14+ Form Examples & Templates

Let’s be honest, there’s nothing exciting about a simple form.They are a plain and boring medium that businesses use to acquire information from clients, employees, and associates. But as much as we’d like to complain about how filling a form is as daunting as it can get, we have to admit, they can be pretty useful to our day-to-day activities.

Forms play a huge role in our everyday lives. We use them to make orders, file taxes, process government documents, sell items, request for loans, or even apply for a job. But for the form to serve its intended purpose, it must be created properly.

Basic Elements of a Good Form

Forms are important documents that carry key information about a particular individual or group. Thus, creating a form that’s as good as it is function is crucial in a formal setting.

A good form must contain the following characteristics:

1. Clear: Anybody who fills the form should understand what to do with it without much effort. As a form designer, you need to make your intentions as clear as day. This may be influenced by the language used, the overall layout of the form, as well as the actions that are made available to the user. Clarity may also be enhanced through consistency, making the form both predictable and learnable for form-fillers.
2. Concise: This pertains to the process of gathering information in the most efficient way possible. Breaking a large chunk of information into smaller, more manageable parts will help you obtain a more accurate response from users. Collecting data in a very detailed way is a great approach to meet everybody’s needs just as well. You may also see HR form examples.
3. Clever: To achieve a clever form, you need to focus your attention toward reducing the workload for users. Proper sequencing is one of the best ways to do so, as it allows you to direct the user around the form, while also skipping questions that may not apply to them. If you’re creating an online form, sequencing may be automated and inputs can be restricted as you please. This would make the form less frustrating and time-consuming to fill.
4. Cooperative: Think of it as a give-and-take relationship between you, the form designer, and the users. It’s about making the experience a lot better for them by providing definitions and explicit boundaries, giving background information and explanations, matching the user’s mental model, and remaining consistent but flexible throughout the form. You may also see job application Form examples

14+ Form Templates

Apartment Rental Application Form

Generic T-Shirt Order Form

Monthly Employee Review Template

Rental Application Form Template

Sample Performance Review Form

Sample Scholarship Application Form

Simple Performance Review Form

Stockroom Requisition Form

Substitute Teacher Evaluation Form

Tenant Application Form

Cadet Admission Test Application Form

Club Membership Form

College Application Form

Developmental History Form

University Recommendation Form

How to Create a Form in Word

Many forms are created in Microsoft Word because of its user-friendly features and controls. So if you have been tasked to create a report form, or any type of business-related form, by any one of your superiors, the steps listed below may come useful to you.

1: Open the developer tab. 

Once opened, click on File > Options > Customize the Ribbon.

Under Customize the Ribbon, view the list under Main Tabs, select the Developer check box, and then click OK.

2: Open a template or a document for the base of the form. 

You could either start from scratch with a blank template or start with a form template to save on time.

To use a template, click on File > New. The Search online templates box will allow you enter the type of form you wish to create. You can select from a wide variety of form templates and click Create to get started.

3: Add content to the form. 

For this step, go to the Developer tab and click Design Mode to insert the controls you want to use. There are many things you can change with your form using various content control options. Some of which include text control, picture control, building block control, drop-down list, and more.

4: Adjust properties for content controls. 

Word allows you to set or change the properties of each content control as well. For instance, you can choose a specific format for how you want to display the date in the Date Picker control. To do so, click the Properties option on the Developer tab and alter it according to your personal preference.You may also see employee information form examples

5: Include instructional text to the form. 

This is done to enhance the usability of the form being created. Any changes to the instructional text can be performed in the content controls.

The first thing you would need to do is to go to the Developer tab and click Design Mode. Next, select the content control with the instructional text you wish to revise. Edit the placeholder text and format it to whatever way you want. After which, you would need to turn off the design feature and save the instructional text on the Design Mode of the Developer tab.

6: Add protection to the form. 

To limit how others may format or edit the form, you can use the Restrict Editing command to your advantage. This can be completed by pressing CTRL+A followed by Developer > Restrict Editing. Once you have selected the desired restrictions, click Yes, Start Enforcing Protection.

Simple Tips for an Organized Form Layout

Now that we know the basic steps in creating a form, it’s time to divert our attention toward achieving an effective document. Here are a few tips to help you out:

• Keep it clear. Before creating the form, you must define your exact purpose. What is it for? Who is your audience? What do you need to gather from those who submit the form? This will help you identify the right tone and language to use when writing each item.
• Avoid wordy instructions. Keep it straightforward at all times. It’s important to simplify your statements in the most comprehensible way possible to avoid confusion or misinterpretation.
• Explain ideas when necessary. This is most applicable with forms that contain in-depth questions and require detailed answers. If there are terms or statements that may be interpreted differently regardless of how hard you try to twist and turn them, it’s a good idea to provide a sample response for better analysis.
• Maintain professionalism. Whether it’s a leave request form or a loan application form, remember to keep it strictly professional in terms of format and wording.
• Apply a proper structure. You might have noticed how most forms follow a similar structure. You usually begin by asking the general information of the respondent (name, age, birth date, etc.) followed by something a lot more specific and personal. A logical structure will allow you to generate accurate information at a faster rate.

Types of Forms

Forms are often designed according to their specific function. Individuals who might want to work for a company may be asked to fill an employment application form, while those who would want to bid on an item at a silent auction may be required to submit a bid form.

Generally, there are two types of forms you’re likely to encounter in life: a printed form and an online form.

Paper Forms

Paper forms have been around since the beginning of time. In fact, they still remain vital to businesses of any industry. As a conventional means of collecting information, respondents are required to fill out these forms manually with a pencil, pen, or marker for it to be processed.

But because these forms have to be printed for distribution, printing costs can be pretty expensive, especially if they aren’t produced in bulk or if they need to be reprinted due to a few errors.

Online Forms

Now that we live in an age of technological advancement, online forms deserve all the hype they get. In addition to making much easier to measure and manage responses, you can also distribute and edit the form whenever necessary thanks to its flexible nature. This innovative attempt to replace paper-based systems enable us to acquire the right information from the right people at a quicker time.You may also see vacation request form examples.

This type of form is commonly used in the world of e-commerce where customers are able to place in their orders with the form provided. It’s an efficient business approach that most companies and organizations use to stay connected with their prospects. And since using an online form is completely free of charge, you can save hundreds or even thousands in printing costs when applying this approach.

Form Sizes

Because the content of a form would usually depend on the information you aim to gather, there is no standard form size in which you are required to use. However, if you want to cut down on printing costs and make the most out of your layout, you might want to consider using a template for your form as items are likely to be scaled to fit the page accordingly.

Form FAQs

Here are some commonly asked questions regarding forms:

How can I make a form?

Determine your purpose for creating the form and make a list of information you wish to garner from a specified audience. You can create your form in Word or use an online platform such as Google Forms for a cost-effective approach. Remember to keep your content clear and concise enough for respondents to understand.

What is the purpose of a form?

Forms make it easier to process information that has been collected from a particular respondent. This prevents a mistake from occurring during the process of data-gathering, since the person filing the form may spell out their responses in a written copy and take responsibility for the accuracy of the details provided.You may also see emergency information form examples

Why is a form important?

It can be difficult to remember certain details when they are communicated verbally. So rather than relying on the bits and pieces of your memory, they need to be documented in print for us to refer to. Almost everything in life requires a certain type of form to be filled out in order to verify data that may be put to question in the near future.

So if you find yourself in need of a form, remember to check out these form templates and examples for reference.