Prefill Forms lets you generate personalized surveys from a spreadsheet. Each row in your spreadsheet becomes a unique survey copy with its own text, data, and identifier. This works for both printed paper surveys and web survey links.
How dynamic text works
Add placeholders wrapped in double curly braces to any question or heading in your survey. When you generate copies, each placeholder is replaced with the matching column value from your spreadsheet.
For example, a question like:
Thanks for visiting _{{location}}_ on _{{date}}_. Would you mind answering...
Combined with this spreadsheet uploaded via Prefill Forms:
| ID | location | date |
|---|---|---|
| 123 | XYZ Restaurant | 2019-01-01 |
| 124 | ABC Exhibition | 2019-02-01 |
Produces two personalized surveys:
- "Thanks for visiting XYZ Restaurant on 2019-01-01. Would you mind answering..."
- "Thanks for visiting ABC Exhibition on 2019-02-01. Would you mind answering..."
Associating prefill data with responses
To include spreadsheet data alongside your survey responses (for filtering and export), add a "Prefill Data" question for each column you want to keep. The question name must match the column name exactly. Once copies are generated and responses are processed, the data is associated automatically.
Generating multiple copies per row
By default, each spreadsheet row produces one survey copy. If you need multiple identical copies for the same row, you have two options:
Fixed count. Set the number of copies when generating. For example, 50 copies of each row.
Variable count from spreadsheet. Under advanced settings, choose a "Copies" column from your spreadsheet. Each row then specifies how many copies it needs. Combine this with "Group in Folders" to save each group as a separate file.
Identifiers
Each copy gets an identifier that links the printed form back to your spreadsheet row. Leave the identifier field blank to auto-generate one, or specify a column from your spreadsheet that contains unique values (such as a customer ID or reference number). When generating more than one copy per row, identifiers are always auto-generated.
Important notes
Constrain the height of dynamic text. Replaced text that is longer or shorter than the placeholder can shift the page layout and affect recognition. Wrap placeholders in a height box: [height=3cm]Thanks for visiting {{location}}[/height]. In some layouts you may also need to constrain width: [width=3cm][height=3cm]{{variable}}[/height][/width].
Unique Page Marking must be enabled. Prefill Forms requires Unique Page Marking. When enabled, two QR codes appear at the bottom of each page. For single-page surveys, activate "Uniquely mark single-page surveys" in survey settings.
Create a new version before printing. If you update your survey or questions after generating copies, create a new version in the "Print" tab before printing again.