From Paper to Digital: Creating Fillable Forms for Field Teams
Creating a digital, fillable form for your field team is easy - follow these simple steps to get started
Paper-based field reports can be a headache, easily lost, slow to process, and difficult to keep consistent. Whether you’re managing safety checklists, job site inspections, maintenance logs, or bill of ladings, paper forms slow your team down and put your data at risk.
Fortunately, converting these reports into online fillable forms is easier than ever. In this guide, we’ll walk through how to turn a PDF into a fillable form, so your field team can go fully digital using mobile forms that work on phones, tablets, and even offline.
Step-by-Step: How to Turn a PDF into a Fillable Form
If you already have a paper form or a PDF version of it, you’re just a few steps away from a powerful online fillable form. Here’s how it works with GoFormz:
1. Upload Your PDF: Start by uploading your existing PDF form into the GoFormz platform. This ensures the original layout and branding of your form stay intact. For example, if you have a Job Safety Analysis (JSA) checklist in PDF format, upload it directly to preserve the familiar format your crew is accustomed to.
2. Drag and Drop Smart Fields: Once uploaded, you can drag and drop smart fields—like checkboxes, drop-downs, image capture fields, and signatures—onto your PDF. This transforms it into a fully interactive online fillable form.
You can also:
Make fields required to ensure complete submissions
Use conditional logic to hide or show fields based on previous answers
Add barcode scanning, GPS stamps, audio recordings, or calculations
3. Test and Deploy to Your Team’s Devices: With GoFormz, once your form is built, it’s instantly accessible to your team’s devices via the mobile forms app (available on iOS, Android, and Windows). They can complete forms on-site—even without an internet connection—and all data syncs once a connection is available.
4. Automate Your Workflow: You can also set up workflows that automatically email completed forms, upload them to cloud storage (like Box or OneDrive), or push data into connected systems like Procore or Salesforce. This means no more chasing down paperwork or re-entering data into spreadsheets—your field reports become real-time assets for decision-making. Read our step-by-step guide for setting up workflows >
Best Practices for a Smooth Transition
Start with Form View, Then Build List View: Always create your fillable form’s Form View version first for complete layout control. Once finalized, automatically generate the List View designed for mobile use. Read our guide here >
Standardize Data Fields: Maintain consistent field naming and formatting across forms to streamline data management.
Integrate with Your Existing Systems: Ensure your digital forms can seamlessly connect to your CRM, ERP, or other data platforms to eliminate manual data re-entry.
Set Up User Groups and Permissions: Assign clear access rules so only the necessary team members can view or complete specific forms.
Update Forms Regularly: Collect feedback from users and refresh forms to improve usability and accuracy over time.
Why Go Digital?
Digital forms enhance data accuracy by reducing manual errors through the use of validation rules and required fields. They also accelerate data processing, enabling instant submission and eliminating delays associated with manual entry. Field teams benefit from improved accessibility, with the ability to access and update forms anytime, anywhere via mobile devices. Additionally, users can capture new kinds of data, enriching data collection for field crews. Learn how this field service company digitized their existing paper forms with GoFormz >
“What I like most about GoFormz is that we could make it look exactly like our pen and paper forms that we have been using for the last 15 years.”
Are you ready to get started with mobile forms? Whether you want to digitize a digital inspection form or elevate your field service processes, explore how GoFormz can revolutionize your processes to thrive in the modern landscape.
