We use Google Forms for multiple registrations and RSVP for our free events. It is free and very easy to use, doesn't require special access like forms in Wix. Every event manager can use forms tailored to their needs, customize them, and gather the necessary information about event participants. All answers are collected in Google Sheets and can be downloaded as a CSV file for use in any CRM.
Pros
Collect answers.
Make quizzes.
RSVP
Collect contacts.
Cons
It is not secure to keep some information in Google Sheets.
Design options are limited.
Limited questions types.
Likelihood to Recommend
If you want to create a fast and straightforward form with a couple of questions or gather contact information, such as names and emails, for a waitlist, Google Forms will cover all that you need. However, if you want a sophisticated design and a specific algorithm for surveying (e.g., branch logic), it is better to choose something else.
We use Google Forms to collect information from our constituents, both internally and externally. Examples include registration forms for events, surveys to generate feedback, and recording metrics and goals. Google Forms allows us to quickly create a clean and beautiful medium to gather information in an easy and familiar format. We love how we can customize questions and the branding to match our style guide. Google Forms is easy to use and train others to use.
Pros
Easy to create forms and easy to fill out forms
Viewing response data is clear and simple
Integration with Google Drive
Cons
Edit view limits the questions as seen by viewers. The view function is nice to toggle between to see what the question will look like, but the edit view of some questions (like checkboxes) is confusing for the editor.
It would be wonderful to be able to assign responses to go to specific users. The user needs to go into the responses section and select the option to receive notifications, versus the owner of the form being able to do that.
Having a dependency feature for questions (in addition to sections) would be very helpful, so that if a question is answered a certain way, another question appears.
Likelihood to Recommend
For most forms, Google Forms is an excellent choice. Only if you are looking for a bit more complicated survey questions and dependencies is Google Forms not a good fit. Google Forms is very accessible to most people and can be easily incorporated into workflow. Training is very straightforward and the user interface is very navigable. Google Form is clean, simple, and trusted.
Google Forms is one of the easiest ways to create surveys and other ways for people to submit information. I use it in an outward-facing way to gather information from those visiting our site or whom we want to contact to get information back from them. It helps organize the data into a simple spreadsheet, unlike our other submission forms.
Pros
Surveys--a free way to create pretty complicated surveys
Feedback--a free way to get submissions, and it puts them in a spreadsheet
Cons
The surveys can be limiting, especially when you want to use conditional branching
Likelihood to Recommend
It's my go-to for getting feedback in surveys. If I'm looking to get information from a group, it's where I go first instead of other services that can be paid. It's easy to use, and you can gather the information easily into a spreadsheet to go over after.
When we created our online chat, it included a very basic customer survey. We wanted some very specific questions asked of our survey respondents. Google Forms made it easy to create a survey we could then implement at the end of our chats, with the questions we wanted. Data collection is in real time on Google's online spreadsheet, which can also be easily put into an Excel spreadsheet for more analysis. So far we are the only department using it because ours is the only online customer service team.
Pros
Very easy to set up.
All survey results and data collection appear in real time for instant feedback.
You can use their data in Excel so you can analyze and create reports your way.
Cons
You have to be careful NOT to manipulate the data on Google's online spreadsheet, which is why I recommend sending it to your own Excel sheet. If you change any data on their sheet, it can cause the sheet to 'disconnect' from your Forms survey so it no longer collects data and you'll have to re-set it up.
This is a free and good product, but it can be difficult to get customer support with Google; luckily it's almost never needed.
Likelihood to Recommend
For any online survey, Google Forms is one-stop shopping. It's free, easy to use, easy to set up, and very easy to monitor, collect and analyze your data. You can make any question on your survey "required" when essential (meaning the survey taker cannot submit without answering). You can choose multiple choice, scale ratings, or open ended questions to allow your customers to leave comments. You can also have certain pieces of information automatically populated, such as the name of the customer service agent who assisted the customer. There's really no survey scenario I can envision where Google Forms won't do exactly what you want, easily and free.
I use Google Forms to track tour guests and several people need to be able to access the list so Google Forms makes it easy for all of us to access the most current information without having to send copies back and forth.
Pros
Being able to share a document among several people.
It is easy to use.
I like being able to share a document but control the changes myself. Others can look but not touch!
Cons
Would like to be able to keep my documents separate from others in my organization
Likelihood to Recommend
It is well suited for documents/worksheets where several people have to have access to the information.
Google Forms is being used by a few different staff members, but not consistently. We use it in one-off instances that require us to gather feedback from staff, our board, or our beneficiaries. For us, it's an easy way to collect information- anything developed by Google is extremely user friendly and doesn't require you having to get too familiar with a new data gathering source. The templates that are already created are helpful; however, we tend to create our own. For example, we used it a few months back to collect data from our grantee organizations. We give to a number of nonprofits and wanted to see the spread of where we give (regions) and the end beneficiary. None of the grantees reported difficulty in filling out the forms and my coworker, who has a more challenging time with technology, was able to put one of the sections together.
Pros
Design is appealing and simplistic
Very easy for the user to figure out and run with
The templates and examples they give are helpful for some
Cons
Variety of questions and answer options
Being able to provide more complexity in routing responses into different question sets
Analytics portion could use some growth
Likelihood to Recommend
If you're wanting to gather some relatively easy responses and gather them quickly, I've found Google Forms very well suited to pulling something together and gathering less complicated responses. If I have something that needs to be built out a bit more, have different tracks for responses, I typically turn to something more robust, such as SurveyMonkey. Perhaps I haven't explored Google Forms to its full extent, but I've found SurveyMonkey having more analytics options and more question options. When I have a need for quick survey buildout, Google Forms is my go-to. PLUS, it's free. With SurveyMonkey, you have to pay to get some of the more robust options.
We use Google Forms to get a poll on what staff need or students would like to see in our organization. We also teach our students how to use Google Forms, so they can use it for school or work projects.
Pros
Surveys can be made easily.
Google Forms shows survey results quick.
Businesses can be sending quick and appealing surveys to their partners.
Cons
Formatting options to be more flexible.
Allow more ways to create applications.
Likelihood to Recommend
Google Forms is useful when making online applications, tests, or surveys. It is easy to use both for the creator and for the intended audience.
Google Forms is being used across the whole organization to aide in sign-ups for off-site events we plan and also to gather needed information for on-site activities. It is used across the board but is primarily used by our Children & Student Ministries, as they have the activities within our church organization.
The main problem it helped address was centralizing our sign-up process. Previously, we would have multiple printed sheets to sign-up with and occasionally those forms would get lost. With Google Forms, we are able to have our sign-ups digital and across multiple platforms and social networks.
Pros
Centralized location for collected information. Does not matter what device you use, the information will be collected the same.
Easy learning curve. Takes some time to understand where a few of the settings are, but once learned it is very easy to use.
Helpful templates and customizable options. You can use ready to made templates or make one completely custom.
Cons
It would be helpful to have the settings for the forms in one central location. Sometimes you have to search for a while to find a feature.
Would be beneficial to have add-ons already as options within the forms. Can be difficult working with teams to ensure people know which add-ons to use.
Ability to add URL's in the final message page after your users submit a response.
Likelihood to Recommend
Honestly, this is a great tool for a wide variety of scenarios. For teachers, it can be for tests. For non-profits, this can be an excellent tool for gathering information or having customers leave feedback. For places of worship, this can be a beneficial tool to help with sign-ups and gathering information for events or special gatherings.
