Using Webforms to Update Your Matter

In this article:

• Overview
• Including the Link to a Matter in Your Webform Link
• Implementation Suggestions 

Actionstep webforms allow your firm to have an intake form on your website that, when processed, creates a new matter in Actionstep. This is useful for collecting general inquiries that quickly create a client engagement or CRM matter type. However, often, you want to collect data from a client or third party once you have already started a matter, capturing further matter and contact details about your case. 

This article explains how to use a webform to update a matter. It also covers how to link a webform to a matter in Actionstep so you can direct the information in the form to update the correct matter. 

Overview

By default, Actionstep webforms create a new matter when they are submitted. To have a webform update a matter, the data submitted must be linked to a matter. When that happens, the user processing the webform will find the process slightly different. Instead of the last step in the process creating a matter, they will be prompted to confirm the matter that will be updated. 

Actionstep webforms capture the matter number by inspecting the URL the user used to access the webform. When you direct a client or other party to a webform, you can use a URL link that will include an identifier to the matter that you want to be updated. The webform will read that link and automatically include the matter in the information submitted when the webform is processed. 

Including the Link to a Matter in Your Webform Link

When you create a webform, you will include the form on a particular page of your own website. This means that the form will have its own unique URL. Additionally, a web developer can create a URL that is descriptive of the form your clients will fill in. 

Before you can create a link to a webform that will capture the matter, you need to know this URL. With this URL, you want to create a link that will append the following to the end of it: 

?action_id=[[action_id]] 

For example, if the URL for your webform was https://mylaw.com/webform1, then the link would look like this:

https://mylaw.com/webform1?action_id=[[action_id]] 

The last part of this URL ([[action_id]]) is a merge field. If you include this link in an email or document template in Actionstep and then generate that template from a matter, the merge field will be processed and the matter ID will be inserted in the field. 

Using the example above, when an email containing the link to your form is generated from Matter 123, the template will include a link that looks like this:

https://mylaw.com/webform1?action_id=123

When a client completes and submits the webform, the answers they provide will be saved back to Matter 123. 

Implementation Suggestions 

The best way to implement the scenario described above is to create a specific email template to send to a client asking them to complete the linked form. 

Also, when setting up your workflow steps, you can automatically send an email to a client as you move your matter to a certain step. (See Editing Workflow Step Actions – Emails (Admin) for help setting this up.) Building a workflow like this allows you to create webforms and workflow steps that request the information you need in a timely and efficient manner. 

For example, if your initial webform for an estate planning matter captures that your client is a veteran, you can send a link to a second webform that will capture additional details related to the client's military service. Or, if your initial real estate webform highlights that the property being purchased has existing tenants, you could move the matter to a step that will send an additional webform to capture details of the current tenants. 

Lastly, you can use the hyperlinks in document templates as well as email templates. For example, your engagement letter might include a link to a webform to get more details from the client.