What is an intake form?

An intake form collects structured information to initiate a business process — whether for a new client, project, hire, or vendor. It serves as the first step in onboarding by gathering all necessary data to assess, route, and fulfill a request through an automated workflow.

Examples include

• Client intake — Manage the client intake process to ensure new customer information is captured and the onboarding process runs smoothly.
• Project intake — Capture critical details for new projects, assess if the project is a good fit, and distribute assignments to the correct resources.
• Employee/new hire intake — Provide new employees with an efficient onboarding experience so they can start contributing from day one.
• Vendor intake — Assess and onboard new vendors, collect important vendor information, and integrate with finance for billing.
• Patient intake — Give new patients a better, less stressful experience when completing paperwork and notifying medical staff.

Benefits of using intake forms

Intake forms standardize how you collect information. Instead of back-and-forth emails or phone calls, a single form captures everything needed to start work. This reduces errors, speeds up processing, and gives both staff and clients visibility into request status.

Streamlined data collection

A consistent form format ensures you capture the same details for every request. Required fields prevent incomplete submissions. Validation rules catch errors before they reach your team. The result: cleaner data, fewer followup questions, and faster processing.

Improved client experience

Clients complete one form instead of exchanging multiple emails. They see their request status in real time. Automated reminders notify them when action is needed. This self-service approach reduces wait times and keeps clients informed throughout the process.

Intake forms and processing for any business

No matter your industry, every successful process starts with clean, structured intake. From HR and legal to healthcare and finance, intake forms help teams kick off work efficiently and consistently — reducing back and forth and keeping data organized from the start.

Intake software provides employees, vendors, and customers with a convenient, user-friendly intake process.

Properly using intake forms and an automated intake process will save your employees time and effort and reduce any accidents caused by human error. Imagine if, while doing data entry by hand, one of your team members mistakenly makes a typo or copies the wrong basic information field when entering a client or potential client. It’s a simple error anyone can make, but it could cause significant problems(opens in a new tab) or require hours to hunt down the error and fix it afterward. A custom online intake form can avoid mistakes like this and save time and money.

1. Users can complete user-friendly intake forms, track progress, and receive alerts/reminders via email or on their devices as statuses change.
2. Once forms are submitted, they’re routed based on the business rules you set, based on any form fields.
3. All activity related to every request is tracked for complete visibility.
4. Bottlenecks in the process are identified and streamlined for faster turnaround time.

Our form intake software is entirely customizable to your needs, no matter your industry or use case.

Intake form description/summary

The diagram above shows how the system collects, tracks, and routes individual requests to the proper staff for processing:

• Internal and external users have access to an intake portal where they can submit service requests and track the status of their requests.
• They can also take any necessary followup actions and provide feedback to staff regarding request fulfillment.
• Portal administrators create request-specific forms that collect all required information to ensure the system delivers request information in the proper format.
• Administrators also create business rules that route submitted forms as needed.
• Processes can be simple, single-threaded flows from A to B to C, or complex, multithreaded flows that branch off based on logic built into the workflow.

Designing an effective intake form

A good intake form collects the right information without overwhelming users. Keep fields focused on what you actually need to process the request. Here are guidelines for building forms that work:

• Clarity and simplicity — Ensure the form is easy to understand and complete. Avoid using jargon or complex language that might confuse clients.
• Essential information — Focus on gathering only the necessary information. Too many fields can overwhelm clients and lead to incomplete forms.
• User-friendly design — Make the form visually appealing and easy to navigate. Use clear headings, logical sections, and intuitive input fields.
• Mobile compatibility — Ensure the form is responsive and works well on mobile devices. Many clients will complete the form on their phones or tablets.
• Feedback mechanism — Include a way for clients to provide feedback on the form itself. Use this input to identify confusing fields or missing options.

Additional intake features

A request intake form builder provides drag-and-drop tools for developing workflows that follow preset business rules and ensure requests are assigned to the best person to handle them. You can base assignments on a role, management level, department, or another attribute.

• Alerts can be configured to indicate that a new request has been submitted.
• Intake data can be pushed into existing CRM, ERP, database, or any other system of record.
• HIPAA-compliant online forms can be created to protect patient confidentiality and medical history.
• Reminders can be set at preset intervals to ensure assigned staff promptly handle requests.
• Escalations and task delegations ensure backups are in place in case of inaction or staff vacations.
• The requester can track the progress of the request and see who is currently working on it.
• Consent forms can be designed to include eSignatures.

Document and file intake form examples

If your intake process requires collecting documents and files, you can build custom, web-based document collection forms that meet your business needs. Clients, employees, and vendors can review requirements and then attach relevant files to your organization for review, approval, and filing. A document intake form simplifies collecting critical information and ensures documentation requirements are met, streamlining the intake process and reducing turnaround times.

But you’re not limited to documents. Users can attach permissible files to a form — images, videos, spreadsheets, PDFs, schematics, and more. This can be a huge win for law firms, engineering firms, banks, and other paper-intensive organizations.

Intake form example use case: Client intake form

Client intake forms are essential tools for many businesses, serving as the foundation for successful onboarding and long-term relationships. They capture key project and contact information needed throughout the client lifecycle.

In the legal sector, for example, intake forms are used to gather detailed information about a client’s legal matters, helping firms tailor their services more effectively from the start.

The intake process typically begins with a custom form, completed by either the client or the vendor. It may include:

• Primary point of contact details
• Additional client contact information
• Executive sponsor
• Project description or executive summary
• Project start and end dates
• Deliverable confirmation
• Billing or invoicing information

A well-designed client intake form ensures both internal teams and clients have a secure, consistent way to exchange critical information, in turn laying the groundwork for a smooth client onboarding process.

Building forms with Nutrient Workflow

Nutrient’s Form Designer lets business users create forms without writing code. Drag fields onto the canvas, set validation rules, and connect forms directly to approval workflows.

Form building features:

• Drag-and-drop editor — Add fields, sections, and layouts visually
• Conditional logic — Show or hide fields based on user responses
• Calculated fields — Run formulas for totals, scores, or eligibility checks
• Grid questions — Support line items, budgets, and timesheets in tabular format
• Form templates — Create reusable form parts to standardize across processes
• AI data extraction — Populate form fields automatically from uploaded documents
• Prefilled fields — Auto-populate user data, IDs, or system information to reduce manual entry

Customization options:

• Add images, videos, tables, and links
• Apply CSS styling for brand consistency
• Use JavaScript for advanced behavior
• Build responsive forms that work on mobile devices

Workflow integration:

Forms connect directly to the Process Builder, triggering approvals and routing decisions when submitted. Every submission is tracked with full audit trails for compliance and reporting.

Automating intake with the Process Builder

Once a form is submitted, the Process Builder routes it through your workflow. The visual drag-and-drop designer lets you chain tasks together to handle requests:

• Approval tasks — Configure approvers, recipients, and multistep approval flows
• Document tasks — PDF generation and PDF merge for creating output documents
• Notifications — General and dynamic notifications to alert users via email
• Assignment — Use task assigner and dynamic assigner to route work based on workflow rules
• Scheduling — Use task scheduler for time-based automation
• Data handling — Use data container and counter task for managing workflow data

Routing and logic:

• Route requests based on form field values or user attributes
• Set up alerts and reminders for pending tasks
• Configure escalations when tasks aren’t completed on time
• Track all activity for audit and compliance reporting

Integrations:

Nutrient Workflow integrates with CRMs, ERPs, databases, and other systems via open APIs and web services. Push intake data into your existing systems of record.

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