If you’re using Keap to collect leads or info from your customers, you’ve probably noticed the default forms are... serviceable. But not exactly tailored to your business or optimized for conversion. This guide is for anyone who’s frustrated with generic forms and wants to actually get useful data (without driving people away with clunky fields or weird layouts).
Let’s skip the fluff and get right into how to make Keap forms work for you—with specific steps, honest pros and cons, and a healthy dose of skepticism about what’s really worth your time.
1. Know What You Actually Need From Your Form
Before you even open the Keap form builder, get clear on what information you want—and why. Most forms ask for too much and get ignored, or too little and give you junk leads.
Questions to ask yourself:
- What’s the minimum info I need to follow up effectively?
- Do I really need their phone number, or will email do?
- Am I collecting info just in case, or will I actually use it?
Pro tip: The fewer fields, the higher the completion rate. Only add a field if you have a good reason.
What to avoid:
Don’t just copy another company’s form. Their needs aren’t yours. And don’t trust “best practices” articles that claim adding X field magically boosts conversions—test it for yourself.
2. Get Familiar With Keap’s Form Options (and Limitations)
Keap (here’s their site) gives you a couple of ways to create forms:
- Internal Forms: For you or your team to enter info (not public-facing).
- Landing Page Forms: Part of Keap’s landing page builder—these look better but are less flexible.
- Hosted/Web Forms: Standalone forms you can embed on your site or link to directly.
For most people trying to collect leads or sign-ups, you’ll want the Hosted/Web Forms.
What’s good: - Simple drag-and-drop builder - Direct integration with your Keap contacts - Can trigger automations (like follow-up emails)
What’s not so good: - Design options are limited—think “functional,” not “beautiful” - No built-in conditional logic (like showing extra fields if someone selects a certain answer) - Embedding can get wonky with some website builders
If you need fancy logic or design, you’ll have to get creative or use third-party tools (more on that later).
3. Build Your Custom Keap Form Step-by-Step
a) Start a New Form
- In Keap, go to Marketing > Lead Capture > Forms.
- Choose Create Form.
- Pick Hosted/Web Form (not Internal).
b) Add and Arrange Your Fields
- Drag over the standard fields (Name, Email, etc.).
- To add custom fields, you’ll need to create them first in Settings > Custom Fields. Then, go back to your form and add them.
- Keep your form short and focused. If you’re tempted to add more than 4-5 fields, think hard about why.
Field types you can use: - Text, dropdown, radio buttons, checkboxes, date fields
What to ignore:
“Address” fields, unless you’re actually mailing something. Birthday, unless it’s central to your offer. Company name, unless you sell B2B.
c) Tweak the Appearance
- Change the header and subtext to be specific (“Get Your Free Estimate” beats “Contact Us”)
- Adjust button text (“Download Now,” “Book a Call,” etc.)
- Basic color tweaks—just enough to match your brand
Gotchas: - Don’t expect pixel-perfect design here. Keap forms are meant to be simple. - If you want a great-looking form, style it on your site and just use Keap for the back-end (see #6 below).
d) Set Up Notifications and Automations
- Decide where form submissions are sent (your inbox, team members, etc.)
- Trigger tags or automations (like adding to a nurture sequence or sending a confirmation email)
- Always test this! It’s easy to mess up a tag or automation and lose leads.
What works:
Automations are where Keap shines. You can set it up so every submission gets a personalized email, or your sales team gets pinged instantly.
4. Embed or Share Your Form
Once you’re happy with your form, you have a few options to get it in front of people:
- Direct link: Keap gives you a URL you can copy and send out
- Embed code: Paste it into your website’s HTML (WordPress, Squarespace, etc.)
Pro tip:
Test your embedded form on both desktop and mobile. Sometimes, styling breaks or buttons get cut off, especially on older website templates.
What doesn’t work:
Don’t embed Keap forms inside third-party pop-up tools—they often don’t play nice together. If you need pop-ups, consider a third-party form tool that integrates with Keap.
5. Optimize for Better Conversion
A “custom” form isn’t just about different fields. Here’s what actually moves the needle:
- Clear, specific headlines: Tell people exactly what they get (and what happens next)
- Short forms: The #1 way to increase conversion is to ask for less
- Social proof: If possible, add a testimonial or trust badge near the form
- Privacy reassurance: A quick “We never share your email” goes a long way
A/B Testing:
Keap doesn’t have built-in A/B testing for forms. If you want to test different versions, you’ll need to set up two forms and track which gets more submissions.
Ignore:
Most “conversion hacks” you see online (like changing button color) make little real-world difference. Focus on clarity and relevance.
6. When (and How) to Go Beyond Keap’s Built-In Forms
Keap forms are fine for simple use cases. But if you need:
- Conditional logic (show/hide fields based on answers)
- Multi-step forms
- Smoother design and mobile experience
...then you’ll want to use a third-party form tool.
Popular options: - Typeform: Easy logic, nice design. Integrates with Keap via Zapier. - Gravity Forms (WordPress): More control, especially for WordPress users. - Jotform, Wufoo, or Google Forms: Cheap and easy, but need Zapier or another connector for Keap.
How to connect:
Most of these tools don’t natively sync with Keap. You’ll need Zapier, Make (formerly Integromat), or another automator. It’s an extra step, but worth it if you need the features.
Heads up:
Third-party forms can break if Keap changes its API or if your Zapier connection fails. Always test regularly and keep things as simple as possible.
7. Keep Your Data Clean
Custom fields are great—until you end up with a mess of half-filled, inconsistent data. To avoid headaches:
- Review your forms every few months. Remove fields you don’t use.
- Standardize options (like dropdowns) to avoid typos and duplicates.
- Set up Keap automations to flag or clean up junk submissions.
Don’t:
Let sales or support teams add custom fields on a whim. The more fields you have, the harder it is to keep things tidy.
Summary: Start Simple, Iterate, and Don’t Overthink It
Customizing Keap forms isn’t rocket science, but it’s easy to make things more complicated than they need to be. Start with the basics: a form that asks only what you truly need, looks trustworthy, and triggers the right automations. If the built-in options fall short, try a third-party tool—but only if it actually solves a real problem for you.
Keep your forms tight, your data clean, and your process simple. You can always tweak as you go. Don’t chase every new feature or “hack”—just build something that works for you and your customers.