How to Send Auto Replies to Multiple Recipients From a WordPress Contact Form

The world of automation is here, and it brings multiple possibilities for you and your business. Automated emails can help strengthen your relationship with your clients by starting a conversation with them. Auto replies also can save you valuable time: now you can use your time more efficiently instead of having to write emails all day long. And the best way to go about it is by using WP Forms.

In this post, we will help you:

• Install plugins that will help you throughout your WordPress experience
• Create a contact form through WordPress
• Customize the form notification to send auto-replies to multiple recipients
• Send auto replies from WP Forms

Step 1: Installing plugins for your contact form

Plugins are made to make your life easier, so you spend your time doing valuable work. There are various free and premium plugins you can download. We offer a few plugins for WordPress – from installing your favorite theme to combating spam emails on your contact form.

Our bread and butter are making things easier for our clients through WP Forms. Our goal is always to allow our clients to customize forms and automated emails for seamless communication with their own customers.

Here are the steps you have to take to install a specific plugin for your contact form:

● Log into your WordPress account.

● Click on “Tools” on your left-hand sidebar, and select “Plugins”

● Select your chosen plugin, or search for it by name.

Note: You have to have a business plan to install most of the plugins, but you can also find free plugins.

● Select your favorite plugin and click “Install”

Step 2: Creating a contact form

To get started, you need to have a contact form set up on your WordPress website. It’s easy and simple to do, and it’s a major point on your website. You shouldn’t publish your email online (for spam control), but you still need to keep the communication open between you and your clients.

Here’s what you have to do to create a contact form through WP Forms:

A few plugins will require you to build a contact form through their platform. That happens because they have specific engineering built underneath the forms to help you do cool things – including sending auto-replies to multiple recipients. WP Forms is one of these plugins, and the setup is quite easy.

• Once you’ve activated the plugin, you’ll find the WP Forms menu on your WordPress dashboard.
• On this menu, click on Add New, which will show you the plugin’s drag and drop form builder.
• Give your form a name and select a template. If you’ve downloaded WP Forms Lite, you’ll see a few pre-built templates (Blank, Simple) that you can easily use to create any kind of form.
• If, for example, you click on Simple Contact Form, you’ll get new fields to fill, namely Name, Email, and Message. Click on them to edit, or use your cursor to edit the field order through WP Forms’ drag and drop.
• To add a new field, select one from the left sidebar.
• When you’re done, click on Save.

While we strongly recommend using WP Forms to create and manage all your forms, you can also directly use WordPress.

Here’s what you have to do to create a contact form through WordPress:

● Log into your WordPress account.

● Select “Pages” under “Site”

● Click on the “Add New Page” button.

● Select a template for a contact form, or start from a blank template and build one yourself. Click on the right-hand-side corner button to edit it.

● Customize your contact page and save, preview, or publish it

WordPress offers different areas for you to customize your page, including an advanced section for specific fields on your form. Once you are satisfied with it, save or publish your form on your website.

Step 3: Customize your form so you can set up auto-replies for multiple recipients.

Once you’ve created a WordPress form, you can then go on to configure auto-replies. You can customize both the notification you’ll receive when someone submits a new form, and also the message your visitor will receive after sending it. It’s possible to write a thank you message or even redirect them to a new page.

Customize auto-replies as follows:

• Go to the WP Forms form builder.
• Click on the Settings tab. Click on Notifications or Confirmations and customize accordingly.
• You’ll find that the fields are dynamically pre-filled, but you can still change them to your liking.

By default, you’ll receive the notifications to the Admin email you’ve previously set up, but that’s also customizable.

What are the pros and cons of WordPress plugins?

Each plugin has its list of pros and cons. Some plugins will require more effort to create a form, but that might mean more customizable features for you, while other plugins might act as a black box. The weight of each pro and con will depend on your needs and limitations.

Make sure to research different plugins and read their documentation to fully understand what you are implementing on your website. A good plugin is something you can use to optimize your time, not something that will make you more worried or busy.

Contact us!

At Bright Vessel, we specialize in creating beautiful WordPress websites that fit your wants and needs. We offer the best support in maintaining, servicing, monitoring and promoting WordPress websites. Contact us now to find out more about how we can help you get the best website tailored to your specific needs!