Saving eForm Leads into the Database

The donor use case was straightforward: eForm already sent notifications by email, but the project also needed lead data stored in the database for later export and admin-side processing.

Why This Is Worth Doing

• Emails can be lost or overlooked.
• Structured lead storage makes exports and handoff easier.
• Operational reporting becomes possible once submissions live in a table.

Implementation Pattern

• Keep eForm responsible for validation and submission flow.
• Add a database write step through a hook or companion snippet.
• Store only the fields the business actually needs, and validate them before persistence.

Even in small projects, database persistence often turns a simple contact form into a usable lead intake tool rather than a fragile email-only channel.