Newsletter Mode vs. Contact Mode

Form integrations in WP Smart Consent support two operating modes, configurable per form. The mode determines whether a checkbox is shown at all, and under what conditions a contact gets forwarded to your CRM or ESP.

Contact Mode#

Contact mode is the standard opt-in flow. WP Smart Consent injects a checkbox into the form and only forwards the contact if the visitor actively ticks it before submitting.

This is the right choice for general-purpose forms — contact forms, quote requests, support forms — where the visitor’s primary intent isn’t signing up for a newsletter. The checkbox makes the marketing opt-in a deliberate, separate action from the form submission itself.

Newsletter Mode#

Newsletter mode skips the checkbox entirely. Every submission of that form is treated as an opt-in and the contact is always forwarded to your connected CRM or ESP, regardless of whether the visitor ticked anything.

This is appropriate for forms where subscribing is the entire point — a dedicated newsletter signup form, a “get updates” widget, a lead magnet download form. In these cases the visitor already understands what they’re signing up for, so an additional checkbox adds friction without adding clarity.

Setting the Mode Per Form#

Modes are configured individually for each form, not globally. Where you find the setting depends on the form plugin:

• WPForms, Gravity Forms, Formidable Forms, Fluent Forms, SureForms — inside the form’s own settings panel or editor
• Contact Form 7 — in the WP Smart Consent panel inside the CF7 editor
• Ninja Forms — on a dedicated settings page under the Ninja Forms menu
• MetForm, Everest Forms — via the WP Smart Consent row action on the forms list screen
• HappyForms, Forminator — configured at the integration level in the WP Smart Consent dashboard

This means you can have different forms on the same site running in different modes — a contact form in Contact mode and a newsletter signup in Newsletter mode, for example, both forwarding to the same destination.

Which Mode Should You Use?#

Use Contact mode when the form serves a purpose other than list building and you want the opt-in to be an explicit choice. Use Newsletter mode when signing up is the entire reason the form exists. If you’re unsure, Contact mode is the safer default.