> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://wiki.beabee.io/community-journalismus/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://wiki.beabee.io/community-journalismus/english/community-centred-methods/community-engagement-through-surveys/general-tips-for-surveys.md).

# General Tips for Surveys

No matter what topic you survey your community about, there are some basic guidelines to keep in mind for every survey. Here are the most important tips:

**As long as necessary, as short as possible:** Surveys should always be kept as short as possible. With each additional question, the risk of participants dropping out increases. Editorial teams should therefore carefully consider in advance what they really want to know and which questions will best achieve their goal.

**Open text fields provide more valuable answers but are more time-consuming to analyze:** Giving people the space to express themselves freely often leads to surprising insights. Participants sometimes write entire essays. While analyzing these responses requires significant time and resources, it is usually worth it. A tip for analysis: precede open text fields with closed questions. This allows categories to be formed first before the open responses are analyzed in detail. Nonetheless, editorial teams should only use open surveys if they have the necessary capacity to analyze the results.

**Who asks, must also listen:** Surveys should never become an end in themselves. Conducting a survey is a deal with participants: they speak, and you listen. From the participants’ perspective, there is nothing worse than spending their time, possibly sharing personal experiences or even hardships, and nothing happens. For example, because the editorial team doesn’t have time to analyze the responses or changes its mind. Sometimes answers may even contradict other research results or differ completely from expectations. Editorial teams should be prepared to be surprised by their community.

**Engagement doesn’t end with analysis:** Even if editorial teams analyze responses and incorporate them into research or their work, the process is often forgotten when it comes to communicating back to participants. When designing the survey, it is therefore advisable to consider: How can participants continue to be involved after the analysis? How can I transparently communicate the survey results and their impact? And how can I acknowledge participants for their contribution? Engagement is a cycle that does not end after analyzing a survey. Your community should feel: *“If I participate, I make a difference.”* This sense of self-efficacy only arises when you show and communicate what has changed as a result of the survey.

**Survey culture needs to be established:** Surveys are not automatic successes, especially at the beginning. Many people are not used to being approached this way by journalists. Editorial teams should not give up if initial response rates are low.

***

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