How to Use Custom Fields

This article will show you how to create and use custom fields to collect and organize family data in your Enrollio account. Custom fields let you tailor forms, automations, and contact records to match your childcare center's unique needs — like tracking sibling information, dietary restrictions, or tour preferences.

Table of Contents

• What are Custom Fields?
• Key Benefits of Custom Fields
• Parent vs. Enrollment Opportunity Custom Fields
• Organizing Custom Fields with Folders
• How to Set Up Custom Fields
• Frequently Asked Questions

What are Custom Fields?

Custom fields let you store additional information about families or enrollment opportunities beyond the default fields (like name, phone, email). You can use them in forms, surveys, automations, and enrollment pipelines to collect and reference key data specific to your childcare business.

For example, you might track preferred start dates, child age ranges, dietary restrictions, or how families heard about your center.

Key Benefits of Custom Fields

Custom fields give you flexibility in data collection, segmentation, and automation:

• Collect custom data: Capture childcare-specific info like child's age, preferred classroom, allergy information, or tour preferences.
• Use across tools: Deploy custom fields in forms, surveys, automations, and enrollment pipelines for full coverage.
• Personalize automations: Merge field values into text messages, emails, or internal notifications for tailored messaging to families.
• Segment families easily: Create Smart Lists or filter automations based on custom field data.
• Stay organized: Group related fields under folders to keep parent and enrollment records tidy.
• Display critical info: Show key custom field values directly on enrollment opportunity cards or in notifications.

Parent vs. Enrollment Opportunity Custom Fields

Choosing the right type of custom field is essential for keeping your data organized and functional. In Enrollio, you can create two types of custom fields: Parent custom fields and Enrollment Opportunity custom fields.

Parent Custom Fields

Parent custom fields are attached to the individual family contact. Use them to store personal details like number of children, preferred contact method, tour date, or referral source.

These fields appear in the parent record and can be used in forms, surveys, automations, Smart Lists, and message personalization using merge fields.

Enrollment Opportunity Custom Fields

Enrollment opportunity custom fields are linked to a specific enrollment in progress. Use them to capture enrollment-specific information such as preferred start date, classroom preference, enrollment status, or tuition tier.

These fields appear only within the enrollment opportunity record and are used in enrollment pipeline views, opportunity-based automations, and enrollment-level reporting.

Important: Once a field is created as either a parent or enrollment opportunity field, it cannot be switched. Choose carefully when setting up your fields.

Organizing Custom Fields with Folders

Organizing your fields keeps your data tidy and easier to use inside parent and enrollment records. Folders (also called groups) appear as sections in your contact records.

You can move fields between folders using bulk actions. Create groups in Settings → Custom Fields → + Add Folder.

How to Set Up Custom Fields

Follow these steps to create and organize custom fields in your account:

Step 1: Navigate to Settings → Custom Fields

Click on Settings from the left menu, then scroll down and click Custom Fields. This is where you can view existing fields and create new ones for Parents or Enrollment Opportunities.

Step 2: Click Add Field

On the top-right of the Custom Fields screen, click the Add Field button to start creating a new custom field.

Step 3: Select an Input Type and Object

Select the field type you want to create — such as Text, Dropdown, Radio, Date, etc.

Then under the Object dropdown:

• Choose Parent/Family if the field should appear in parent profiles
• Choose Enrollment Opportunity if the field should appear in enrollment opportunities only

Step 4: Fill in Custom Field Details

Enter the Field Name, select a Group (or create a new one), and add Option Names and Values if applicable (e.g., for dropdowns or radio buttons).

Pro Tip: The Prefill Value option lets you define a default value that automatically appears whenever that field is used in forms and surveys unless it's manually changed.

Example: If you set the Prefill Value of a custom field like "Tour Time Preference" to "Morning", it will appear as the default wherever the field is used, but families can change it if needed.

Step 5: Save and Verify Placement

Click Save to create the custom field.

• For Parent Custom Fields, go to a parent record to see the new field
• For Enrollment Opportunity Custom Fields, go to an enrollment opportunity card to see the field under "Opportunity Details"

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I convert a parent field into an enrollment opportunity field (or vice versa)?

No. You must recreate the field under the correct object type. Field objects cannot be changed after creation.

What types of fields can I create?

You can create Short Text, Long Text, Dropdowns, Date Pickers, Phone, Email, Radio Selects, Checkbox Groups, URLs, and more.

Why don't my fields show in a form or automation?

Ensure the object type matches the use case. Only Parent fields appear in forms and parent-based automations.

How many options can the Dropdown (multiple) custom field have?

The Dropdown (multiple) field can have many options (50+) so there is no practical limit.

Related Articles

• How to Use Custom Fields for Enrollment Opportunities
• Quickly Add and Edit Custom Fields in Forms and Surveys
• Automation Action – Update Parent Field
• Customize Enrollment Opportunity Cards in Board View
• Overview of Merge Fields & Custom Variables