Automating a PDF form in Fidu is a powerful way to streamline document generation for your clients. Here’s how to set it up using the Self-Serve Document feature.
Step 1: Start with a PDF Form
Make sure you have a fillable PDF form ready—this will serve as the foundation for automation. Court forms or frequently used templates are a great place to start.
Step 2: Create a New Self-Serve Document
Navigate to Productize in your dashboard.
Click New, then select Self-Serve Document.
Upload your fillable PDF and give the document a name (e.g., Petition).
Self-Serve Documents are designed for clients to generate their own completed forms—perfect for hands-off, client-led automation.
Need internal review before anything goes out? Use the Approved Document option instead.
Step 3: Choose the PDF Document Type
Tell Fidu to use a PDF instead of a text-based document:
Open the Settings tab
Choose PDF document type
Step 3: Add Your Questions
Build out the intake form by adding questions that map directly to your PDF fields:
Text fields
Multiple choice
Date pickers
Any logic you need
Each question you add will correspond to a field on your PDF, making it easy for Fidu to autofill the document based on client responses.
Step 4: Map Questions to the PDF
After creating your form:
Open the PDF Mapping tab.
Click on a field in the PDF preview and assign it to the relevant question from your form.
You’ll see a list of all the available questions—just match each one to its spot in the PDF. You can test as you go to ensure everything aligns correctly.
Step 5: Deliver your Document
Once your self-serve document is ready and mapped, it's time to deliver the document to a client! You can deliver a document through a Project or a Page.
To add the document to a page:
Go to the Systematize section.
Create or open a Page.
Use Add to pull in the document you just created.
Now, your client will see the PDF form directly on their page, ready to complete and generate.
Step 6: Test the Client Experience
It's important to test your client experience. When your client opens the Page:
They’ll walk through the intake questions you created.
Once submitted, Fidu generates a completed, ready-to-use PDF.
They can download, save it—without needing you to lift a finger.
Want to make changes later? No problem. Just update the self-serve document or the page it’s linked to—your clients will always see the latest version.