Collect inquiries with a form that emails you
When someone fills out a form on your site — a volunteer sign-up, a contact request, an event RSVP — you want two things to happen: a record you can look back on, and a heads-up in your inbox right away. You can have both, for free, using tools your Google Workspace already includes. No database, no monthly add-on.
How it works, in plain terms
Your website form hands each submission to a small Google script. The script does two jobs: it adds a row to a Google Sheet (your running record), and it sends an email to your team so nobody has to keep checking. Everything lives inside the Google account you already pay nothing extra for.
The steps
Decide what to ask
Keep it short. Name, email, and one message box covers most needs. Every extra field you add is one more reason someone gives up halfway. Ask only for what you'll actually use.
Create the Google Sheet
Make a new Sheet in your Workspace with one column per question. This is where every submission lands, in order, so any board member can scroll the full history at a glance.
Connect the form to the Sheet
A short Google Apps Script catches each submission and writes it as a new row. This is the one technical piece — we set it up for you when we build your site, and then it just runs.
Turn on the email alert
The same script emails your chosen address the moment a form comes in. Point it at a shared inbox or a small group so a submission never sits unseen because one volunteer was away.
Send a test and you're done
Submit the form once yourself. Confirm the row appears in the Sheet and the email arrives. After that it runs on its own — no servers to watch, nothing to keep patched.
Quick checklist
- Short list of fields decided
- Google Sheet created with matching columns
- Form connected to the Sheet
- Email alert pointed at a shared inbox
- Test submission confirmed in Sheet and inbox
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