6 Simple Steps To Make A File Upload Form In WordPress
File upload forms in WordPress can be created for getting more information from your site visitors and giving your audience more abilities for providing that information.
If you use regular forms, then adding the option to upload files can significantly improve these forms.
Here is how to make a file upload form in WordPress with six simple steps.
#1 Choose a Plugin and Create a Simple Form
The first thing you will need to do is choose a plugin for creating your file upload form and then create a simple form to serve as a base for your future actions.
The easiest and logical solution is to use a standard contact form plugin that will not only let you create a simple contact form but will also come at a reasonable cost (or no cost at all).
There are millions of such plugins, so it is easy to get lost in this variety.
However, the one plugin that is almost universally considered to be the best is WPForms thanks to it being easy to use even for beginners, its abundance of form templates that you can start choosing from once you install it, and the variety of features that give you additional options to add to forms.
After you install the plugin and activate it, you will be able to create a simple contact form for your website with the help of a drag-and-drop interface.
If you don’t want to build from scratch, use one of the provided templates.
The default fields that will be created include name, email, and comments/messages, but you can add more fields if you like.
#2 Add the File Upload Feature
After you have a simple contact form ready, you can add a file upload feature to it. Once again, you don’t necessarily need a complex form from the start because you are simply practicing for now.
After you understand the logic, you can start thinking about creating forms with more fields and a file upload feature like you wanted.
Not all the plugins will have an option to create a file upload feature, but if you are using WPForms, you simply need to go to the “File Upload” field in the left-hand panel.
You need to drag the field into the position on the form builder where you want it to be in the form afterward. You can then customize some details in the builder:
- Label: Explain to your users what the field is for.
- Description: Additional details about the field.
- Allowed File Extensions: List the file types you let users upload.
- Max File Size: Specify the maximum allowed file size in megabytes.
- Required: You can make the field required if you mark the corresponding checkbox.
#3 Enable Conditional Logic
The next step is to enable conditional logic if you feel this is necessary. If not, you could instead think about the content you want to add to your site and use a writer from a service like Best Writers Online to create the text. Of course, you could write everything yourself, but professionals can do it much better in the end.
That being said, what is conditional logic for and what can it do for your if you enable it? In this particular plugin, conditional logic will let you show or hide fields in your form based on user input.
This will help you get only the information you need rather than getting some unnecessary bits that are not always useful.
For example, with the help of conditional logic, you can show the file upload field only to the users that want to upload files rather than absolutely everyone who comes to your site and fills out the form.
To enable it, click on the “Enable Conditional Logic” button and customize the rules in that section. Then, save your progress.
#4 Configure General Settings
The next step in the process is to configure the general settings of your file upload form.
Perhaps you will be doing this after enabling the conditional logic or you will do this right after adding the file upload feature to the form – whatever the case is, this step is very important because this is when you decide how your file upload feature will function.
To configure the settings, go to “Settings” and then choose “General”. You will then be able to configure certain details including:
- Form Name: You can change the name of your form if you need to.
- Form Description: You can give a description of your form.
- Submit Button Text: You can customize the text on the form button.
- Spam Prevention: It is recommended that you enable this option to prevent spambot submissions.
- GDPR Enhancements: In order to comply with GDPR laws, it is recommended that you disable form entry and user detail storage (e.g. IP addresses, user agents, etc.)
After you are done, make sure that you save everything before proceeding.
#5 Set Up Notifications and Confirmation
The next stage is to set up your notifications for the form and set up the file upload form confirmation.
You will probably want to receive notifications for when someone fills out your form, so that’s why you can turn on email notifications that will send you an email every time someone sends in their filled-out form with all the documents they uploaded.
Files will not be attached to the email notifications you receive to improve email deliver-ability, but you will get a downloadable link in the email to get the file if you want it.
But there is another thing to think about which is the confirmation message for your form.
The confirmation message will show your users that their form was accepted and will be processed by you afterward.
You can show a short pop-up message, a complete page with the message, or redirect the user to another URL to encourage further actions. You can set up the form confirmation by going to “Settings” and then to “Confirmation” in the form editor.
#6 Publish the Form and View Uploaded Files
Last but not least, you will need to publish the form and then view uploaded files after users start filling out your form. If you are using WPForms, the publishing process will be relatively easy.
All you will need to do is click the necessary button and publish the form anywhere on your site (e.g. on your posts, pages, sidebar widgets, widgetized footer, etc.)
For instance, to publish the form on one of your posts or pages, you can create a new page or post in WordPress and then click on “Add Form” which is located immediately above your text editor.
You should then select your contact form in the popup and click “Add Form”.
Once the form is added, you can publish the post or page already with the form.
When your website visitors start filling the form and sending you information, you will be able to view the details they entered and the files they uploaded.
To view all of this, you need to go to WPForms and then find “Entries”.
Choose the file you want to see and click “View”. This will let you find the form entries and files in your WordPress dashboard.
Final Thoughts
To sum up, by following these steps and tips, you will be able to create file upload forms in WordPress quickly and easily.
They will improve user experience on your website and give you more valuable customer information or help you collect data for other needs.
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