Form abandonment is a common challenge for marketers. Whether it's a newsletter sign-up, event registration, or lead capture form, many visitors land on your page, start reading, then leave without submitting. By collecting page‑visit data with Dotdigital Tag and using WebInsight to identify contacts who didn’t complete your forms, you can build targeted segments and automate follow-up campaigns that remind contacts to finish what they started. Learn how to set up a program that sends timely, relevant messages to re-engage your audience, and boost form completion rates.
Use case
You’re hosting a major conference and want maximum registrations. Many contacts visit your sign-up page but don’t complete the form.
You send an automated follow‑up that:
Highlights event benefits and value.
Addresses common hesitations with FAQs.
Offers an incentive (discount, early bird rate, bonus content), ensuring this complies with your marketing/data rules.
Dotdigital Tag and WebInsight let you send this automatically to anyone in the abandoned form segment, no manual tracking required.
Before you start
You need:
Dotdigital Tag installed and active on your site.
See Add the Dotdigital Tag to learn more.WebInsight data available in your Dotdigital account. It is is automatically populated when tracking is active, but you must enable this in Tag settings.
Learn more in Web behavior tracking with Dotdigital Tag.To create a segment for contacts who visited a form page but didn’t submit, and exclude contacts who have already converted through the same form or via another channel.
Familiarity with creating segments, email campaigns, and programs.
Step by step guide to automating abandoned form follow-ups
Step 1: Create the program
In Dotdigital, go to Automation > Programs and select NEW PROGRAM.
Name your program, for example, Abandoned follow-ups, and choose a folder.
Learn more in Create a program.
Step 2: Add enrolment rules
Select the Start node, then select SET SCHEDULE and choose frequency.
Under Enrolment rule, select SET RULE and choose a Segment.
Choose your form visitors, no completion segment.
Under Enrolment limits, select Enrol contacts only the first time they meet the start criteria.
Step 3: Build the reminder campaign node
Drag an Email campaign node to the canvas.
Select or build a campaign containing:
Friendly reminder to finish the form
Key benefits / incentives
Testimonials or social proof
If your form is multi‑page, ensure your segment includes all relevant URLs.
Step 4: End and activate the program
Add the Exit node.
Select SAVE.
Select TEST to preview journeys and verify that enrolment and dynamic content work correctly.
Select ACTIVATE.
Your program will now send personalised campaigns automatically to contacts matching the segment
Expand your automation journeys
You can adapt this method to:
Newsletter sign-ups - remind contacts about exclusive content access
Lead-gen forms - share a sample whitepaper or testimonial from a past downloader
Event registrations - offer a taster video or limited-time pricing
Summary
By combining Dotdigital Tag tracking, WebInsight segmentation, and automation programs, you can:
Recover abandoned forms before audience interest fades.
Boost registrations, sign‑ups, and lead capture results.
Provide timely, relevant reminders and incentives that encourage action.
Maintain trust and engagement with helpful, non‑intrusive follow‑ups.
Measure and optimise:
Monitor open rates, click‑through rates, and completion rates following your reminders. Use performance data to refine segments, adjust send timing, and improve messaging, increasing the conversion potential of your abandoned‑form campaigns.