View Full Version : make sure you have a contact form!
I can't say this enough but make sure you have a contact form on your site. do'nt just put your email link on a the page.
Firstly it will attract spammers and secondly it is so annoying when trying to contact the site owner. for example if you are using a computer thst doesnt have your email software on, how can you email them?
At least have a form on the site so the user can fill it out and email you.
sarahG
10-29-2008, 02:00 PM
That's a good point, although at the same time you can end up with human spam. I continually get emails about new products, new sites, and other spam. I also get people asking me for help, one guy pretty much wanted me to redo his site for free. Although I've now listed the forums to go to for help and that if they contact me they can expect to pay!
For anyone who wants to know how to create their own without the aid of a plugin:
http://www.bloggingtips.com/2008/08/24/create-a-contact-page-i/
http://www.bloggingtips.com/2008/08/31/create-a-contact-page-part-ii/
http://www.bloggingtips.com/2008/09/07/create-a-contact-page-part-iii/
The third post also has a page template download to use on your site.
akira07
10-29-2008, 02:20 PM
@sarahG
thanks for your information about how to create it
Anyway, i even don't know how to use ms outlook, so just like as your said, i get annoyed when i wanna contact site-author but there is no contact form.
Rarst
10-29-2008, 03:38 PM
Contact form may be good addition but it's extremely bad replacement for simple email address. Plenty of people (me including) are very annoyed by forms.
athlon24
10-29-2008, 03:54 PM
We are quite different in that, Rarst. I like contact forms better than email. Simply because when I am reading in a blog or if suddenly I want to contact the author or admin, I don't want to look for their email and login to my email to send my message. I want it more straightforward, when I am in their site already, I will just send my message in their contact form. I think it's less hassle. :p
Rarst
10-29-2008, 04:11 PM
We are quite different in that, Rarst. I like contact forms better than email. Simply because when I am reading in a blog or if suddenly I want to contact the author or admin, I don't want to look for their email and login to my email to send my message. I want it more straightforward, when I am in their site already, I will just send my message in their contact form. I think it's less hassle. :p
Problem is some sites have only contact form. With few captchas on top. That's just wrong.
There is nothing wrong with contact form, using it exclusively is what is wrong. :)
sarahG
10-29-2008, 04:39 PM
Problem is some sites have only contact form. With few captchas on top. That's just wrong.
There is nothing wrong with contact form, using it exclusively is what is wrong. :)
Not everyone has spam filters available, so imagine dealing with the 100s of daily spam you'll get by doing that. Use a simple form with some decent validation routines (no I don't mean captchas) and you can avoid that.
The form I posted up (see links above) does not use Captchas. It has 3 or 4 boxes (I think) and that's it. Name, Email and Message. I don't see how simpler it could be.
Usually once you contact someone, if they respond you'll get their email address anyway. You'll also often find that *anything*@domain.com works as most people don't turn off the catch all either.
Jeffro
10-29-2008, 06:49 PM
I am so annoyed by the fact that I discover a new blog and I want to get in contact with the author but I can't because they don't provide any means of contacting them. Every blog should have a contact form.
Indyan
10-31-2008, 07:04 PM
A contact page is must.
Other pages a blog should have is an about page, privacy policy page and a disclaimer. Unfortunately my blog doesnt have an about page. I am not very good at writing about myself. I have started writing an about page for my blog atleast 10 times. Never completed it.
sarahG
10-31-2008, 07:51 PM
You don't need a privacy policy or disclaimer. I've never seen a privacy policy on a site besides those that now need one for Google AdSense. Sure a policy and disclaimer will add to the blog, but it's not really something I'd consider adding unless I really felt there was a good reason.
Indyan
10-31-2008, 07:59 PM
I think it helps especially if you are doing paid reviews. Certainly makes you look more professional.
I have about, privacy policy, copyright and accessibility statement pages. None are strict requirements, but they are useful for providing information that may assist visitors.
akira07
11-01-2008, 06:31 AM
A contact page is must.
Other pages a blog should have is an about page, privacy policy page and a disclaimer. Unfortunately my blog doesnt have an about page. I am not very good at writing about myself. I have started writing an about page for my blog atleast 10 times. Never completed it.
About page is OK
But about privacy policy and disclaimer, isn't that make your blog sound too formal....??
athlon24
11-01-2008, 06:36 AM
I have about, privacy policy, copyright and accessibility statement pages. None are strict requirements, but they are useful for providing information that may assist visitors.
Just curious, about how many readers drops by and read the other pages other than the about page?
akira07
11-01-2008, 06:40 AM
@athlon24
i'm understand, because i'm like that also...
rarely for me to visit page such disclaimer or privacy policy, but i'm sometime visiting about page....
sarahG
11-01-2008, 09:42 AM
I have a disclaimer purely to point out that I use affiliate links on my site and I only added it around the time that a few people were discussing whether it was right or not. In my disclaimer I just explain that I wouldn't recommend anything without trying it or owning it myself and if I can I'll use an affiliate link. It's there for people who want to read it but I doubt many people do.
Just curious, about how many readers drops by and read the other pages other than the about page?
Last month there were 88 views of the about page, 22 views of the accessibility page, 19 views of the privacy policy and 15 views of the copyright page.
athlon24
11-01-2008, 06:39 PM
@hurricane
Thanks for the info. at least, we know that there are some curious people who wants to know more about your presuppositions. But I think, if that is the stats, is it more effective to include disclaimer and policies in the about page? Just a thought.
sarahG
11-01-2008, 07:57 PM
I'd say it depends how much you want to say. If it's just short then yes, just add it to the bottom of the about page.
@hurricane
Thanks for the info. at least, we know that there are some curious people who wants to know more about your presuppositions. But I think, if that is the stats, is it more effective to include disclaimer and policies in the about page? Just a thought.
No. Why would I want to do that? Those things have nothing to do with me.
The stats are irrelevant. I have no interest in there being a million and one visitors to my privacy policy or copyright notice. They're just there as a matter of course and so that people can refer to them if they feel the need to. Eg. you want to fill a form in on my site but want to know what I do with the information you provide, you can find that. If you want to use a photo of mine, you can find whether or not you're permitted to. Etc.
athlon24
11-02-2008, 08:11 AM
@hurricane
OK. Thanks for the insight. Now I understand your point. But I tried to look on your blog to know more about it but I can't seem to find it. :)
sarahG
11-02-2008, 09:09 AM
The links are in the footer to all 3 pages :)
athlon24
11-02-2008, 10:15 AM
oh i see now. Maybe that's the reason why there's not much traffic on those pages. :D
oh i see now. Maybe that's the reason why there's not much traffic on those pages. :D
Nah, they're just boring subjects that most people aren't interested in reading :)
silent_thunder
11-03-2008, 07:09 PM
I can't say this enough but make sure you have a contact form on your site. do'nt just put your email link on a the page.
Firstly it will attract spammers and secondly it is so annoying when trying to contact the site owner. for example if you are using a computer thst doesnt have your email software on, how can you email them?
At least have a form on the site so the user can fill it out and email you.
yep a contact gives credibility to your business,I installed the plugin for the Contact form, it takes less than 2 minutes but goes a long way in securing customer confidence
never thought this would get as many posts, it was just something that was frustrating me when i was viewing a few sites.
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