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Form Analytics

Understand how visitors interact with your forms.

Overview

Form Analytics tracks every aspect of how visitors engage with forms on your website — which fields cause problems, where users abandon, and how to improve completion rates. For healthcare organizations, this is critical for optimizing appointment requests, contact forms, and patient intake processes.

Navigate to Forms in the main menu to access this feature.

What’s Tracked

For each form, Ghost Metrics captures:

Form-Level Metrics

  • Form views — How many visitors saw the form
  • Form starters — How many began filling it out
  • Form submissions — How many completed the form
  • Conversion rate — Percentage who submitted
  • Average time to submit — How long completion takes

Field-Level Metrics

  • Field interactions — How many users interacted with each field
  • Time spent — Average time per field
  • Drop-offs — Where users abandon the form
  • Re-focuses — How often users return to a field
  • Left blank — Fields users skip or leave empty

Viewing Form Analytics

  1. Navigate to Forms
  2. See a list of all detected forms
  3. Click a form to view detailed analytics
  4. Explore form-level and field-level reports

Form Overview

The overview shows:

  • Form performance over time
  • Conversion rate trends
  • Key drop-off points
  • Overall form health

Field Analysis

The field report shows each field with:

  • Interaction metrics
  • Time spent
  • Drop-off percentage
  • Refocus count

Understanding Form Metrics

Starter Rate

Percentage of form viewers who began filling it out.

Low starter rate indicates:

  • Form looks too long or complex
  • Form isn’t visible enough
  • Visitors don’t understand the form’s purpose
  • Technical issues preventing interaction

Drop-Off Rate

Percentage of starters who abandoned at each field.

High drop-off at a specific field indicates:

  • Field is confusing
  • Field asks for sensitive information
  • Field has validation issues
  • Field isn’t applicable to many visitors

Time per Field

How long visitors spend on each field.

Unusually long time indicates:

  • Field is confusing
  • Required information is hard to find
  • Field has too many options
  • Visitors are uncertain what to enter

Refocus Rate

How often visitors return to a field after moving away.

High refocus indicates:

  • Visitors realized they made mistakes
  • Field instructions weren’t clear initially
  • Validation errors forcing corrections

Blank Submissions

Fields left empty when form is submitted.

High blank rate indicates:

  • Field isn’t necessary for most users
  • Consider making it optional
  • Field may be overlooked (position issue)

Automatic Form Detection

Ghost Metrics automatically detects most HTML forms on your website. Forms are identified by:

  • Standard <form> elements
  • Common form frameworks
  • Identifiable submit buttons

Manual Form Configuration

If a form isn’t detected automatically, or you need custom configuration, contact support for assistance.

Analyzing Your Forms

Step 1: Identify Problem Forms

Start with forms that have:

  • Low conversion rates
  • High abandonment
  • Strategic importance

Step 2: Find Problem Fields

Look for fields with:

  • High drop-off rates
  • Long completion times
  • High refocus rates
  • Frequently left blank

Step 3: Diagnose Issues

Use additional tools:

  • Session recordings — Watch visitors fill out the form
  • Heatmaps — See where attention goes on the form page

Step 4: Implement Improvements

Common fixes:

  • Remove unnecessary fields
  • Improve field labels and instructions
  • Add placeholder text
  • Fix validation issues
  • Reorder fields logically
  • Make optional fields clearer

Step 5: Measure Impact

After changes, compare:

  • Conversion rate before and after
  • Time to complete
  • Drop-off patterns

Common Form Issues

Too Many Fields

Problem: Long forms discourage completion.

Solution: Remove fields that aren’t essential. Ask only what you need immediately.

Confusing Labels

Problem: Visitors don’t understand what’s being asked.

Solution: Use clear, simple labels. Add helper text where needed.

Missing Feedback

Problem: Visitors don’t know if they made errors.

Solution: Add inline validation. Show errors immediately and clearly.

Poor Mobile Experience

Problem: Forms are hard to complete on mobile devices.

Solution: Use appropriate input types (tel, email). Make buttons tap-friendly. Test on mobile.

Asking Too Early

Problem: Sensitive questions at the start cause abandonment.

Solution: Start with easy fields. Move sensitive questions later.

Hidden Required Fields

Problem: Visitors miss required fields and get frustrated.

Solution: Mark required fields clearly. Use progressive disclosure if needed.

Privacy Considerations

Form Analytics tracks interaction patterns, not the actual data entered:

  • Text entered into fields is NOT captured
  • Only interaction behavior is tracked (focus, blur, time)
  • Sensitive fields (password, SSN, etc.) can be excluded
  • No personally identifiable information is stored

This ensures you can optimize forms while maintaining visitor privacy and compliance.

Best Practices

Regular Review

Check form performance monthly:

  • Are conversion rates stable?
  • Have new issues appeared?
  • Are improvements working?

Compare Forms

Benchmark similar forms against each other:

  • Which contact form performs best?
  • What makes high-performing forms different?

Test Changes

Don’t assume fixes will work. Use A/B testing to validate improvements.

Mobile First

Always analyze mobile form performance separately. Mobile conversion rates are often lower and problems are different.

Consider Context

Form performance depends on:

  • Traffic source
  • Page placement
  • Visitor intent
  • Time of day

Segment your analysis for better insights.

Healthcare Form Considerations

Appointment Request Forms

Key fields to optimize:

  • Service/department selection
  • Provider preference
  • Date/time preferences
  • Insurance information
  • Contact information

Contact Forms

Keep it simple:

  • Name
  • Contact method (phone or email)
  • Message/question
  • Best time to contact

Pre-Registration Forms

For longer intake forms:

  • Show progress indicators
  • Allow saving and returning
  • Group related fields
  • Explain why information is needed

Next Steps

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