within WordPress using various plugins and integration tools. These enhancements not only streamline how you handle submissions but also how you can leverage Google Forms for more complex, interactive website features.

Using plugins for additional functionality

Several WordPress plugins specifically designed to work with Google Forms can significantly improve how forms integrate into your site:

• Google Forms plugins: These plugins enhance the core capabilities of Google Forms by allowing you to manage form submissions directly within WordPress. This integration simplifies how you access data, combining the familiarity of the WordPress dashboard with the functionality of Google Forms. Additionally, these plugins can offer extra features like custom fields, more extensive customization options for form appearance, and even conditional logic that can tailor the form based on user inputs.
• CF7 Google Sheets connector: This type of plugin connects Google Forms alternatives, like Contact Form 7, to Google Sheets, mimicking the seamless integration Google Forms naturally enjoys with other Google products. It captures form submissions and redirects them into a spreadsheet for easy data analysis and tracking.
• EmbedPress: If you routinely embed various content types, EmbedPress allows you to embed Google Forms by simply pasting the URL into your editor. The plugin handles the rendering and ensures that the form fits well within your page layouts.

Conclusion

Google Forms is an essential tool for WordPress users who want to incorporate straightforward, effective forms into their websites. By following the steps in this guide, anyone can easily embed a Google Form in WordPress, boosting the website’s functionality.

This integration allows you to engage more effectively with your audience and collect valuable data without relying on complex or expensive plugins. With the proper adjustments and integrations, Google Forms can become a powerful addition to your WordPress toolkit, enhancing your site’s interactive capabilities and user experience.