Vermont Organic Farmers Uses FormAssembly to Set a New Standard for Organic Certification

700

Annual paper applications now processed by web forms

pages of application condensed to ONE online form

web forms in use by VOF

Overview

Vermont Organic Farmers (VOF) relied heavily on paper forms and manual data entry to collect application and certification information for producers looking to obtain or renew organic certification.

The switch to FormAssembly’s web forms helped VOF eliminate outdated paper processes, and trim costs, and cut down on the administrative burden of slow data entry. The ability to connect their clients’ information directly to Salesforce provided a hassle-free way to track the detailed application forms received daily.

Lengthy, paper information gathering process

Challenge

Vermont Organic Farmers was struggling with the volume of lengthy, paper applications forms they were processing. Staff mailed out applications and renewal paperwork for organic certification, producers filled out the same information annually whether it had changed or not, and then the same paperwork was mailed to inspectors for their review.

“There was a lot of printing and trying to keep over 700 paper applications organized, because not everyone fills out the same application. If we needed to look something up, we were rifling through packets of papers.”

“FormAssembly allows us the ability to collect all the information we need to collect for application renewals in a very efficient way, because the data flows directly into Salesforce,”

Katy Lash

Certification Program Assistant

Seamless information collecting for cleaner data

Solution

Lash described the switch to FormAssembly as a culture change within the organization that helped them recognize the potential for further advancement.

Now, the lengthy application and approval processes are faster and easier for applicants and VOF staff. Although not everyone who applies is technologically savvy, prefilled and repeatable sections allow for a simple way to collect information from any client looking to obtain organic certification, instead of what used to be a cumbersome paper process.

Reporting has also been improved because the data is tracked and managed in Salesforce.

“We look forward to working with FormAssembly! There are around 90 certification agencies like ours, working with thousands of organic producers, who are always trying to be more efficient with the paperwork required for verifying organic standards,” Lash shared.

Prefill connector

Prefilled and repeatable sections are a simple way to collect information from any client looking to obtain organic certification, instead of what used to be a cumbersome paper process.

Conditional logic

Forms change intuitively based on what the producer is looking to certify. Questions only appear if they apply to certain producers.

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Attachments

It’s simple for applicants to attach files directly to their application. VOF staff members benefit from the documents going directly to Salesforce, without additional scanning or uploading.

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