About URL parameters

How it works

> Test it out

Setting up your form

Constructing your URL with parameters

> URL formatting

Parameters for embedded forms

Frequently Asked Questions

Beacon's forms are already a versatile way for your supporters to submit information to you, but with adjustable URL parameters you can extend their functionality by:

This is useful in many different situations, and can be used for both standalone and embedded forms, but some of the most common are:

By adding extra elements to the normal URL that people visit to view your form you are able to dynamically set values when the form loads.

For example, a form's URL might usually look like this:

You then add a parameter to the end of the URL, such as this one which sets the default donation amount:

Multiple parameters can be added to pre-fill more than one value on the form, such as this one which sets both the donation amount as well as the chosen fund:

See our section on constructing URLs for more detail.

Every form includes a 'URL Data' section where you can define the parameters you'd like to enable for that form.
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All of the options below are the same form; the only differences are the URL parameters. Click each one and see how the form changes!

Base form:

https://beaconben.beaconforms.com/form/5da69de0

Pre-select the £50 donation option:

https://beaconben.beaconforms.com/form/5da69de0?bcn_donation_amount=50

Pre-fill the 'Families in Need' fund:

https://beaconben.beaconforms.com/form/5da69de0?bcn_fund=1331

Pre-fill name and email address:

https://beaconben.beaconforms.com/form/5da69de0?bcn_first_name=Ben&bcn_last_name=Cook&bcn_email=ben%40beaconcrm.org

Combined:

https://beaconben.beaconforms.com/form/5da69de0?bcn_first_name=Ben&bcn_last_name=Cook&bcn_email=ben%40beaconcrm.org&bcn_donation_amount=50&bcn_fund=1331

Once you've finished designing your form and the questions you'd like to ask on it, you can then configure the different URL parameters that you'd like to use.

All forms have some fixed parameters that are always available. The options will vary by form type:

For other values you can choose both which fields you'd like to be able to set data in, as well as what the parameter itself looks like in your URL. When changing the name of your parameter:

If the field you've chosen is a question on the form, any data in your URL parameter will pre-fill that question (but can be changed by the submitter).

If the field you've chosen is not a question, the data will instead be used as fixed data and be set behind the scenes for that submission (cannot be changed by the submitter).
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There's a particular format that your URLs will need to use to make sure your parameters work correctly with your form.

There's 3 rules you'll need to follow:

At the end of your page or form URL, insert a question mark ? before the first parameter:
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After the end of one parameter, and before the start of the next, add an ampersand & to divide them from each other:
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After each parameter you want to add, you'll need an equals sign = and then the value you want to use in your form:

How you enter/format the values will vary a little for each parameter. Read on for value formats!

The value can be any number

Example: bcn_donation_amount=100

The value should be one of the frequencies enabled in the donation section of your form, and would be any of single, monthly or annual

Example: bcn_donation_frequency=monthly

The value should be the same text as one of the membership types on your form (not case sensitive)

Example: bcn_membership_type=family

Use if your membership has more than one frequency option. The value should be either monthly, annual or lifetime

Example: bcn_membership_frequency=annual

Use if your annual membership allows both regular and one-off payments. The value should be either single or regular

Example: bcn_annual_frequency_type=regular

Use if your form allows existing members to renew memberships. The value should be the 'member number' on the membership record. This is the value members would normally use when renewing a membership.

Example: bcn_member_number=12

The value can be any text up to 255 characters

Example: bcn_apple_thoughts=I%20love%20apples

If you've asked a question for an Organisation name as short text, follow the short text parameter above.

If you've asked a question for an Organisation name as a list of records, or haven't added it as a question, follow the point to another record parameter below.

The value can either be true or false
​Example: bcn_likes_apples=true

The value should match one of the options in the field
​Example: bcn_apple_variety=gala

If multiple options are allowed, separate them with a comma

Example: bcn_apple_varieties=gala,pink%20lady

The value should be the Record ID of the record to link to

Example: bcn_apple=1754

If multiple options are allowed, separate them with a comma

Example: bcn_apples=1754,2553,311

There are two ways to use parameters with embedded forms:

If you've embedded a form in your website, you can still use URL parameters in the same way that you'd use them for standalone forms.

Simply add your parameters to the page's URL, and your form will be able to read them!

For example:

Goodheart have an animal adoption form here:

We can use URL parameters to pre-select the 'Adoption - Standard' option, and pre-filling Biscuit the goose as our adopted animal, like this:

Arnos Vale have a donation form here:

We can use URL parameters to set a custom £200 donation amount, and pre-fill a donor's details, like this:

Bude Sea Pool have a membership form here:

We can use URL parameters to pre-select the 'Family' membership type, and pre-fill the member's details, like this:

If you have a form appearing in multiple places on your website, you can also add parameters directly to the embed code instead of using (or in conjunction with) URL parameters.

For example:

The embed code for a donation form might look like this:

We can add parameters into the code to pre-set or pre-fill data just like with the URL parameters.

If we wanted to set the monthly £10 amount for this particular placement of the form, we could include that in the code:

Parameters in embed codes are constructed slightly differently from their URL counterparts. Here's how to format them:

Unlike URL parameters, you won't need to encode any text or symbols within your values as long as they're inside the double quotes.

For example:

A URL parameter to set a short text field might look like this:

When placed in an embed code it should be changed to this:

If you have any fields where you want to set multiple values, such as a multi-select dropdown list or a point to another record field that can point to multiple records, you can comma separate that values within the parameter:

There are many characters that URLs don't support that you'll want to include in your parameter values - most commonly spaces!

For example, this would not be part of a valid URL:

I love apples! would need to be changed to I%20love%20apples%21

The easiest way to convert it is to use a URL encoder such as this one; simply copy and paste your text. Alternatively, if you'd like help building your URL, we've also created a handy tool you can download here that lets you put all your components together into a full URL.

See how to set values for each field type here.

If there's another field type that you'd like to use URL variables for, do let us know your use case so that we know what's useful!

Nothing! We'll ignore any invalid URL parameters so your form will be able to be submitted as usual.

Nothing! We'll ignore any parameters (even if valid) if they haven't been added in your form's settings. This means someone can't deliberately set fixed data for their submission that you hadn't intended to be set!

We'll give the URL parameter the priority, so if you've set 'Fund A' in your fixed data, but 'Fund B' in your URL, 'Fund B' would be used.

We'll give the URL parameter the priority, so if you've set 'Fund A' in your embed code, but 'Fund B' in your URL, 'Fund B' would be used.

Don't worry - they can take a while to get your head around! We held a Deep Dive on URL Parameters - feel free to have a watch of this recorded event, where Ben will take you through each step and give you some handy examples