WS Form PRO - Constant Contact

Someone already on your list can lose their lists when they write to you again

A customer joined the news list a year ago. Today she fills in the workshop form with the same email, and the action that connects it to Constant Contact runs into a contact that already exists.

When an email already exists and you choose Update, two checkboxes decide whether its earlier lists and tags are kept or replaced by those of the new form.

WS Form Pro with the Constant Contact integration adds an action that sends a form's data to a list in your account. In If Duplicate Found you choose Do nothing, Update or Halt. With Update, Merge Lists and Merge Tags work like this: checked, they join the old with the new; unchecked, they replace.

What the Constant Contact action does

• When it runs: on save, on submit or in both cases.
• Main list and additional lists: the list the contact joins, and any other memberships you want to add.
• Opt-in field: the consent field; a single checkbox unchecked at the start is the recommended choice.
• Field mapping and custom mapping: pairs form fields with Constant Contact fields, or fixes one to a value or variable, such as a hidden field with the source.
• Tag mapping: turns select fields, checkboxes or radio buttons into tags. Tags are identified by a unique ID; the easiest way to see them is to create a form from the Constant Contact template under Add New.
• If Duplicate Found: Do nothing, Update or Halt, which stops the form's remaining actions.
• Merge Lists and Merge Tags: only count with Update.

A workshop form for customers you already know

Suppose a workshop sign-up form. The main list is the workshops one, an additional list groups everyone signed up this year and a select question turns into interest tags. With If Duplicate Found on Update and Merge Lists and Merge Tags checked, anyone repeating adds the workshop to what they already had.

With those boxes unchecked, the workshop list would replace the earlier ones.

And with Halt, a repeated email stops the form's other actions, which is useful if you do not want a notification or a record to fire twice. This is a sample setup; adapt it to your lists.

Two checkboxes that change the outcome

The effect of Update depends on two checkboxes that are easy to leave as they come. Review them on each form, because the default behavior is not necessarily the one you need.

The action is an add-on for WS Form Pro, not for WS Form Lite, and it needs a Constant Contact account. Filling a form with the contact's data only works when the visitor is signed in and the email of their WordPress user matches that of a contact. Among its features there is no campaign editor; that stays in Constant Contact.

Connecting to Constant Contact

1. Install the add-on the same way as WS Form Pro.
2. Open WS Form, Settings, Constant Contact tab, press Connect and follow the steps.
3. For a ready-made form, go to WS Form, Add New, Constant Contact tab and click a list. If one is missing, use the refresh icon.
4. For an existing one, open Actions, press Add and choose Add to a Constant Contact List.
5. Choose the lists, the opt-in field, the mapping and the rule for duplicates, and save.

Email services in the catalog

For the base plugin, see WS Form Pro. If your forms are built with Ninja Forms, there is Ninja Forms Constant Contact Extension.

Answers about WS Form Constant Contact

What happens if the email already exists?

If Duplicate Found decides: do nothing, update the contact or stop the remaining actions.

What are Merge Lists and Merge Tags for?

With Update, checked they join the earlier lists or tags with the new ones; unchecked, they replace them.

Can I add the contact to several lists?

Yes, with the action's additional lists.

Can select fields be used as tags?

Yes, with tag mapping for selects, checkboxes and radio buttons.

Does it work with WS Form Lite?

No. It requires WS Form Pro.