Forms with branching logic, rule by rule

What the rules can do

Conversational forms have a Logic tab between Build and Add-ons. Each rule reads if a question meets a condition, then go to a screen or End and submit. Choice questions take is, is not, is empty and is answered; numbers add is more than and is less than; text adds contains. Several conditions can be joined so all must match or any can match. Rules run in order and the first match wins, and each screen can have an otherwise default. The forms here use exactly that and nothing more: there is no showing or hiding of single fields, no piping of earlier answers, no scoring and no logic on classic forms.

Ten forms, three patterns

Routing forms send each need to its own screen and then to a shared ending: an IT help desk request, a software support ticket, an online store's customer support form, a manufacturer's inquiry form and an HR inquiry form. Stop screens end the form early when continuing would be wrong: a call security now screen for safety hazards in a facilities request, a call the desk screen for outages, a tracking screen for orders that are not late, a 30 day policy screen in a product return and a restocking fee screen in an RMA. Skip patterns jump past whole sections, as in a cafe survey that skips the app and catering questions, and a coffee quiz uses three rules to land each path on one of four blends.

The rule that shapes every form

The server does not run the logic when a form is submitted, so it still checks every required question, including on screens a jump skipped. A required question on a skipped screen would stop the form being sent. That is why every form here keeps required questions on the screens everyone sees, usually only the first one or two, and makes branch questions optional. Each example also says which screens are set to End and submit. Test every path with the form's demo link before publishing, and open the Logic tab again after moving or deleting screens, since a jump to a deleted screen is ignored. Every business in the examples is invented.

Every page in this collection

• Customer inquiry form routed by need

  A customer inquiry form that routes by need puts a quote in front of sales and a spare part in front of service on the first day, instead of waiting in a general inbox. This conversational version for a pump manufacturer asks each type of inquiry only the questions its team needs.

• Customer support form for an online store

  A customer support form that sorts by problem answers many orders without a reply, because a customer whose parcel is not late yet is told so on the spot. This conversational version for a homewares store asks for photos only when something arrived damaged, and never asks a product question for an order number.

• Facilities request form with a safety hazard path

  A facilities request form sends a spill, a cold meeting room and a broken chair to three different people, with the floor, location and urgency each needs. This conversational version for a multi tenant office building sends anyone reporting a safety hazard straight to a screen telling them to call security.

• Help desk request form that routes by problem

  A help desk request form that asks the right follow up for each problem saves the first reply, because the technician starts with the detail they would otherwise have to ask for. This conversational version also stops anyone whose work has stopped completely and tells them to phone, while still logging the outage.

• HR inquiry form with a confidential concern path

  An HR inquiry form routes routine questions about pay, leave, policies and personal details to the right person, and keeps sensitive concerns out of a shared inbox. This conversational version for a health service sends anyone with a confidential concern to a screen listing private options, asks only how to make contact, and ends.

• Product recommendation quiz built from jump rules

  A product recommendation quiz works when each answer narrows the shelf, and four questions are enough to point most people at one product. This coffee roaster quiz uses three jump rules, with no scoring, to land every path on one of four blend screens.

• Product return form with separate faulty and change of mind paths

  A product return form must treat a faulty item as a consumer guarantee claim, not as a change of mind, because the Australian Consumer Law gives faults remedies that a store's returns policy cannot take away. This conversational version for an outdoor gear store sends each reason down its own path, and only applies the 30 day window to change of mind.

• RMA form for industrial parts with every serial

  An RMA form is where a return becomes a traceable record, so every serial number goes in before anything ships. This conversational version for an industrial electronics maker branches on the reason: excess stock sees the restocking fee and can cancel, and only failures in service are asked how long the units ran.

• Support ticket form that branches by area and severity

  A support ticket form should ask a billing question and a bug for different things, and treat an outage differently from a question. This conversational version for an invoicing app routes feature requests to the roadmap, asks for a phone number when nobody can work, and only asks for steps to reproduce when something is broken.

• Survey with skip logic, rule by rule

  Skip logic removes whole sections a respondent cannot answer, so a customer who has never used the app never sees four app questions. This cafe survey uses two rules to skip the app and catering sections, and everyone meets the same closing questions on satisfaction, one change and how often they visit.