Surveys, when done properly, can help a business gain real insight into their target audiences, rather than relying on guesses and assumptions. The gathering of this pertinent information can be used to create effective communication campaigns and marketing strategies, making it easier to meet set goals. Any business planning a survey push should first ask themselves how to create an effective survey customers want to engage with.

Many online surveys, despite all efforts in creating optimal questions and targeting appropriate audiences, result in low response rates and high abandon rates.

“Response rates vary widely for different types of surveys. Customer satisfaction surveys and market research surveys often have response rates in the 10% – 30% range. Employee surveys typically have a response rate of 25% – 60%. Regardless of the type of survey you are conducting, you can have a major effect on the number of respondents who complete your survey.” (Source: PeoplePulse)

Here are some tips to improve engagement, enjoyment and interactivity with your online surveys. 

  • Limit the study duration to 10-15 minutes maximum
  • Include a progress bar to show how close respondents are to completion
  • Provide incentives (cash, gift card, product, discounts, badges, etc.)
  • Limit the number of open-ended questions to the most crucial subjects
  • Reword the questions in a way that makes respondents want to answer them (e.g. change: What is your favorite game? to: If you could only play one game for the rest of your life, what would it be?)
  • Include interactive elements whenever possible (e.g. images, graphics, videos, sounds, interactive sliders, star ratings, thumbs up/down, drag & drop, etc.)
  • Encourage Social Media sharing
  • Include photo breaks (e.g. provide visual breaks in between survey sections)

Additionally, online survey gamification can help increase survey response rates. Gamification of surveys not only encourages engagement with respondents, but it’s even been shown to increase the amount of time respondents spend per question, as well as increase response rates. Here are a few suggestion on how to gamify your next survey:

  • Turn demographic questions into a fill-in-the-blank story
  • Add an element of competition to your questions (e.g. list as many types of food as you can in 60 seconds)
  • Include a letter finding game (e.g. Ask respondents to find letters at various stages throughout the survey and unscramble at the end to reveal the answer.)
  • Include an Avatar (e.g. Ask respondents to choose an avatar to customize. The avatar will accompany them throughout the survey.)

A well-structured survey takes time and foresight. Knowing the kind of data you’re hoping to collect is helpful when writing questions. Having a general understanding of the audience who will receive the survey is also very important. According to SurveyGizmo, response rates can soar past 85% (about 43 responses for every 50 invitations sent) when the respondent population is motivated and the survey is well-executed. UX Mastery provides an in-depth look at how to craft a meaningful survey that works.