Xigaware

For any business that wants to offer products or services that are highly focused and well targeted market research is important. Business decisions based on good market research can help minimise any risk and should pay dividends in the longer term. By making market research part and parcel of the business process and conducting market research throughout the life cycle of a product or service market research will bring the following benefits:-

• Market research will help you better communicate – Your current customers experiences are a valuable information source, not only will they allow you to gauge how well you currently meet their expectations they can also tell you where you are getting things right and more importantly where you are getting things wrong. By consulting with the customer you not only show them that you care you also take the guesswork out of customer services.
• Market research helps you identify opportunities – If a new service is planned and you want to know the attitudes people have then market research can help, not only by evaluating the potential for the new idea, but also by identify the areas where a marketing message needs to be fine tuned.
• Market research will minimise risk – Market research can help shape a new product or service, identifying what is needed and ensure that the development of a product is highly focused towards demand.
• Market research creates benchmarks and helps you measure your progress – Unless you measure you may not be able to gauge how well your business is performing. Preliminary research may be able to identify problems in the service you intend to offer or in your product, regular market research will show if progress is being made and, if positive, will help motivate a team.

Market research brings considerable benefits and it is perhaps surprising how few organizations invest sufficient resources to enable them to gather good intelligence that will help them improve their business. Many may think that market research takes too much time and effort but that is just not the case anymore as through the power of the Internet online survey software is readily available and vital market research data can now be gathered in a quick, simple and cost effective manner.

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Customers are tough. They’re extremely media aware and increasingly cynical – it’s a clever marketeer who can get under their skin. Online surveys breath new life into the traditional survey format and offer a unique way of interaction – providing you with all the benefits of the Internet without the programming. Here are ten reasons why they may be the silver bullet marketeers’ need, complete with examples supplied by Martin Day, managing director of Survey Galaxy – one of a new breed of websites making online surveys quicker and cheaper

1. It’s cheap, it’s cheerful
Select the right survey website and creating surveys can be free of any charge and the cost to publish very reasonable.
Useful information derived from survey analysis can be reused and repackaged in other marketing and PR for use in press outlets making it a very efficient form of information gathering.

2. It’s extremely easy
Anyone can create and publish an online survey. Survey sites allow people who are interested in the benefits of surveys, rather than technicalities, to side-step the required programming skills and create relevant up-to-the-minute surveys, instantly – surveys that are even easier to complete than they are to make.

3. Invite the world
Once the survey is online it is a simple step to promote it the most popular methods being either through email (with a link enclosed) or via a link from a website. Once advised of the survey’s URL anyone can link can to the survey at a time that is convenient to them, 24×7.

4. We have all got an opinion – and we like to give it
The majority of customers do not view surveys as spam and will welcome the opportunity to voice their opinion and have the chance to make an impact on a brand. Online survey’s are an ideal way for broaching sensitive subjects with concerned employees; a survey asking a workforce on their opinion of change allows the key issues to be raised in a positive manner and encourages employee participation. Online surveys ensures that the message reaches each individual and the feedback is compiled in a manageable form.

5. Get inside their heads
You can lead a customer to an advertisement but you can’t make them read it. Surveys have the advantage of engaging each respondent, who thinks about the question before giving their response.

6. Building relationships
It needn’t all end at the end of the survey – while you have the respondent’s attention and they are in the mood you can ask if they want to sign up for more information or a regular newsletter – making the most of the window of opportunity where you have their interest.

7. Link your survey to other online information
Take the opportunity to maximise the interest of those responding to your survey by referencing related information. By embedding links within the survey to other websites that offer more detailed information you are able to reinforce the marketing message.

8. The soft sell
Surveys can be used to associate a product with positive attributes. By listing the many features of a product and then asking the respondent to say how important the features are to them, regardless of their response, the respondent will associate the product with the features.

9. It’s not just about selling
A survey is an effective, quick and easy method to help promote and gain acceptance for a difficult proposal; such as a public body trying to gain acceptance and support for a particular scheme.
For example take a city trying to gain support from the general public for their bid to host a future Olympic Games. With a survey you have the opportunity to explain each benefit putting the respondent in a much better frame of mind to appreciate an argument and be more positive in their response. Not only do you promote the cause but you also gain useful feedback that can be used to fine tune the overall marketing strategy.

10. Fresh topics engage interest
By thinking laterally a lively and imaginative approach to surveys could provide a ‘hook’ to engage respondents. The survey subject can be targeted towards a particular group on a subject close to theirs hearts. The survey’s marketing message can take the form of a simple brand awareness message by stating that ‘the survey is being sponsored by brand name’, or by finding a link from the subject matter to the product – something that is surprisingly easy to do and that is highly effective.

Attract more people to your website by providing a Public Survey section as many people who enjoy completing crosswords and doing word puzzles enjoy completing questionnaires. Low cost and automated, having a public survey notice board as part of a website will help increase traffic and establish a loyal and returning following. No need for moderators as unlike discussion boards there is no opportunity for people to disrupt the site by inappropriate remarks as the survey results can be displayed in summary form.

Customers do not often view surveys as spam and the majority welcome the opportunity to voice their opinion and the chance to have an impact on a brand.

Many of the techniques and a few more are contained in the following Sample Marketing Survey.

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How to create a survey using Survey Galaxy

Writing surveys is easy; or is it? The truth is that creating surveys is easy but creating effective surveys is more difficult. The following are twenty tips that if followed will help you with your survey questionnaire design and help you write effective surveys.

1. What is the survey’s purpose?

Surveys and questionnaires are conducted for many reasons. By correctly phrasing the questions and structuring the answers surveys can be used in a multitude of ways and for a variety of reasons. When compiling a survey don’t lose sight of the survey’s purpose.

2. Give the survey a good title

The survey title represents an opportunity to instantly summarise a survey’s objective and encourage respondents to participate. Respondents need to invest time in completing the survey so you need to encourage them that their investment will be worthwhile.

3. Don’t make the survey any longer than it needs to be

Every question asked should be asked for a reason. Focus on ‘need to know’ questions and minimise ‘nice to know’ information.

4. Use plain English, avoid terminology and acronyms, be consistent and don’t ask questions that may result in ambiguous answers

Word the question carefully. If a question is ambiguous then there is a real risk that any analysis of the resulting survey data will be worthless or at the very least suspect.

5. Avoid questions that are long

Where practical use short sentences. Long questions can cause a respondent discomfort and lead to them abandoning the survey.

6. Ask only one question at a time

Avoid confusing the respondent with a question like ‘Do you like athletics and golf?’

7. Avoid influencing the answer

Avoid loading the question. ‘Should irresponsible shop keepers who sell alcohol to children be prosecuted?’ is likely to have no value.

8. Ensure that the selected answer format allows the respondent to answer the question being asked

Ensure that the respondent is able to answer how they really feel or they may abandon the survey. As a last resort consider the benefit of including a “No comment”, “Can’t say”, “Don’t know” or similar response option.

9. When you are compiling your survey consider how the compiled data is going be analysed when the survey is complete

When asking questions that allow for a free text open ended response, such as when asking the respondent for their comments, appreciate that such information is likely to be difficult to score and/or summarised. Consider grouping answers. For example “How long have you worked here?” – ‘less than 1 year’, ‘between 1 and 5 years’ and ‘more than 5′.

10. Try and ensure that the questionnaire flows

Group the questions into clear categories as this makes the task of completing the survey easier for the participants.

11. Target your respondents carefully

You may want to target a specific group, in others a cross section. If you can’t easily control the respondents consider including questions/answers that will allow you to filter out respondents who don’t fit your target profile.

12. Allow the respondent to expand on their answer or make comments

Allowing respondents to make additional comments will increase their satisfaction level and will also give valuable feedback on the specific questions and/or the survey as a whole. Keep in mind though that for a large sample collection it may be difficult to analyse free text open ended responses.

13. If you are conducting a confidential survey ensure that your pledge for confidentiality is honoured

If you have guaranteed the respondents that the survey is confidential ensure that the individual data is not to be shared with anyone and the information is not going to be used for any other purpose. Confidentiality must be maintained and any contact information deleted after the survey is complete.

14. Consider the benefits and disadvantages of allowing respondents to be anonymous or identifiable

If your respondents are to be anonymous then appreciate that you will be unable to follow up or match “pre” or “post” surveys. There are advantages to allowing respondents to remain anonymous for example it would allow respondents to respond without possible peer pressure.

15. Give careful consideration to the best response format

It is good practice to maintain a consistency in the format used for responses. Keep in mind that when analysing the data radio buttons are easier to analyse than check boxes that offer the respondent multiple responses. If a radio response format can be used do not use a check box format.

16. Inform the respondent as to how much time the survey will take to complete

Respondent drop out can become a problem if the survey appears to be a stream of never ending questions. It is good practice to give an indication as to how long the survey is likely to take so that the participants can determine the best time to complete the survey.

17. Inform respondents of the survey end date

Encourage respondents to complete the survey as soon as possible but advise respondents as to the survey’s end date so that they have the opportunity to schedule the necessary time.

18. Test the survey

Before publishing a live survey publish a pilot survey to check for questions that are ambiguous or confusing and to confirm that the survey is aesthetically pleasing.

19. Before publishing the survey check the survey several times

Check more than once that the survey is grammatically correct and makes sense. If possible ask a colleague to check the survey before you publish, if you are unable to do this then take a break before checking again.

20. Thank the respondent

To complete surveys respondents have to devote their time and should be thanked either in a covering letter, at the end of completing the survey or in a follow up letter. You may even want to provide an incentive such as entry into a prize draw or a reward.

Getting started is easy and there are many survey software websites to choose from.

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Public transport operators who already use passenger surveys may not fully appreciate the multiple benefits that surveys can bring. Gathering market research is only one use for surveys, a second is the ability to measure the effectiveness of new initiatives as they are introduced and a third is to help promote the new initiatives to the customers.

Establishing a Starting Point

When embarking on any change management programme it is always good practice to establish a base line before any changes are made. This baseline survey can serve four purposes, it will:-

• allow the proper targeting of investment
• allow measurement of the effect of change
• assist in the moral of those implementing change
• ensure that new issues are kept separate from the original plan and budget

Targeting Investment

There are many areas of any public transport system that can cause passenger dissatisfaction all of which need to be monitored to ensure that the service being provided meets, and where possible, exceeds, performance level targets.

Issues that can be of concern to passenger include:-

• safety and security
• punctuality
• fares and ticket types
• capacity and overcrowding
• quality and design of vehicle
• cleanliness
• facilities at stations and terminals
• facilities for passengers with disabilities

Often limited resources and budgets means that investment needs to be carefully planned and properly targeted.

Operators can use passenger surveys to canvas their customers to see what the main concerns people have. Through the analysis of passenger feedback the operator will be able to ensure that their improvement and investment plans are in line with passenger demands and concerns. Issues can be classified by priority and if they can be addressed in the short or long terms.

Some capital investment such as the building of new terminals, runways, laying new track or upgrading air traffic control or rail signalling equipment may take years to implement. However, the initial survey is also likely to identify some high profile areas where solutions can be implemented almost immediately and at an affordable cost.

Measuring Change

From having established a comprehensive programme from an initial survey the objectives for running periodic surveys are twofold.

One aim will be to check that passenger concerns have been properly addressed by any of the changes and initiatives that have been implemented. A second objective will be to promote and advertise the initiatives that have been implemented and also inform and educate passengers of ongoing improvements and future plans.

Passengers may be more positive if they can see that improvements have been made and more accepting of outstanding problems if they know that problems have been recognised and are in the process of being addressed.

Keeping Moral

Those implementing change can often develop a siege mentality. It can take time for any change to take effect and for the passengers to appreciate any improvement.

By canvassing passenger opinion and measuring the results against earlier surveys a successful change programme should see passenger issues change over time, some issues that were problems will no longer be raised.

Passengers who are suffering can be very impatient that improvements are not instant and their negativity can cause those tasked with implementing change to become demoralised. It is important that a team implementing change can see clearly the effects of their efforts.

Identifying New and Old

In any long term change management programme issues can change over time. Priorities can change instantly so that due to an event what may have been important, is no longer important and what wasn’t an issue, suddenly becomes an issue.

A baseline survey will help ensure that the passengers concerns are documented chronologically. The needs of passengers is in constant flux, individual requirements change, low cost budget carriers now compete directly with luxury travel and even from the same sets of people there is a clear demand for both depending on whether their travel is for business or pleasure. With surveys run on a regular basis any changes in passenger attitudes can be easily monitored.

Online Surveys Make It Easy

Online surveys can reach a broad cross section of any travelling public. They are quick to design and implement and they provide feedback in a format that is ready for detailed analysis. The low cost and flexibility of online surveys allows passenger concern to be targeted at specific groups and particular concerns.

Online surveys provide operators with important market research data as well as a platform to promote and advertise their commitment to passenger satisfaction.

Passengers benefit by having a forum to raise issues and through regular surveys will begin to appreciate that their concerns are acknowledged and the operator is committed to investing and improving the service. The following are links to samples of Passenger Surveys

Sample Passenger Survey for an Airline Carrier: Airline Passenger Survey

Passenger Survey for a Train Operator: Train Operator Passenger Survey

Sample Passenger Survey for a Bus Operator: Bus Operator Passenger Survey

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Those public transport operators who already use passenger surveys may not fully appreciate the multiple benefits that surveys can bring. Surveys provide an efficient method for conducting market research that will then help identify passenger dissatisfaction and they are also an ideal tool for measuring the effects of any improvements that have been implemented and can help promote the new initiatives.

Establishing a Starting Point

When embarking on any change management programme it is always good practice to establish a base line before any changes are made. This baseline survey can serve four purposes, it will:-

• allow the proper targeting of investment
• allow measurement of the effect of change
• assist in the moral of those implementing change
• ensure that new issues are kept separate from the original plan and budget

Targeting Investment

There are many areas of any public transport system that can cause passenger dissatisfaction all of which need to be monitored to ensure that the service being provided meets, and where possible, exceeds, performance level targets.

Issues that can be of concern to passenger include:-

• safety and security
• punctuality
• fares and ticket types
• capacity and overcrowding
• quality and design of vehicle
• cleanliness
• facilities at stations and terminals
• facilities for passengers with disabilities

Often limited resources and budgets means that investment needs to be carefully planned and properly targeted.

Operators can use passenger surveys to confirm what their customers consider as the main issues. By analyzing passenger feedback operators can confirm that their improvement and investment plans are in tune with the passenger demands and concerns. Issues can be classified by priority and if they can be addressed in the short or long terms.

Some capital investment such as the building of new terminals, runways, laying new track or upgrading air traffic control or rail signalling equipment may take years to implement. However, it is also a high possibility that the initial survey may identify some main passenger concerns that can be resolved quick and for minimal cost.

Measuring Change

From having established a comprehensive programme from an initial survey the objectives for running periodic surveys are twofold.

One objective will be to ensure that the changes and initiatives that are implemented have been effective in addressing passenger issues. A second objective will be to promote and advertise the initiatives that have been implemented and also inform and educate passengers of ongoing improvements and future plans.

Passengers can appreciate that it can take time to resolve some of their concerns and will hopefully become more understanding towards the operators if they know that the problems have been identified and are not being ignored.

Keeping Moral

Those implementing change can often develop a siege mentality. Passengers may not immediately notice any improvements as it can take time for any changes made to take effect.

By canvassing passenger opinion and measuring the results against earlier surveys a successful change programme should see passenger issues change over time, some issues that were problems will no longer be raised.

Passengers who are suffering can be very impatient that improvements are not instant and their negativity can cause those tasked with implementing change to become demoralised. It is important that a team implementing change can see clearly the effects of their efforts.

Identifying New and Old

In any long term change management programme issues can change over time. The situation can change instantly so that due to an event what was important, is no longer important and what wasn’t an issue, is suddenly an issue.

The baseline survey will make sure that the passengers concerns are documented chronologically. The needs and attitudes of passengers evolve over time, individual travel requirements change, fashion changes, life styles develop along with technology. With surveys run regularly any changes in passenger attitudes can be monitored.

Online Surveys Make It Easy

Online surveys can reach a broad cross section of any travelling public. They are quick and easy to design and implement and they provide feedback in a format that is ready for detailed analysis. Being low cost and flexibility online surveys allows the operator to target specific groups of passengers ensuring that their specific concerns are properly understood.

Online passenger surveys will make it easy to collate important market research data and will also allow an operator to demonstrate that they have a genuine commitment towards improving levels of passenger satisfaction.

Passengers benefit by having a forum to raise issues and through regular surveys will begin to appreciate that their concerns are acknowledged and the operator is committed to investing and improving the service. The following are links to samples of Passenger Surveys

Sample Passenger Survey for an Airline Carrier: Airline Passenger Survey

Passenger Survey for a Train Operator: Train Operator Passenger Survey

Sample Passenger Survey for a Bus Operator: Bus Operator Passenger Survey

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How to create a survey using Survey Galaxy

Designing surveys is easy; or is it? The truth is that writing surveys is easy but writing surveys that will be effective is a little bit more difficult. The following are twenty tips that if followed will help you write more effective surveys.

1. What is the survey’s purpose?

Questionnaires are conducted for many reasons. By phrasing the questions and structuring the answers surveys can be used in a multitude of ways and for a variety of reasons. When designing a survey do not lose sight of its purpose.

2. Title the survey

The survey title is a golden opportunity to instantly summarise a survey’s objective and encourage respondents to participate. Respondents need to invest time in completing the survey so make them feel that their investment is worthwhile.

3. Ensure that you do not make the survey any longer than it needs to be

Every question asked should be asked for a reason. Minimize the questions providing you with ‘nice to know’ information and focus instead on the ‘need to know’ questions.

4. Use plain English, maintain consistency and avoid jargon, acronyms and asking questions that could result in ambiguous answers

Word the question carefully. There is every chance that if respondents can interpret any question that is not clearly written differently to that intended by the survey’s publisher then any analysis of the survey results may be worthless or at the very least misleading.

5. Avoid long questions

Where practical use succinct sentences. Long questions tend to cause respondents discomfort and can lead to respondents abandoning a survey.

6. Ask one question at a time

Avoid confusing the respondent with a question like ‘Do you like tennis and athletics?’

7. Don’t influence the answer

It is important to avoid loading the question. ‘Should irresponsible shop keepers who sell cigarettes to minors be prosecuted?’ is likely to have no value.

8. Ensure that the chosen answer format allows the respondent to answer the question being asked

Allow the respondent to answer how they really feel or they may be inclined to abandon the survey. As a last resort consider the benefit of including a “No comment”, “Don’t know” or similar response option.

9. While you are compiling your survey consider how the survey results are going to be analysed when the survey is complete

Appreciate that questions that allow for a free text open ended response, such as when asking the respondent for their comments, is likely to be difficult to score and/or summarised. Consider grouping answers. For example “Indicate your length of service?” – ‘less than 3 year’, ‘between 3 and 5 years’ and ‘more than 5′.

10. Ensure that the questionnaire flows

Group the questions into clear categories as this makes the task of completing the survey easier for the participants.

11. Target your respondents

In some cases you will want to target a specific group, in others a cross section. If you can’t easily control the respondents consider including questions/answers that will allow you to filter out respondents that don’t match your target profile.

12. Allow the respondent to expand on their answer or make comments

By allowing respondents to make additional comments you will increase their satisfaction level and the comments will also give valuable feedback on the specific questions and/or the survey as a whole. Remember that for large sample collections that free text open ended responses may be difficult to analyze.

13. If the survey you are conducting is to be confidential ensure that you honour your pledge

If you have assured respondents that the survey is to be confidential you need to ensure that the collated data is not shared with anyone or used for any other purpose. Confidentiality must be maintained at all times and any identifying information destroyed once the survey has finished.

14. Consider the benefits and disadvantages of allowing respondents to be anonymous or identifiable

If your respondents are to be anonymous then appreciate that you will be unable to follow up or match “pre” or “post” surveys. However in some cases allowing respondents to remain anonymous will allow respondents to respond without possible peer pressure.

15. Consideration carefully the best response format

Being consistent with the format used for responses is good practice. When designing your survey keep in mind that when analyzing the data radio buttons are easier to analyze than check boxes that offer the respondent multiple responses. If a radio response format can be used do not use a check box format.

16. Advise the respondent as to how much time the survey will take to complete

If the survey appears to be a stream of never ending questions then respondent drop can increase. It is good practice to give an indication as to how long the survey is likely to take so that the participants can choose the best time to complete the survey.

17. Inform the respondents of the survey end date

Try and encourage your invited respondents to complete the survey as soon as possible but advise the respondents of the survey’s end date so that they have the opportunity to schedule the necessary time.

18. Trial the survey

Before publishing a live survey publish a pilot survey to check for questions that are ambiguous or confusing and to confirm that the survey is aesthetically pleasing.

19. Before publishing the survey check the survey several times

Carefully check and then check again that the survey is grammatically correct and makes sense. If practical get someone else to proof read the survey before you publish, if no one else is available then take a break before checking again.

20. Thank your respondents

To complete surveys respondents will need to invest their time and therefore should be thanked either at the end of completing the survey or in a follow up letter. You may even want to consider an incentive such as a reward or entry into a prize draw.

For more information please visit Survey Galaxy

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Your customers are tough and demanding. They’re extremely media aware and increasingly cynical – it’s a clever marketeer who can get through to them. Online surveys reinvent the traditional format and offer a unique way of interaction – all the benefits of the internet without the programming. Here are ten reasons why they may be the silver bullet marketeers’ need, complete with examples supplied by Martin Day, managing director of Survey Galaxy – one of a new breed of websites making online surveys quicker and cheaper

1. It’s cheap and cheerful
Select the right survey website and creating surveys can be free of any charge and the cost to publish very reasonable.
Useful information derived from survey analysis can be reused and repackaged in other marketing and PR for use in press outlets making it a very efficient form of information gathering.

2. It’s very easy
Anyone can create and design an online survey. Online surveys are quick and simple to create and design, no programming skills are required and when publishing completing the surveys is straight forward.

3. Deployment options
Once the survey is online it’s a simple step to promote it, either through email (with a link enclosed), via a link from a website or referenced by other forms of advertising. Once advised of the survey’s URL anyone can link can to the survey at a time that is convenient to them, 24×7.

4. We’ve all got an opinion – and we like to give it
Customers do not often view surveys as spam and the majority welcome the opportunity to voice their opinion and the chance to have an impact on a brand. They can be particularly good for change management projects; a survey asking a workforce on their opinion of change allows the key issues to be raised in a positive manner and encourages employee participation. Deliver a message to individuals and then have the feedback collated in a manageable form.

5. Get inside their heads
With traditional advertising you can lead a customer to an advertisement but you can’t make them think. Surveys actively engage the respondent, who think about the question before giving their response.

6. Building relationships
It needn’t all end once a survey has been completed – while you have their attention you can ask if they want to sign up for more information or a regular newsletter – making the most of the window when you have their interest.

7. Have you also seen….
Maximise the interest of those responding to your survey by referencing related information. By including links within the survey to websites that offer detailed information you are able to reinforce the marketing message.

8. Subtle marketing
Surveys can help associate, in the mind of the respondents, a product with a number of positive attributes. By listing the many features of a product and asking the respondent how important they are, regardless of their response, the product will be associated with the features; if they are rated as important the positive impact is endorsed by the customer.

9. Not just selling
A survey is an effective, quick and easy method to promote and gain acceptance for a difficult proposal; maybe a public body trying to gain acceptance and support for a particular scheme.
For example take a city trying to gain support from the general public for their bid to host a future Olympic Games. Being able to explain each benefit will put a respondent in a much better position to appreciate your argument and that may be enough to combat any negative aspects. Unlike other forms of marketing as well as promoting a cause, useful feedback can be gained that can then be used to fine tune the overall marketing strategy.

10. Engage your target group
Think laterally and a lively and imaginative approach to surveys can provide a ‘hook’ to engage respondents. The survey subject can be focused towards a particular group on a subject close to theirs hearts. The survey’s marketing message can take the form of a simple brand awareness message by stating that ‘this survey was sponsored by brand name’, or by finding a link from the subject matter to the product – something that is surprisingly easy and highly effective.

Attract more people to your website by providing a Public Survey section as many people who enjoy completing crosswords and doing word puzzles enjoy completing questionnaires. Having a public survey notice board as part of a website is a low cost and automated method that helps to increase traffic and establish a loyal and returning following. Unlike discussion boards there is no opportunity for people to disrupt the site by inappropriate remarks as the survey results are displayed in summary form enabling them to dispense with moderators and maintenance.

Customers do not often view surveys as spam and the majority welcome the opportunity to voice their opinion and the chance to have an impact on a brand.

Many of the techniques and a few more are contained in the following Sample Marketing Survey.

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

How to create a survey using Survey Galaxy

Writing surveys is easy; or is it? The truth is that writing surveys is easy but writing surveys that will be effective is a little bit more difficult. The following twenty tips will help you with your survey questionnaire design.

1. What is the survey’s purpose?

There are many reasons for conducting surveys and questionnaires. By correctly phrasing the questions and structuring the answers surveys can be used in a multitude of ways and for a variety of reasons. When designing a survey do not lose sight of its purpose.

2. Give the survey a good title

The survey title is a golden opportunity to instantly summarise a survey’s objective and encourage respondents to participate. Respondents are going to invest time in completing the survey so make them feel that their investment is worthwhile.

3. Do not make the survey any longer than it needs to be

Every question that is asked should be asked for a reason. Minimize the questions providing you with ‘nice to know’ information and focus instead on the ‘need to know’ questions.

4. Use plain English, maintain consistency, avoid jargon and acronyms and don’t ask questions that may result in ambiguous answers

Take care when wording a question. If a question is ambiguous then there is a real risk that any analysis of the resulting survey data will be worthless or at the very least suspect.

5. Avoid long questions

Try to use concise sentences wherever possible. Long questions can cause a respondent to lose concentration and lead to them abandoning the survey.

6. Ask only one question at a time

Avoid confusing the respondent with a question like ‘Do you like athletics and football?’

7. Avoid influencing the answer

It is important not to load the question. ‘Should irresponsible shop keepers who sell tobacco to minors be prosecuted?’ is unlikely to have any value.

8. Ensure that the selected answer format allows the respondent to answer the question being asked

Ensure that the respondent is able to answer how they really feel or they may abandon the survey. As a last resort consider the benefit of including a “Can’t say”, “Don’t know” or similar response option.

9. While you are compiling your survey consider how the compiled data is going be analysed when the survey is complete

When asking questions that allow for a free text open ended response appreciate that such information is likely to be difficult to score and/or summarised. Consider grouping the answers into groups that will match your analysis requirements. For example “Indicate your length of service?” – ‘less than 1 year’, ‘between 1 and 5 years’ and ‘more than 5′.

10. Ensure that the questionnaire flows

Group questions into clear categories as this will make it easier for the participants completing the survey.

11. Target your respondents

Sometimes you will want to target a specific group, in others a cross section. If you can’t easily control the respondents consider including questions/answers that will allow you to filter out respondents that don’t match your target profile.

12. Provide a channel for your respondents to expand on their answers or make comments

Allowing respondents to make additional comments will increase their satisfaction level and the comments will also give valuable feedback on the specific questions and/or the survey as a whole. Remember that for large sample collections that free text open ended responses may be difficult to analyse.

13. If the survey you are conducting is to be confidential ensure that your pledge is upheld

If you have assured the respondents that the survey is confidential ensure that the individual data is not to be shared with anyone and the information is not going to be used for any other purpose. Confidentiality must be maintained at all times and any identifying information destroyed after the survey is complete.

14. Weigh up the benefits of allowing respondents to be anonymous or identifiable

If your respondents are to be anonymous then you will be unable to follow up or match “pre” or “post” surveys. There are advantages to allowing people to remain anonymous for example it would allow people to respond without possible peer pressure.

15. Carefully consider what the best response format will be

Being consistent with the format used for responses is good practice. Keep in mind that when analysing the data radio buttons are easier to analyse than check boxes that offer the respondent multiple responses. Do not use a check box format if a radio response format would do.

16. Inform the respondent as to how much time the survey will take to complete

Respondent drop out can occur if the survey appears to be a stream of never ending questions. It is a good idea to give an indication as to how long the survey is likely to take so the respondents can choose the best time to complete the survey.

17. Inform the respondents of the survey end date

Encourage respondents to complete the survey as soon as possible but advise respondents as to the survey’s end date so that they have the opportunity to schedule the necessary time.

18. Test the survey

Before publishing a live survey publish the survey as a trial to check for questions that are ambiguous or confusing and to ensure that the survey is aesthetically pleasing.

19. Before publishing the survey proof read the survey carefully

Carefully check and then check again that the survey is grammatically correct and makes sense. If practical get someone else to proof read the survey before you publish, if no one else is available then take a break before checking again.

20. Remember to thank the respondent

To complete surveys respondents have to devote their time and should be thanked at the end of completing the survey or in a follow up letter. You may even want to consider incentives such as entry into a prize draw or a reward.

To get started there are numerous survey software websites to choose from.

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How to create a survey using Survey Galaxy

Designing surveys is easy; isn’t it? The reality is that writing surveys is easy but writing effective surveys is more difficult. The following are twenty tips that if followed will help you with your survey questionnaire design and help you write effective surveys.

1. What is the purpose of the survey?

There are many reasons for conducting surveys and questionnaires. By correctly phrasing the questions and structuring the answers surveys can be used in a multitude of ways and for a variety of reasons. When compiling a survey don’t lose sight of the survey’s purpose.

2. Give the survey a good title

The survey title is an opportunity to instantly summarise a survey’s objective and encourage respondents to participate. Respondents are going to invest time in completing the survey so make them feel that their investment is worthwhile.

3. Keep the survey as short as possible

Every question asked should be asked for a reason. Minimize the questions providing you with ‘nice to know’ information and focus instead on the ‘need to know’ questions.

4. Use plain English, avoid terminology and acronyms, be consistent and don’t ask questions that may result in ambiguous answers

Word the question carefully. If a question is unclear then there is every chance that respondents may understand the question differently to that intended by the publisher making any analysis of the data worthless or at the very least suspect.

5. Avoid questions that are long

Where practical use short sentences. Long questions can cause a respondent discomfort and lead to them abandoning the survey.

6. Ask one question at a time

Avoid confusing the respondent with a question like ‘Do you like football and golf?’

7. Don’t influence the answer

It is important to avoid loading the question. ‘Should irresponsible shop keepers who sell cigarettes to minors be prosecuted?’ is unlikely to have any value.

8. Make sure that the answer format used allows the respondent to answer the question being asked

Allow the respondent to answer how they really feel or they may be inclined to abandon the survey. As a last resort consider the benefit of including a “Can’t say”, “Don’t know” or similar response option.

9. While you are compiling your survey consider how the survey results are going to be analysed when the survey is complete

When asking questions that allow for a free text open ended response appreciate that such information is likely to be difficult to score and/or summarised. Consider how answers can be grouped. For example “Indicate your length of service?” – ‘less than 2 year’, ‘between 2 and 5 years’ and ‘more than 5′.

10. Ensure that the questionnaire flows

Group the questions into clear categories as this makes the task of completing the survey easier for the participants.

11. Target your respondents carefully

You may want to target a specific group, in others a cross section. If you can’t control who responds to your survey consider including questions/answers that will allow you to filter out respondents who don’t match your target profile.

12. Allow the respondent to expand or make comments

By allowing respondents to make additional comments you will increase their satisfaction level and the comments will also give valuable feedback on the specific questions and/or the survey as a whole. Remember that for large sample collections it may prove difficult to analyze free text open ended responses.

13. If the survey you are conducting is to be confidential ensure that your pledge is upheld

If you have guaranteed the respondents that the survey is confidential ensure that the individual data is not to be shared with anyone and the information is not going to be used for any other purpose. Confidentiality must be maintained and any contact information deleted after the survey is complete.

14. Weigh up the benefits and disadvantages of allowing respondents to be anonymous or identifiable

If your respondents are to be anonymous then appreciate that you will be unable to follow up or match “pre” or “post” surveys. Allowing respondents to remain anonymous will however allow respondents to respond without possible peer pressure.

15. Give careful consideration to the best response format

Maintaining a consistency in the format used for responses is good practice. When creating your survey keep in mind that when analyzing the data single selection radio buttons are easier to analyze than multiple selection check boxes. If a radio response can be used do not use a check box.

16. Advise the respondent as to how much time the survey will take to complete

If the survey appears to be a stream of never ending questions then respondent drop can increase. It is good practice to give an indication as to how long the survey is likely to take so that the participants can determine the best time to complete the survey.

17. Inform respondents of the survey end date

Encourage your invited respondents to complete the survey as soon as possible but advise the respondents of the survey’s end date so that they have the opportunity to schedule the necessary time.

18. Pilot the survey

Before publishing a live survey publish a pilot survey to check for questions that are ambiguous or confusing and to confirm that the survey is aesthetically pleasing.

19. Before publishing the survey proof read the survey several times

Check more than once that the survey is grammatically correct and makes sense. If possible ask a colleague to check the survey before you publish, if you are unable to do this then take a break before checking again.

20. Thank your respondents

To complete surveys respondents will need to invest their time and therefore should be thanked either at the end of completing the survey or in a follow up letter. You may even want to consider an incentive such as a reward of some sort.

To get started there are numerous survey software websites to choose from.

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One thing we all want to do as webmaster’s is to increase the amount of traffic our sites receives, as traffic is the key to success. If you are serious about making money online then you will know at some point you will have to create a gateway website to boost sales and get more exposure.

Having several sites in one niche will help you get more sales and a higher percentage of the market, gateway sites are smaller sites designed to send you traffic around the clock. You can use gateway sites in several ways, the way that I like to use them is to put a link to all my sites in that niche and promote that gateway page as “top sites” or something similar so it just looks like a resource rather than an advertising page.

The other way to use gateway sites is to create smaller sites based on you main site and cross link it to your order pages. So for example lets say I owned a dog related website/store selling everything to do with dogs from food to toys ect and I have around 20 top keywords for that site. Now we know that promoting a website for 20 terms is allot harder than promoting a site for one term so what I’m going to do is create a smaller website just for dog food and promote one term in the serps. It will be easier to get that site ranked number one for the term dog food rather than promoting my main site along with the 19 other terms, the more terms you promote for a site the harder it will be. Dont get me wrong, you can promote a website for 20+ terms but if your just promoting one page then it will be harder to get it to rank for 20 terms, what allot of people do is create landing pages for each term. If you found this useful then why not read our other posts like: how to get more traffic to your blog.

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