Common mistakes
Frequent form and visit setup errors—and how to avoid them.
Video coming soon
Common mistakes
id: academy-common-mistakes · ~2–4 min
Audience: Admin · Supervisor
Most rollout delays trace back to a handful of configuration habits. Review this list before publishing forms to the full field team.
Renaming field keys after go-live
The field key (internal identifier) powers reports, exports, Workflows, and API payloads. Changing a key after submissions exist breaks historical columns—old answers stay under the previous key, new ones under the new key.
Fix: treat keys as permanent. Change the label users see on mobile freely; leave the key stable. If you must rename, plan a migration window and update reports. Details: Field keys and API.
Duplicating visit (check-in) types
Copying a visit type to save time often duplicates attached forms, GPS rules, and notifications. Field users then see two nearly identical options and managers get split data.
Fix: one visit type per real-world activity. Use clear names ("Delivery audit" vs. "Delivery audit copy"). Consolidate duplicates and reassign historical visits if needed. See Check-in types.
Too many required fields
Long mandatory sections slow mobile capture, increase abandonment in poor connectivity, and produce rushed junk data.
Fix: require only what compliance truly needs. Use conditionals to show extra questions when relevant. Test completion time on a mid-range phone.
Untested on mobile
Forms that look fine on a wide monitor may overflow, hide conditionals, or fail on older Android versions.
Fix: always run one full visit on the same devices your team uses. Include photo, signature, and list-from-data-source fields. Follow Mobile for field teams and Publish and mobile sync.
Filtering reports without visit context
Exporting "all answers this month" without visit type, team, or place filters mixes incompatible forms and inflates totals.
Fix: start reports from a single form + visit type, then add dimensions. Pair with Reports from forms and Visit control for reconciliation.