General Tips for Your Feedback Survey

Feedback surveys are not rocket science. Here are a few tips on how to design them:

Length

Keep surveys short. The longer they take, the more participants drop out.

Five minutes or 5 to 10 questions are ideal. Let participants know right at the start how long it will take to complete the survey, and stick to this promise.

Mix question types

Mix open and closed questions. Closed questions, such as yes/no, scales, or multiple choice, are quick to answer and easy to evaluate. They provide precise answers to specific questions. However, to really understand what your community thinks, open questions are crucial. They offer deeper insights into the minds of participants and help you better understand their wishes and preferences.

However, open-ended questions are more difficult to evaluate because they require interpretation. Not everyone can clearly articulate their opinion, and they take longer to complete. As a result, participants tend to drop out when there are too many open-ended questions. Consider which questions should be mandatory. We recommend making a maximum of one or two open text fields mandatory.

Combine quantitative and qualitative elements by offering an optional text field on a scale to explain the selection.

Sensible procedure

Structure your survey logically. Group questions with similar themes together and avoid jumping between topics. Start with simple closed questions before moving on to open text answers.

Address

Adapt the tone of your survey to that of your publication. If you use formal language with your users, do the same in the survey. Explain the benefits of participating: 'Help us shape our offering!' This will motivate many of your valued users.

Transparency

Be transparent about how you will handle the feedback. Explain how long the survey will run and when you will share the results. After evaluating the survey, share your conclusions and any changes you plan to make. If the survey does not go as hoped, be honest. Avoid making participants feel exploited or that their feedback is worthless.