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Overview

The Email tab configures automatic email notifications sent when someone submits your public form. You can send confirmation emails to form submitters, notify employers, and alert your organizing team—all automatically. Email confirmations serve multiple purposes:
  • Confirm receipt of the form submission
  • Provide transparency to form submitters
  • Meet NLRB compliance requirements (for union authorization cards)
  • Notify relevant parties (organizers, employers, administrators)
  • Include PDF copies of signed forms

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Configure email notifications for your public form

Follow these steps to set up email notifications:

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Step 1: Navigate to the Email tab

To get started, select the Email tab in the public form editor.

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Step 2: Choose who receives emails

At the top of the Email tab, you’ll see “Send email to:” with three recipient options:

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The form submitter (required for NLRB compliance)

Check this box to send a confirmation email to the person who submitted the form. When enabled:
  • An email is sent to the form submitter’s email address
  • Email uses the subject and body you configure below
  • Can include form data and/or PDF attachment
  • Serves as confirmation that the form was received
When disabled:
  • No email is sent to the submitter
  • Not recommended for most campaigns
NLRB compliance note: For union organizing campaigns, NLRB regulations require that you provide form submitters with a copy of what they signed. Enabling this option and attaching a PDF satisfies this requirement.
Best practice: Always enable this option. It provides transparency, builds trust, and confirms to submitters that their form was received.

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The specified employer

Check this box to send an email to the employer organization. This option only appears for person forms and only works when employment creation is enabled (see Employment tab). When enabled:
  • An email is sent to the employer organization selected upon submission
  • Email is sent to the organization’s primary email address in Broadstripes
  • Uses separate subject and body when Use different content options for the employer email is checked (configured in “Employer email content” section below)
When disabled:
  • No employer notification is sent
When to enable:
  • Shop steward election forms (to notify management)
  • Forms where the employer needs to be informed
When to disable:
  • General organizing (you don’t want to tip off the employer)
  • Interest cards (employer doesn’t need to know)
  • Most worker sign-ups
See the Employment tab to enable and configure employment creation. If employment creation is disabled, this email option won’t work because there’s no employer to notify.

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Use different content options for the employer email

Check this box if you want to customize the email sent to employers differently from the email sent to form submitters. When enabled:
  • A separate “Employer email content” section appears below
  • You can customize employer emails with different subject, body, and attachment options
When disabled:
  • Employer emails (if enabled) use the same content as submitter emails
  • Simpler configuration
When to enable: Almost always, if you’re sending employer emails. Employers need different information than form submitters.

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Step 3: Add other email recipients (optional)

In the “Other recipients” field, you can enter additional email addresses to receive a copy of the confirmation email. Format: Enter email addresses separated by commas Examples: 
[email protected], [email protected]
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
Common uses:
  • Notify organizers when new sign-ups come in
  • Send copies to campaign staff
  • Alert support staff for follow-up
  • BCC campaign leadership
Best practices:
  • Don’t add too many recipients (creates email overload)
  • Consider using a shared inbox (like [email protected]) instead of individual addresses
  • Recipients get the SAME email as the form submitter

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Step 4: Configure email content options

The Email content section controls what gets included in the confirmation email to form submitters. Append form content to email body Check this box to include the submitted form data at the bottom of the email body. When enabled:
  • The submitted form data is included at the bottom of the email body
  • Shows field labels and values in a readable format
  • Provides a text version of what was submitted
When disabled:
  • Email only contains your custom message
  • Cleaner, shorter email
Best practices:
  • Enable this if you’re NOT attaching a PDF (provides a record of submission)
  • Disable this if you ARE attaching a PDF (prevents duplication)
  • Enable for simple forms where seeing data inline is helpful
Attach PDF of form to confirmation email Check this box to attach a PDF copy of the form submission to the confirmation email. When enabled:
  • A PDF is generated containing all submitted form data
  • PDF is attached to the confirmation email
  • PDF includes all fields, signature (if captured), and form branding
When disabled:
  • No PDF attachment (email only contains text)
Best practices:
  • Enable for union authorization cards (NLRB compliance)
  • Enable for legal documents or contracts
  • Enable for applications where users need a copy
  • Disable for simple interest cards or casual sign-ups (faster processing, smaller emails)
PDFs are always generated and stored in Broadstripes, even if you don’t attach them to emails. This option only controls whether the PDF is attached to the email.

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Step 5: Write the email subject and body

Customize the confirmation email message that form submitters will receive. Subject line In the Subject field, enter the subject line for the confirmation email. Examples:
  • “Thank you for your interest in organizing”
  • “Your worker interest card has been received”
  • “You’re registered for the March meeting”
  • “Welcome to the campaign”
  • “Confirmation: Your application has been submitted”
You can use merge fields to personalize the subject line and body (see Merge Fields section below): 
Thank you, %first_name%!
Your registration for %event_name% is confirmed
Email body In the Body field (large text area), enter the main content of the confirmation email. Default: If left blank, a generic message is sent Example email body: 
Hello %first_name%,

Thank you for filling out our worker interest card. An organizer will contact you soon to answer your questions and discuss next steps.

In the meantime, you can visit our website at www.ourcampaign.org to learn more about our efforts.

In solidarity,
The Organizing Committee
Best practices:
  • Start with a personalized greeting using %first_name% merge field
  • Thank the submitter
  • Set clear expectations about next steps
  • Provide contact information if they have questions
  • Include relevant links (website, Facebook group, etc.)
  • Sign with organization name or organizer name
  • Keep it brief—most people skim emails

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Step 6: Configure employer email content (if applicable)

This section only appears if you enabled both “Send email to employer” and “Use different content options for the employer email” checkboxes in Step 2. Append form content to employer email body Check this box to include the submitted form data in the email sent to the employer. Common configuration:
  • Enable for payroll deductions (employer needs to see the details)
  • Disable for most other uses (employer doesn’t need all the details)
Attach PDF of form including signature image Check this box to attach a PDF of the full form submission to the employer email. When enabled:
  • PDF of the full form submission is attached to the employer email
  • Includes signature image if captured
When disabled:
  • No PDF attachment
Employer email subject In the Subject field under Employer email content, enter the subject line for emails sent to employers. Examples:
  • “Shop steward election notice”
  • “Employee authorization form submitted”
  • “New grievance filed by %name%”
Merge fields: Same merge fields available as for submitter emails Employer email body In the Body field under Employer email content, enter the main content of the email sent to employers. Example employer email body for shop steward election: 
This is to notify you that %name% has been elected as shop steward for %department%.

As required by the collective bargaining agreement, management must be notified of shop steward elections.

For questions, contact the union at [email protected].

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Step 7: Save your work

Once you’ve configured your email settings, click Save or move on to the next tab to continue customizing your form.

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Merge Fields

Merge fields are placeholders that get replaced with actual data when the email is sent. *Available merge fields:
  • Name - Full name of the recipient (or form submitter in this case)
  • First Name - Recipient’s first name
  • Nickname or First Name - Uses nickname if available, otherwise first name
  • Title and Last Name - Recipient’s title (if available) and last name
  • Broadstripes ID - Unique identifier for the recipient
  • Organizer Name - Full name of the recipient’s assigned organizer
  • Organizer First Name - First name of assigned organizer
  • Department - Recipient’s department (if employment data exists)
  • Employer - Recipient’s employer organization
  • Sender Name - Your full name (the person sending the email)
  • Sender First Name - Your first name
  • Custom fields specific to your project may also appear
How to use merge fields:
  1. Click the “Select a merge field” menu and choose the desired field
  2. Or manually type the merge field surrounded by percent signs (%)
  3. The merge field is replaced with actual data when the email is sent
Example without merge fields: 
Thank you for your interest! An organizer will be in touch soon.
Example with merge fields: 
Hello %first-name%,

Thank you for expressing interest in organizing at %employer%. An organizer will contact you at %phone% within 48 hours.
Best practices for merge fields:
  • Don’t overuse—too many merge fields feels robotic
  • Remember some fields may be blank—structure your message so it still makes sense

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Email Configuration Examples

Basic Interest Card Send email to: Email content:
  • ☐ Append form content to email body
  • ☐ Attach PDF to email
  • Subject: “Thank you for your interest, %first-name%”
  • Body: 
    Hello %first-name%,

Thank you for filling out our interest card. An organizer will contact you soon to answer your questions.

In solidarity,
The Organizing Committee
Union Authorization Card (NLRB Compliant) Send email to:
  • ☑ The form submitter (required for NLRB compliance)
  • ☐ The specified employer
  • Other recipients: [email protected]
Email content:
  • ☐ Append form content to email body
  • ☑ Attach PDF to email (NLRB requirement)
  • Subject: “Your union authorization card”
  • Body: 
    Hello %first-name%,

Thank you for signing a union authorization card. Attached is a copy for your records.

Your signature authorizes the union to represent you. You have the right to revoke this authorization at any time by contacting us at [email protected].

If you have questions, call us at (555) 123-4567.

In solidarity,
Local 1979
Simple Event Registration Send email to: Email content:
  • ☐ Append form content to email body
  • ☐ Attach PDF to email
  • Subject: “You’re registered for %event-name%”
  • Body: 
    Hi %first-name%,

You're all set for the March member meeting!

When: March 15, 2025 at 6:00 PM
Where: Union Hall, 123 Main Street

We'll send you a reminder 24 hours before the event.

See you there!

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Email Delivery Notes

Timing: Emails are sent within a few minutes of form submission (not instant, but very fast) From address: Emails are sent from your organization’s outgoing email address on behalf of your organization (Please reach out to support to ensure your email addres is configured correctly) Reply-to: The reply-to address is set to your organization’s email (if configured) Testing: Always submit a test form before launching to verify emails are sent and formatted correctly

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Best Practices

Always send submitter confirmation: Builds trust and provides transparency Keep emails brief: Most people skim emails on their phones Set clear expectations: Tell people what happens next and when Test thoroughly: Submit test forms and check that emails are received and formatted correctly Use personalization wisely: Merge fields are great, but don’t overdo it Consider mobile: Many people will read these emails on their phones Proofread carefully: Emails go out automatically—typos affect many people Include contact information: Give people a way to ask questions or get help

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Next Steps