Welcome to the deep dive into the most common field of a contact form: the Paragraph Text field! You’ve likely come across this field while using a contact form to inquire about a product or service on a website you visited.
Chances are, you’ve also seen this form field on survey forms, prompting you to share feedback or review a purchased product, similar to this:
In this article, we’ll show you how to add a Paragraph Text field in WordPress and also share numerous helpful tips and tricks about this form field you’ll find beneficial. So, without further ado, let’s dive in!
Table of contents
- How to add a Paragraph Text field to your WordPress form
- When to use a Paragraph Text field in your contact form
- How to use a Rich Text editor for a Paragraph Text Field
- How to limit users’ input into the Paragraph Text field
1. How to add a Paragraph Text field to your WordPress form
Unlike other form plugins in WordPress space, Ninja Forms offers over 20 field different types that are available for free. This is excellent because it gives you the freedom to experiment with your form-building process without any limitations!
To add a Paragraph Text field to your WordPress form, click on the blue circle button within your form builder and find the text box field under the Common Fields. Using our contact form plugin, you can choose to either drag and drop the Paragraph Text field directly onto your form or effortlessly click on it, which will add the field to your form. 
Upon adding a Paragraph Text box to your form, you’ll see a range of settings this form field provides. Make sure you enable the developer mode to access them all. Don’t worry you can unlock it for free!
Now let’s take a look when to use the Paragraph Text field in your online forms and how you can let your visitors customize their input into Paragraph field with Rich Text Editor.
2. When to use a Paragraph Text field in your contact form
When the Single Line Text falls short, the Paragraph Text field is your go to-choice for crafting longer responses like open-ended comments, detailed descriptions, ideas, and requests.
It is an absolute must on any contact form page, as it empowers your website visitors to reach out and compose messages with specific questions. You can see a simple example of a contact form, including the Paragraph Text Field (Message) below:
A simple example of a contact form, including the Paragraph Text Field (Message)
The Paragraph Text Field is very often used to collect a customer’s feedback. A plain label such as “Your Feedback” can feel one-sided and lacks user engagement —especially when you’re asking users to invest their time in providing feedback.
That’s why we encourage you to use a placeholder text. It is ideal for providing additional context instructions, giving your form visitors a better understanding of what information is expected.
You can access the Placeholder settings under the Display tab. By adding a friendly placeholder text to your paragraph field, you’re not just filling space – you’re doing it strategically. It’s like a win-win: giving users a heads-up about what to share while saving precious space. No need for an extra description that takes up room—just a thoughtful placeholder doing the job!
Want to learn more about the placeholder text? Check out our tutorial on How to Add a Placeholder to a WordPress Form Field and learn how to add a placeholder to your form fields, hide a form label and display placeholder insead, and lastly, when to use a placeholder in your form.
3. How to use a Rich Text Editor for a Paragraph Text Field
One of the settings of a Paragraph Text field we’d like to highlight is the Rich Text Editor. You can access this feature under the Display settings of the Paragraph Text field. Once you enable the Rich Text Editor, you will see another two buttons available: Disable rich tex editor on mobile and Show Media Upload Button.
So what makes the Rich Text Editor stand out from other settings? This feature brings a creative spirit in your form visitors!
Consider a scenario: if you’re a school organization overseeing a Literature club competition, such as the “Best Essay About Yourself” or a poetry contest, students can compose their entire essay within the Paragraph Text field. They have the flexibility to format their content and even incorporate images.
Another great way to use Rich Text Editor is if you want to collect product reviews for your company, especially if you don’t intend to publish them directly on your site. With the Rich Text Editor andShow Media Upload Button setting, your users can upload the pictures directly to the Paragraph text field just like on the video below.
However, if you are looking for displaying reviews directly on your website, with the Front-End Posting add-on, you can proudly display reviews right on your site.
Plus, the File Uploads add-on lets your customers easily share images, videos, or any other file types. It’s a game-changer for making your website even more awesome and increase an engagement with your visitors.
For more information on posting testimonials to your WordPress website, check our tutorial on How to Get and Display Video Testimonials for Your Website.
4. How to limit users’ input into the Paragraph Text field
Imagine you are collecting job applications and your applicants are providing descriptions about their previous job positions. While you aim to extract valuable information to select the best candidate, sifting through 600 words for each job description may not be necessary.
Another example might be if you are collecting feedback through your forms. Receiving thoughtful reviews for your product or feedback on customer experience is appreciated, but you should consider the time spent on reviewing those submissions. In both cases, it proves beneficial to set a limit on the number of words users can input into the Paragraph Text field.
NInja Forms offers a free feature where you can limit the number of characters or words users can type into the Paragraph Text box. You can find this setting under the Restrictions. Keep in mind, you need to enable Dev Mode to access the Restrictions settings.
You also have the option to display a customized message when user is typing the answer to the field. This text appers after the counter.
As Paragraph Text field is used for typing long answers, in our example below we set the limit to 300 Words instead of characters. We also customized the text to appear after counter to “Words left”.
As we type within the text box, you can see the number of words typed in in the bottom left corner (209). You can also see the maximum words displayed. (300) If you would continue typing over 300 words, it would not allow you to write another word. Only the letters that would be added to the last word. Keep in mind you can only use the restrictions for characters or words if the Rich Text editor for Paragraph Text field is disabled.
Did you know there are other restrictions or rules you can apply to your form fields? Make sure to look at the article How to Use Input Mask in Your Contact Form (Examples) and learn how to define rules for your form fields using Ninja Forms builder!
Well done, padawan. You’ve mastered the Paragraph field!
Virtual high five to you for making it all the way here!🖐🏼 Now that you know everything about the most common contact form field, are you ready to elevate your apprenticeship to the next level? If so, then explore from A-Z the top 10 WordPress form fields and get inspired for your next form-building adventure with Ninja Forms!
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Stepping into the universe of form building for the first time? Get your hands on the Ninja Forms free core plugin and access a range of complimentary features. Don’t be shy, test out our contact form plugin and see for yourself why it ranks among the best free WordPress form plugins out there!
