The more feedback you can get from your customers, the better you can tailor your products, your sales page, and your customer service. A survey is one of the best ways to reach out to your buyers.
The Value of Surveys
Surveys let you ask targeted questions of your customers. Wouldn't it help to know, not guess, the answers to questions like these:
- Why did you click this link, and not the other three on the page?
- Why did you buy this size instead of the other two we offer?
- Why didn't you create an account as the last step of the ecommerce process?
- Why are you using the product less often than you used to?
With advanced online survey software, they are easy to set up and send to a precise demographic. The reporting features make it simple to analyze responses. They are flexible: you can make it long or short and send different versions to each segment of your list.
Both long and short surveys have benefits but must be used correctly, depending on the results you are looking for. Here is an overview of each.
Long Surveys
Long is actually a misnomer. For many market research needs, experts recommend that you make your survey at most 5 to 10 questions in length. Your visitors oftentimes won't finish one that takes 20 minutes to fill out.
Experts say that if a survey takes more than 7 or 8 minutes to finish, the number of responders who will abandon it before they finish shows a sharp increase.
Be sure that your survey takes up no more than a single screen that doesn't require scrolling. If it's longer, visitors may choose to pass.
Make the topic interesting to your visitors, not just to you. If it is pertinent to their buying needs or experience, customers are much more inclined to fill out a survey. It makes them feel their opinions count.
Ask at least a few open-ended questions. This doesn't restrict the answers like multiple choice or rating scales do. You can get surprising, and valuable, answers with these questions.
Put in essential questions and remove any that aren't integral to your survey purpose. And every survey should have just one purpose. If it gets complicated, the survey will be too long and the results will be difficult to analyze.
If you are having trouble with how to word your long survey, feedback survey software is extremely helpful.
Short Surveys
These are what look like fillers on your webpage. Sometimes they are put up as a way to engage and entertain your visitors, using questions about celebrities or a current event. But they can also be used to provide useful information about surfing and buying habits.
Include just one or two questions in this type of survey. No open-ended questions this time. Instead make them very specific. Multiple choice is an excellent way to word this type of survey, though you can include a box at the bottom for further comment. Make the topic completely relevant to what they see on your webpage.
Surveys, long or short, are one of the most effective methods you have to finding out what your visitors and customers like or dislike about your website. Using an online survey tool makes this a simple, inexpensive and targeted method for getting precise feedback from your audience.
|