Static onboarding forms are rigid, especially on mobile. They collect data, but they often suppress context and create drop‑off.
If you’re searching for a Typeform alternative for SaaS onboarding or trying to reduce survey drop‑off on mobile, this guide shows how to move from static forms to AI‑powered conversational forms while keeping the structured data your CRM, billing, and analytics rely on.
Why conversational forms work
Teams report these consistent advantages with chat‑based surveys:
- People answered in their own words, which produced better signals. You get qualitative feedback at scale instead of checkbox noise.
- The AI asked smart follow‑ups. If someone said “integration was confusing,” the next prompt dug into which integration and where they got stuck.
- The experience felt lighter on mobile. No grids, no tiny tap targets—just one message at a time.
The long‑tail upside: if you care about “reduce survey drop‑off on mobile,” “increase onboarding completion rate,” or “capture structured data from free text,” conversational flows are built for that.
The fear: “But I need structured data”
In this product, a form is a list of questions with a required/optional flag. The assistant has a conversation aimed at covering those information goals. When it’s ready, it ends with a completion signal. The system then extracts answers from the entire chat into a structured list of { question, value }
pairs and appends an "Additional Information" note for anything extra.
This means you preserve structure without forcing rigid inputs. You can map the resulting pairs to your systems as needed.
How to move from static forms to conversational forms
You don’t need to rebuild everything. Start with one flow and iterate.
- Define clear questions and mark what’s required
- Keep each question focused and concrete
- Avoid overlapping questions; extraction keys off the exact question text
- Add lightweight customization
- Optional welcome message to set expectations
- Optional AI personality/context to guide tone and focus
- Let the assistant drive the conversation
- It asks natural follow‑ups to cover required goals
- It wraps up with a brief thank‑you when done (no confirmation prompts)
- Rely on automatic extraction
- After completion, the system extracts
{ question, value }
for every field - An "Additional Information" field summarizes extra context
- Keep it short
- Two to four high‑signal questions often perform better than long lists
What to measure after the switch
- Conversion rate: form start → completion (especially on mobile)
- Time to first value: when someone completes, do they activate faster?
- Sales context: do reps book better calls with richer notes?
- Data cleanliness: fewer nulls, fewer “other” responses
Benchmark these metrics over time and compare A/B to evaluate impact rather than assuming results.
Real example: “free text → structured answers”
Input (free text): “We’re a 45‑person B2B SaaS; we use HubSpot and Slack. Looking to get this live by end of quarter.”
Extraction result (matches your exact question texts):
[
{ "question": "Company size", "value": "45 people" },
{ "question": "Job title", "value": "" },
{ "question": "Primary tools", "value": "HubSpot, Slack" },
{ "question": "Timeframe", "value": "End of quarter" },
{ "question": "Additional Information", "value": "B2B SaaS" }
]
Notes:
- Values are aligned to your question text exactly; optional fields can be empty strings.
- “Additional Information” summarizes extra context that doesn’t fit a specific question.
Common objections (and what actually happens)
-
“Won’t this feel like a bot?” Not if it asks natural follow‑ups and remembers context. The fastest way to kill the vibe is to force rigid choices too early.
-
“Will people write enough?” Surprisingly, yes—especially on mobile. One short prompt at a time beats a wall of fields.
-
“Isn’t this hard to maintain?” Start with a stable schema and a handful of prompts. Iterate weekly based on what people actually say.
Where conversational forms shine
- SaaS onboarding and qualification
- Customer feedback
- Post‑demo follow‑ups that ask what mattered and what’s missing
- Product research when you don’t know the right multiple‑choice list yet
If your goal is to improve onboarding completion rate or to replace static forms with a chat‑based survey, this is the easiest win you’ll ship this quarter.