In Assently, you can upload documents with fillable fields to a case and fill them in before sending them out for signing. You can also send out documents with fillable fields and have the person signing fill them in before signing. Web automation usually uses fillable documents.
To make a document fillable, you need a PDF editor. In this example, we use Adobe Acrobat Pro DC.
The document you are going to make fillable must first be in PDF format. Select "save as" and "save as PDF", alternatively "Print" and "Save as PDF".
Then upload the PDF in Adobe, and select "Prepare Form". Now the document will be scanned and the program will suggest boxes and fields where there are boxes, lines and check boxes. If the boxes suggested are correct, you can continue working with them, otherwise you can remove them and add your own.
To add your own, select the type of field you want and place it with the mouse pointer where you want it. You can adjust the size by dragging the corners. Right-click and select "properties" to e.g. make field mandatory, allow multiple lines, disable "autospell" and set text size. More on this below.
Below you'll find tips to make the final product look as good as possible!
- When filling in e.g. a form, you often use the Tab key to move between the fields. The field order in Adobe controls which field comes next in order when you tab, so you want the fields to end up in the correct order. You control this by dragging and dropping the fields in the column on the right.
- You can control the text size of the field. The set text size appears when the document is signed and ready. Choose a text size that is close to the text size of the rest of the document. Avoid using "Auto" as the text size, as it can become very large letters if only a few characters are filled in, and conversely become very small text if a lot of text is filled in. Rather control the amount of text with the size of the text field - i.e. make a large field if you think a lot of text needs to be filled in. Only the letters that fit in the field will appear in the signed case.
- If you want a large field where you can write several lines of text, the box "Multiple lines" needs to be ticked in the field's properties.
- Naming of fields: If two fields have the same name, they automatically get the same content. That is if you type in a word in the first field, that word will populate in the second field as well. If you download "Capture Data", the field names become headings in columns, one column per field. Avoid using special characters and spaces in field names.
- It is possible to decide that certain fields should be mandatory, it is then not possible to sign the case if the field is left empty. This is set in the field's properties, "required" is the name of the box to be ticked.
Furthermore, it is also possible to add Validations in the field. A validation works so that the entered value/word must meet certain criteria for the matter to be signed. Examples of validations are Social Security number, email, max or min number of digits or denominations, etc. Read more in this article about how to add validations to a field. - When you put multiple fields in a row or column, you want them to be even. You can easily adjust this by selecting the fields you want to adjust, right-click and choose how you want them to be - right/left aligned, under or over aligned. It is also possible to distribute them vertically or horizontally so that they are exactly the same distance apart within a given frame.
- If you have boxes to be ticked in your form, you can make fillable Checkboxes or Radio Buttons. Check boxes make it possible to tick more than one option, with radio buttons you can only select one option in a given group of options. You can have several groups that can only have one cross between them (eg several Yes/No questions). In properties, you can choose the appearance of the box/button so that it is square and gets a cross, or is round and gets a dot.
For more inspiration and tips on what is good to think about when digitizing and perhaps also mobile-adapting your form, you can find it here: Recommendations for publication of your form.
Contact us at support@assently.com if you need further guidance!
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