Storage for Contact Form CF7
Contact Form 7 (CF7) is one of the most popular and widely used contact form plugins for WordPress, allowing website owners to easily create and manage forms for user submissions. While CF7 is a great solution for basic form handling, one of the common challenges faced by website owners is storing form submissions efficiently. By default, Contact Form 7 does not offer built-in storage options, which means that you need to rely on emails or external tools to store form data.
In this article, we’ll explore how to store CF7 form submissions effectively, improve your data management, and ensure your contact form data is safe and accessible. We’ll also discuss the best plugins and practices that can enhance your form storage process.
Why is Form Submission Storage Important?
When users fill out a contact form on your website, their information is submitted and, in most cases, sent to your email inbox. However, email inboxes are not always the most organized or secure place for storing sensitive data like customer inquiries, feedback, or support requests.
Here’s why efficient storage is crucial for managing CF7 submissions:
- Data Organization: Storing form data in a structured and easily accessible way helps you keep track of user interactions, manage leads, and follow up on inquiries more effectively.
- Security: Contact form data often contains sensitive user information such as names, email addresses, and personal messages. Ensuring this data is stored securely is essential for maintaining trust and compliance with privacy regulations.
- Searchability: Email inboxes can quickly get cluttered with messages, making it hard to find specific submissions. By storing form data in a database or external storage solution, you make it easier to search for, sort, and analyze the information.
- Backup: Storing submissions in a dedicated storage system reduces the risk of losing data if there are issues with your email provider or inbox.
- Efficiency: Having submissions stored in a centralized, organized location enables faster data processing, reporting, and decision-making.
Now, let’s look at the best storage solutions and plugins for Contact Form 7.
1. Flamingo – CF7’s Official Storage Plugin
What is Flamingo?
Flamingo is an official plugin developed by the same team behind Contact Form 7. It provides an easy way to store form submissions directly in your WordPress database, eliminating the need to rely solely on email inboxes for storage.
Key Features of Flamingo:
- Automatic Storage: All submissions from CF7 forms are automatically saved in the WordPress database, without requiring any additional configuration.
- Form-Specific Management: Flamingo stores submissions from each form separately, making it easy to organize and manage them.
- Search and Filter: You can search and filter stored submissions by form, date, or user data, ensuring efficient access to the information you need.
- Export Data: Flamingo allows you to export form submission data to a CSV file for easy backup, reporting, or analysis.
- User-Friendly Interface: The plugin integrates seamlessly into the WordPress dashboard, where you can easily view, manage, and delete form submissions.
How to Install Flamingo:
- In your WordPress dashboard, go to Plugins > Add New.
- Search for Flamingo and install the plugin.
- Activate the plugin.
- After activation, Flamingo automatically stores submissions from your CF7 forms. You can view stored submissions by navigating to Flamingo > Inbound Messages.
Why Flamingo is Ideal for CF7:
Flamingo is the most straightforward solution for storing CF7 submissions, as it integrates seamlessly with the plugin. It’s a free solution that provides all the essential features, making it perfect for small to medium-sized websites.
2. WPForms – A Comprehensive Contact Form Plugin with Storage Features
What is WPForms?
If you’re looking for a more feature-rich form builder with advanced storage capabilities, WPForms might be a great option. WPForms is a popular form builder plugin for WordPress that offers advanced form features, including submission storage, integrations with email marketing platforms, and much more.
While WPForms is not designed specifically as a CF7 storage solution, it offers powerful form building capabilities along with enhanced submission management tools.
Key Features of WPForms:
- Form Submission Storage: WPForms stores all form submissions in the WordPress database, allowing you to easily access and manage entries.
- Entry Management: The plugin allows you to organize form entries, view submission details, and filter or search for specific entries.
- Instant Notifications: WPForms sends you email notifications when a new submission is received, while also storing the data securely in your site’s database.
- Export and Backup: You can export all form entries to CSV for easy backup or reporting.
Why Choose WPForms for Storage?
WPForms offers a premium version with advanced features, including better submission management tools, user tracking, and entry export options. While it’s a paid solution, it’s a powerful all-in-one form plugin that integrates well with CF7 and provides excellent storage options.
3. Formidable Forms – Advanced Form Builder with Custom Storage Options
What is Formidable Forms?
Formidable Forms is another powerful form builder for WordPress that offers advanced data storage and management features. While it’s a standalone plugin, it can be used alongside CF7 to handle form submission storage more effectively.
Key Features of Formidable Forms:
- Database Storage: All form submissions are stored directly in the WordPress database, making it easy to view, search, and manage data.
- Custom Form Views: You can create custom views for displaying form submission data on your site, such as in a table or as reports.
- Advanced Filtering: Formidable Forms offers advanced filtering and sorting options to help you quickly find the submissions you need.
- Export Options: You can export form submissions to CSV, Excel, or other formats for backup or analysis.
Why Formidable Forms is Ideal for Advanced Storage:
Formidable Forms is best for those looking for advanced data management and reporting capabilities. If you need to create complex form submissions and need better control over how data is stored and displayed, Formidable Forms is an excellent choice.
4. Google Sheets Integration for CF7 (via Third-Party Plugins)
If you prefer using Google Sheets for storage, you can easily integrate CF7 with Google Sheets using third-party plugins like CF7 Google Sheets Connector.
Key Features:
- Automatic Submission to Google Sheets: Form submissions are sent directly to a Google Sheets document, creating an organized and easily accessible storage solution.
- Real-Time Updates: Google Sheets is updated in real-time with new form submissions, allowing you to monitor responses as they come in.
- Cloud-Based Storage: With Google Sheets, your form submissions are stored securely in the cloud, ensuring that you don’t lose data due to server failures.
Why Use Google Sheets for CF7 Storage?
Using Google Sheets as a storage solution offers the advantage of cloud-based access, enabling you to store and manage submissions from anywhere. Plus, with Google Sheets, you can take advantage of Google’s powerful data analysis and reporting tools.
5. Advanced Custom Storage Solutions with Zapier
For advanced users looking to automate form submission storage and integrate CF7 with third-party storage solutions, Zapier is a great tool. Zapier allows you to connect CF7 with over 2,000 apps and services, including CRMs, project management tools, cloud storage solutions, and more.
Key Features:
- Automated Workflow: Set up a Zap to automatically send CF7 submissions to your preferred storage service (e.g., Dropbox, Trello, or a CRM like HubSpot).
- Multiple Integration Options: Zapier supports a wide range of third-party integrations, making it highly versatile.
- Custom Actions: You can create custom workflows based on form data, such as sending notifications, creating tasks, or storing data in various formats.
Why Use Zapier?
Zapier is ideal for users who need advanced customization and want to automate the storage of CF7 form submissions in external services or applications.
Conclusion: Find the Right Storage Solution for Your Needs
Storing form submissions from Contact Form 7 is an essential part of efficient data management, security, and user experience. Whether you choose Flamingo for a simple, built-in solution, WPForms for a feature-rich form builder, or a more advanced tool like Zapier for automation, the right storage option can help you streamline form submission management.
By implementing one of these storage solutions, you can ensure that your CF7 form submissions are safely stored, easily searchable, and accessible for analysis or follow-up. Make the right choice based on your site’s needs and take full control over your form submission data today!