Hidden form fields failing to display correct database values typically occurs because the landing page is not properly associated with the correct database, or the contact's session has not been correctly identified for pre-population.

What causes this

• The landing page is not explicitly associated with the correct database in Site Settings
• Hidden fields are not properly mapped to the intended database fields
• The contact record has no value in the field being referenced — if the field is empty in the database, the hidden field will remain blank
• Pre-population is not enabled, or the contact did not arrive via an Acoustic email link

How to fix it

Option 1: Verify database association and field mapping

1. Go to the landing page's Site Settings tab and open Optional Site Settings. Confirm the site is explicitly associated with your database.
2. Open the form settings and verify that hidden fields are properly mapped to the intended database fields. If fields were added manually to the HTML, click the Update button in the Field Mapping section to sync them with the database.
3. Check the contact record in the database and confirm that the referenced field has a value populated. If the field is empty in the database, the hidden field will remain blank regardless of configuration.

Option 2: Enable pre-population settings

1. Confirm that the Pre-populate setting is enabled for the form.
2. For values to pull from the database, the contact must arrive via an Acoustic email link — which includes a unique encoded recipient ID — or the form must be configured to use a query string. A contact arriving via a direct URL will not have their session identified and fields will not pre-populate.

Note: You do not need to make hidden fields visible for the system to process them. They are designed to process server-side or via query strings while remaining hidden from the end user.

Known limitations

• The Email Address field cannot be a hidden field in Acoustic. It must always be visible to ensure proper form submission and database matching.
• If you are using an External Form Post (externally hosted form), you may need additional JavaScript to capture and populate values into hidden fields from the URL.

Testing tips

When testing hidden field pre-population, always use a Live link from a test email rather than navigating directly to the landing page URL. This ensures the system can associate the session with a database record and populate fields correctly.

If you are seeing outdated values, clear your browser cache or test in an Incognito or Private window before troubleshooting further.