Testing your contact & order forms

Why we test your website forms regularly, what we check, and what to do if a form stops working.

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Maintenance topicTroubleshooting topicE-commerce topic

Your website forms (contact forms, enquiry forms, booking forms, order forms) are often the most business-critical part of your site. If they stop working silently, you lose enquiries and orders without ever knowing. This guide explains how we test forms and why it matters.

Why forms fail silently

This is one of the most common (and most damaging) website problems. A form can break and not show any error to the visitor. They fill it in, click submit, see a success message, and you never receive it.

Common causes of silent form failures:

CauseWhat happened
Email delivery issueYour server's ability to send email was blocked or changed
Plugin updateA form plugin update broke something in the sending process
Spam filterYour form notifications are landing in your spam folder
Configuration changeA hosting or email setting change affected form delivery
Plugin conflictA new plugin is interfering with your form plugin

Check your spam folder

Before assuming a form is broken, check your spam or junk folder. Form notification emails are sometimes flagged as spam, especially if your email DNS records (SPF, DKIM) aren't fully set up. See Email DNS records for more.

The same journey, with and without SMTPA website email sent through a configured SMTP service arrives at the recipient's mail server authenticated and lands in the inbox, while the same email sent by PHP mail arrives unsigned and is far more likely to be filtered as spam.configurednot configuredsignedunsignedYour websitesends a confirmationSMTP servicesigns it, logs itPHP mailshared reputationTheir mail serverdecides how far to trust itInboxSpam folder

Both paths reach the same mail server. The difference is what the email is carrying when it gets there, and that is what decides which folder it lands in.

Read this as text

Your website sends email on its own: contact form notifications, order confirmations, password resets. Where that email goes next depends on one setting.

With SMTP configured, the site logs in to a real mail service using a username, password and server address. That service signs the message and keeps delivery logs, then passes it to the recipient’s mail server. Because the message is authenticated and the sending service has its own reputation, it normally lands in the inbox.

Without it, the site falls back to a basic server function called PHP mail. The message goes to the same recipient server, but with no authentication signature, no delivery log, and a sending reputation shared with every other site on that server, so if any of them sends spam, yours is doubted too. Some hosts block it outright.

Same sender, same recipient, same destination server. The only difference is what the email can prove about itself on arrival, and that is what decides the folder.

What we test

When we test your forms, we check:

Submit a test entry. We fill in your form with clearly labeled test data (so you can recognize it if it arrives) and submit it.

Verify delivery. We check that the notification email arrives at the address you have configured to receive form submissions.

Check the thank-you message or redirect. After submitting, the form should show a confirmation message or redirect to a thank-you page. We verify this works correctly.

For stores: check order confirmation. If you have an order form or checkout, we check that order confirmation emails reach both you and the customer.

Check integrations. If your form connects to a CRM, mailing list, or spreadsheet, we verify those connections are working too.

What happens if a test fails

If a form test shows a problem:

  1. We identify the cause. Is it a plugin issue, an email delivery issue, or something else?
  2. We fix or escalate. Some fixes are quick; email delivery issues may involve your hosting provider or email setup
  3. We re-test after the fix to confirm it's working
  4. We let you know what happened and what was done

How to tell if your form has stopped working

Between our scheduled tests, you can keep an eye out for these signs:

  • You haven't received any enquiries in an unusually long time
  • A customer mentions they "sent a message through your website" but you never got it
  • You're getting spam filter bounces for your notification email address

Troubleshooter

Is my form working?

Have you checked your spam or junk folder for the notification?

If you suspect a form isn't working, contact us and we'll investigate right away.

Common questions

How often do you test forms?

We test forms periodically as part of your care plan, typically monthly. High-traffic or business-critical forms (like order forms) may be tested more frequently.

I changed my email address: do I need to update my form too?

Yes. If you change the email address where form notifications should go, you'll need to update it in your form settings too. Contact us and we'll make that change for you.

Why does my form say 'Your message was sent' but I never receive anything?

This is the classic silent failure. The form processed the submission successfully from a technical standpoint, but the email notification failed to send or deliver. Common culprits are server email settings, spam filters, or a broken plugin. Contact us and we'll investigate.

We use a CRM: will you test that integration too?

We can test basic CRM integrations (like checking that a form submission creates a contact in your CRM). For complex integrations, let your project lead know what you're connected to and we'll include it in testing.

What is an SMTP plugin?

SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) is the standard way email is sent across the internet. An SMTP plugin makes your site send its emails through a proper email account or email-sending service, instead of your web server's own mail function, which is usually less reliable. Using an SMTP plugin often fixes silent form failures. We'll recommend and set one up if your forms have delivery issues. See What is SMTP for more.

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