Decide which form fields should be required

Write a reason beside each required field

Create a small working list of your proposed questions. For each one, finish “Without this answer, we cannot…”. A specific operational reason is more useful than “It would be nice to know”. If the team can respond sensibly without it, make it optional or remove it.

Distinguish missing information from uncertain information. Someone requesting a quote may not know an exact start date. Requiring a date can turn uncertainty into invented data. A timing question with choices such as “This month”, “Later” and “Not sure yet” may be more useful, provided those choices fit the way your team actually works.

Make required status clear before submission

People should be able to identify required questions while reading the form. W3C's instructions guidance recommends making required and optional input clear, and its validation guidance covers the corresponding required control behaviour. A visible word is easier to interpret than an unexplained symbol.

Accessible Forms adds “(required)” when you enable a field's required setting. Keep that marker visible and avoid manually adding a second required marker to the label. For a mixed form, a short introduction can explain that unmarked questions are optional. Check that this statement remains true after you edit the questions.

Make optional questions genuinely skippable

An optional answer should add context without becoming a hidden barrier later. If you say a phone number is optional, the team should have a practical way to handle the request without calling. Review this with the people who receive submissions, rather than deciding from the form layout alone.

Explain the benefit of a non-obvious optional question in one sentence. For example, “Include your organisation if this enquiry is about work” is more useful than an unexplained company field. Do not add a collection of optional questions simply because visitors can skip them; every question still takes attention to read and assess.

Keep an actual answer separate from a blank response. If “No preference” affects how a request is handled, offer it as an intentional answer. If a blank means the same thing and no clarification is needed, an optional question may be sufficient. Document the interpretation for the person reviewing entries.

Test the shortest valid submission

Fill in only the questions you marked required. Can someone submit successfully, understand the confirmation and receive the promised follow-up? Then leave each required answer blank in turn. Check that the resulting guidance identifies the question and that it was visibly marked beforehand.

Also enter an incorrectly formatted answer into an optional email or website field. Optional means the answer can be omitted; an answer supplied may still need a usable format. For conditional forms, test both the path that reveals a required follow-up and the path that does not. A hidden question must not create an unexplained obstacle.

Using Accessible Forms

Use the required setting deliberately, then test a submission containing only the essentials.

In Free: Free includes per-field required settings, visible required markers and server-side checks for missing or incorrectly formatted answers.

With Pro: Pro can reveal relevant follow-up questions with conditions. Test the active and inactive paths when a follow-up is required.