A Free Way to Catch Every Enquiry From Your Posts

People see your posts, like them, and move on. Most of them never come back, and you have no way to reach them again. This guide shows a simple setup that catches those people in a list you own. It uses free tools and takes about 15 minutes.

Paying for tools before you have customers

When I started building online, I paid for a lot of software and courses with money I didn't really have. It felt like progress. It wasn't. I was hiding behind the tools instead of putting my work out there. In the end I cut the subscriptions.

If that sounds like you, you're not alone. That's the tool trap. The way out is smaller than you think: a form, a table and one email. We use Google Forms or Airtable Forms, and an Airtable base on the free plan.

Followers are rented, your list is yours

When you post on Instagram or TikTok, the app decides who sees it. If your account gets locked, those followers are gone. You can't email them or call them.

Your own list is different. Once someone gives you their name and email, you can reach them whenever you need to, on any app or none. We go into this more in why 10k followers mean little without an email list.

In plain words: your "list" is just a table of people who asked to hear from you, with their name, email and what they need help with.

So the job is to give people an easy way to step off the app and onto your list. It goes like this: they see your post, they click the link in your bio, they fill in a short form, and their details land in your table.

Step 1: Make a short form

Keep it short. Most people won't fill in a long form, so don't ask for their phone number or their life story.

Ask only three things:

1. First name, so you can say hello properly.
2. Email address, so you can reach them later.
3. One question about their problem: "What's the biggest thing you're stuck on right now?" Give them three choices, for example:
   • Too many tech tools, not sure where to start.
   • Getting views but no one on an email list.
   • Want someone to build the setup for me.

That last question tells you who needs what, without a long chat.

Step 2: Set up your Airtable base

Make a free Airtable base. Call it something simple, like "My list". Add these columns:

Column	Field type	What it's for
Full Name	Single line text	Who they are
Email	Email	How you reach them
Main Problem	Single select	Their answer from the form
How Ready	Single select	Hot, Warm or Not yet
Date Joined	Created time	When they signed up (fills in by itself)

You can fill in "How Ready" by hand at first. Just read their answer and pick one. It only takes a few seconds each.

Then put the form link in your bio. If you have your own website, you can point a simple page there instead.

Good to know: Airtable Forms writes straight into your table, so there's nothing to connect. If you use Google Forms, the answers go into a Google Sheet first.

Step 3: Send a thank-you email straight away

You don't need Zapier for this. Airtable has free automations built in. Set it up like this:

• When: a new record is created in your table.
• Do: send an email from your connected Gmail.
• Subject: "Here's the guide you asked for, [First Name]"
• Message: a short thank you, plus the thing you promised in your post (a checklist, a template or a Google Doc).

Try this: before you post, sign up through your own form once. Check the row lands in the table and the email reaches your inbox.

Now every person who signs up gets what they asked for within a minute, even if you're busy or away from your desk.

Once it is running

Once this is in place, your days get simpler. You make one honest post. You invite people who want the guide to click the link in your bio. The form catches them, the table keeps them, and the email gives them what you promised.

You don't need a big software bill to do this. What you need is a simple setup and the nerve to press post today. Start with the three questions. You can add more later, once people are coming in. Then the next job is what happens after they sign up.