A form label tells someone what a field or control is for, such as their email address or departure date. W3C recommends labels that describe the purpose of controls and are properly associated with them. A nearby piece of text is not necessarily connected to the field in the page structure. Source: W3C WAI: labelling form controls

A travel enquiry example

Compare “Date” with “Preferred departure date”. The second label makes the intended answer clearer when a form also asks for a return date. Use wording that matches the customer’s task, then ask the website team to check the underlying association.

For a newsletter checkbox, describe the marketing choice directly. Keep it separate from the enquiry details so the customer can understand both decisions without reading a long paragraph.

Check the complete interaction

Review labels before entering anything, after entering a value and after an error. This helps you catch instructions that disappear at the moment someone needs to correct their answer.

Ask a tester to explain each field without guidance. If they cannot tell what to enter, revise the wording and repeat the test before adding more instructions elsewhere on the page.

Written and updated by Travelgenix. Sources checked on 16 October 2026. Worked examples and checklists are editorial illustrations and recommendations, not customer results.