Survey Tips

Top 8 Challenges With Designing Accurate Surveys

Survey Tips

Surveys are an effective way to collect data from your customers. They are helpful in evaluating your offerings and finding ways to make changes for the better.

Yet, some people struggle with survey design and creation and create surveys that aren’t giving them the most accurate results.

To help you learn how to generate the best surveys, we look at the top eight challenges with designing accurate surveys and provide you the solutions you need.

Challenge #1: Missing the Purpose

One of the biggest challenges with designing accurate surveys is knowing the purpose behind it or narrowing it down.

A poor survey will have questions that aren’t related and seemingly have no purpose.

The Solution:

The problem is solved by knowing the purpose of your survey. Before you start creating your survey, you want to ask yourself a few vital questions:

What do I need to know?
Why do I need to know it?
What will I do with my results?

Once you can answer these questions, the purpose of your survey will be clear, and with a clear purpose, more people are likely to complete your survey.

Challenge #2: Using Question Bias

The next thing we look at is the problem of question bias. This means that you are asking questions in such a way that you’ll get the answers you’re looking for.

In other words, you are “prompting” respondents.

For example, a political organization conducts a survey. To influence their results, they ask their questions in carefully crafted ways to elicit the answers they want.

The Solution:

Leading questions not only hurt your survey/poll results, but they also ruin your trustworthiness factor. (tweet this)

The best way to avoid question bias is to take your emotions out of the survey. If you need, have someone else help you craft the questions so they aren’t leading respondents to a specific answer. Or, have others review your survey.

Challenge #3: Measuring Too Many Things

Along with the purpose of your survey, you have to know what you’re measuring and how.

If you don’t know this, you’ll end up measuring too many things or the wrong things, and it will be hard to analyze your data.

The Solution:

Deciding what to measure is in direct correlation to the objectives of your survey.

For example, if you want to learn about how respondents feel about your company and your customer service, you measure the net promoter score.

Know the purpose of your survey, and then decide what you want to measure. Don’t measure too many things at one time. This also helps you manage your data and helps ensure you can take action on your results.

Challenge #4: Using a Biased Selection

Why is selection bias a challenge when designing accurate surveys?

Selection bias is a problem because it shows responses that don’t reflect a representative sample of your population.

While you want a statistically valid sample size, you don’t want one that is too large and irrelevant. If your sample size is too large, the responses you get may not accurately reflect your targeted population.

For example, let’s say you try to survey people in a rural area by sending them an online survey. Your selection is biased because many of those people won’t have an Internet connection.

Or, you want to survey people with children, but you include singles and those without children.

The Solution:

To design an accurate survey and avoid selection bias, you must target a population that fits the goals of your survey.

You don’t want to include, or exclude, the wrong participants, or your data will be skewed.

Define your target population and stick with it. Make sure you have a clearly defined idea of what you want in a respondent. This helps you frame your survey in a more accurate way.

The source of your target group is much more important than the size of your group. A small group of 100 people who match your target will give you better data than 1000 random people who may have no frame of reference for your survey.

A final note – don’t forget to use disqualifying logic to filter out respondents who really aren’t part of your targeted sample population.

Challenge #5: Getting Duplicate Responses

Some people run into the issue of getting duplicate responses.

This skews your survey data because you have the same person completing your survey more than once.

How does this happen? It’s a common occurrence when surveys come with an incentive, and your respondents want more than one of what you’re offering.

Or, they may want to take your survey multiple times to increase their chances of winning your drawing or getting other benefits.

The Solution:

Solve the issue of duplicate responses by using vote protection so respondents can only take your survey one time.

Challenge #6: Creating a Lengthy Survey

When you create a survey that is too long, you have higher dropout rates, and this affects your response rates.

People are more likely to abandon a long, involved survey than one with just a few questions.

The Solution:

The best solution to this problem is to know your purpose and what you want to measure and then craft your questions.

Keep your survey to 10 questions or less. This usually means respondents can complete your survey in less than 10 minutes.

Challenge #7: Mixing Up Your Wording

Surveys with complicated wording are hard for people to complete. It’s also bad form to ask two questions in one.

Both of these issues don’t help you with accurate survey creation.

The Solution:

Be diligent when writing your questions.

For example, don’t ask two questions in one like this: “Do you like our tacos and our fajitas?” Regardless of the answer, you have no idea what they really like.

You also want to write clear, concise and simple questions. If respondents can’t understand your question, they can’t accurately answer it.

Bottom line – stick to one topic per sentence, use short sentences and don’t use technical jargon.

Challenge #8: Using Irrelevant Questions

If you ask irrelevant questions, you can count on an inaccurate survey.

Don’t ask respondents questions you don’t really care about or that have nothing to do with the purpose of your survey.

In addition, don’t include questions that don’t pertain to the respondent.

The Solution:

Avoid asking irrelevant questions by using the following as your guide:

Use question logic for consecutive questions. For example, if you ask a question, and the respondent answers “no,” don’t send them to the question for people who answered “yes.”
Don’t ask questions that move away from your purpose.
You also don’t want to include questions that you don’t intend to take action on.

To Conclude

We’ve looked at the top eight challenges with designing accurate surveys, and now you have our top solutions.

You’ll find that when you put these solutions to practice you end up with more accurate surveys and clean data. This helps you draw accurate conclusions that you can then act on for the betterment of your business.

Surveys help you make the best decisions for your business. Are you ready to get started with your free Survey Town trial? Start with your free account today, and you can upgrade at any time.

Image: Rohit Tandon

How Long Is Too Long? – Keeping Your Survey to A Reasonable Length

Survey Tips

Is there a perfect survey length? How long is too long?

What is the point where respondents drop off? Is less really more?

We look at all of these questions in this article as we discuss keeping your survey to a reasonable length. Here’s how to use the right length to get the most responses.

Only Ask What You Need

Let’s say you want to ask your customers questions about several of your products, how they feel about your customer service and if they’re interested in a new product you’re thinking about launching.

Before you start creating a survey with all of these questions, ask yourself which one of these questions you are prepared to act on in the next few months.

Then, ask about just this one. That’s right, create your survey around one goal.

While you may have several questions in your survey, you want to keep it goal-centered and stick to one topic.

Then, in the future, you can send out a survey about one of your other topics.

By keeping your survey to a reasonable length, you’ll have more responses.

Be Brief

Brevity is a good thing not only in the number of survey questions, but in question length. (tweet this)

People today have a short attention span. If they have to read your question that spans two long sentences, they are more apt to drop out than if the question was one short sentence.

Short and simple is the way to go when crafting your questions.

Watch Out for Repeats

Read and re-read your survey before you send it out. Enlist family and friends to look it over, too.

Make sure you aren’t repeating yourself or asking the same question in different ways. Repeat-questions just increase your length.

Complete the Survey Before Sending

It’s a good idea to test drive your survey before sending.

Create your survey, sit down in front of your computer and pretend you are the respondent. Carefully read and answer each question, thinking about whether it’s really necessary.

Time the survey so you know how long it takes start to finish. Notice if you feel like dropping out before finishing. If so, ask yourself if the survey is too long, or if the question is wordy and confusing.

Be Upfront with People

Since you’ve taken your own survey, you know how long it takes to complete.

If it takes two minutes, tell them. If it takes 15 minutes, you want to let them know. It’s not a good idea to surprise respondents as they begin taking the test.

You can bet that people who think they’re taking a short survey are likely to drop out at the five-minute mark.

Set the expectations upfront. Then watch your response rates. If you find your customers are more likely to complete a four-minute survey than they are a seven-minute survey, plan accordingly in the future.

To Conclude

Short, focused surveys with just one objective tend to get the best response rates.

As you create your questions, do it with the customer in mind. You really want to know what they think, so respect their time and only send specific surveys. After all, you can always send another one at a later date.

Bottom line, your survey should take no longer than five minutes to complete. Time is a precious commodity, and you don’t want to take advantage of it.

This means you want to include less than 10 questions as a general guideline to improve your response rates.

Your customers will appreciate a shorter survey that’s quick to complete, and you’ll experience fewer drop outs.

Another benefit is that when you send additional surveys in the future, your customers know you appreciate their time, so they’ll be more apt to answer surveys down the road as well.

Surveys help you make the best decisions for your business. Are you ready to get started with your free Survey Town trial? Start with your free account today, and you can upgrade at any time.

Image: William Iven

How To Use Uploads As Part Of Your Surveys And Forms

Survey Tips

You’ll find there are many different types of questions to ask in a survey, and they each serve their purpose.

The dichotomous question is generally a “yes/no” question.
Users are encouraged to type their own response in the open-ended question.
The multiple-choice question allows users to pick from a variety of answers.
The rank order and ranking scale questions allow users to rank items.

But, what if you need more information than this?

This is where uploads come in. You can use uploads as part of your surveys and forms.

How to Use Uploads

When you use uploads, you give respondents the ability to attach data that isn’t usually available through the above standard survey questions. (tweet this)

For example, a customer purchases your product, and you want to see it in action so you ask them to upload a photo. Or, perhaps you want respondents to upload a document like a resume. They could also do this with the file upload.

Even better, they can upload documents and photos through the survey on their phones.

Final Thoughts

With the extra feature of being able to use uploads as part of your surveys and forms, you can now collect additional information from respondents.

You make it easy for them to send you information they have in a digital format. This is especially helpful for respondents because they don’t have to type the information into your survey – they can just upload a file.

This survey question type is particularly beneficial when using mobile surveys. Your respondents can simply upload a photo or document from their mobile device to the survey.

It makes it easier for respondents to provide you with information while engaging them in the process.

You’ll find the files easy to access in Survey Town for your review. You now have access to even more data in your survey results.

Surveys help you make the best decisions for your business. Are you ready to get started with your free Survey Town trial? Start with your free account today, and you can upgrade at any time.

Image via Visual Hunt.

7 Ways To Use Survey Data To Better Target Customers

3 Ways To Use Survey Data To Better Target Customers

Survey Tips

Targeting the right customers at the right time is essential to your company’s marketing plan. (tweet this)

To build an effective marketing strategy, you have to know the best ways to reach your customers as well as the right information to provide them.

When you start putting together your marketing plan, you begin by making decisions on who you think your target customers are, and then you put some time into gathering and analyzing their habits. This begins with the survey.

Using a survey to find out more about your target audience is a cost-effective way to change the game plan and increase your business growth.

In this article, we look at three ways to use survey data to better target customers. First, let’s look at why the survey is a good option.

Why Survey Target Customers?

It’s hard to connect with people if you only think you know what they need. There’s no need to guess any longer. Use a survey to effectively connect with your customers.

When you survey your current customers as well as members of your target market, you learn what they need and want. You learn how to better present your products and services.

You also learn where you might be lacking and how to improve.

Survey a large group of people, but stick to those you think might have some interest in what you’re offering. You can then use their data to better target new customers.

Once you know more about your target market, you can go about marketing to them.

Let’s look at a few ways to use survey results to help you further target contacts:

Integrate survey results with email list management
Improve customer retention rates
Incorporate results into your CRM

Email List Management

An added benefit of sending your customers surveys is that you let them know you really care about what they want and what they think.

Once you get your survey results back, you can use that data to segment your email list and send the right info to the right people at the right time.

You can also use the survey data to build better email campaigns. You can make them more specific and relevant to the people on your list.

This means people are more likely to open, read and click through your email campaigns.

When you gather vital data through your surveys and segment your lists, you can highly target your messages to subscribers, providing them the information that benefits them the most. In turn, you see a greater return on your investment.

Customer Retention

You can increase your customer retention rates by analyzing your survey data. Survey them to learn what they like and what they wish you’d do differently.

Here are some ideas to get you started. Survey your customers with these questions to learn where to concentrate your customer retention efforts:

Ask them what they link about discounts. Survey them to find out how big they’d like to see the discounts and how often. Ask them if they’d like a perks program that includes coupons or freebies. Find out if a loyalty rewards program would incentivize them to stick with you.

This takes all the guesswork out of your retention program. You may think you know what they want, but you won’t know for sure until you ask.

Ask them what new products or services they’d like to see. Once you know what their needs are, you can provide them just what they require.

This encourages them to stick with your company and lets them know you care what they need.

Ask them what they think of your service. The fastest way to lose a customer is with bad service. In fact, according to one source, 78% of consumers have bailed on a transaction or not made an intended purchase because of a poor service experience.

Knowing that 12 positive experiences are needed to make up for one unresolved negative experience shows just how important your service is.

You can’t be involved in every transaction, so the only way to know for sure what your customers think is to ask them. Surveys give your customers the opportunity to open up and share their experiences, giving you the chance to improve where needed and increase customer retention rates.

CRM Software Usage

Did you know you can use survey data in tandem with your CRM (Customer Relationship Management)?

How well you use your CRM is completely dependent on how much you know about your customers and your target market.

The more you know, the better the relationships you can create.

Surveys are a great way to maximize the data you use in your CRM to make it really work for your business.

When you combine your survey data with the automated benefits of your CRM, you can use your market research to build sales strategies that work better for your business.

Surveys can help you qualify your leads better because you learn more about what makes your customers tick. You can gather demographic information as well as their interests and needs.

Survey data helps keep your contact information fresh and relevant while helping you further segment your customers for the best in targeted information.

You can also use your survey data to catch any problems before they get worse. You do this by integrating your CRM software with online surveys. This helps you automate feedback to your customers at various touch-points.

Consider surveying them after they purchase, following a customer service call, when they cancel your service or return a product, or when they buy again.

You’ll have a better grasp on your strengths and weaknesses using this survey data to use your CRM better.

You can also send automated replies when customers give you negative survey feedback. Consider an “I’m sorry” message to make your customer feel better.

Final Thoughts

You’ll find there are many ways to use survey data to better target customers.

It can only help jump start your marketing strategy and help fill in the questions you might have about your target audience.

Use your surveys to enhance your email marketing, customer retention efforts and your CRM, and you’ll end up with happier, more engaged customers who truly appreciate your business.

Surveys help you make the best decisions for your business. Are you ready to get started with your free Survey Town trial? Start with your free account today, and you can upgrade at any time.

Images: William Iven

5 Ways To Design A Survey That Users Will Love To Complete

3 Ways To Design A Survey That Users Will Love To Complete

Survey Tips

You’ve probably completed your fair share of surveys, and you’ve most likely ignored an equal amount.

Ask yourself why you completed some and ignored others. Perhaps some interested you while others didn’t. Or, maybe a company offered you a perk for taking the survey.

To help you get your surveys returned and not ignored, we look at five ways to design a survey that users will love to complete.

Let’s look at how to encourage users to complete your survey and not walk away frustrated.

#1: Keep It Short

The best way to design a survey that users will love to complete is to make it short and to the point. (tweet this)

Limit your survey questions, and you reduce your drop off rates.

When it comes to crafting your survey, focus on what you really want to know.

For example, do you want to know how they liked your product, what they thought of your event or how they like your customer service?

While it would be nice to know the answers to all of these questions, and more, you don’t need to know it all at once. Only ask the few questions you are prepared to take action on immediately.

Your survey respondents are doing you a favor, so do them a favor and make your survey easy to finish quickly.

Studies show that the ideal number of questions is less than 12 to prevent customers from abandoning your survey. Try and stick to 3-5 questions for the best results.

It’s also a good idea to test your survey so you know how long it takes to complete. Spell this out for your respondents so they know what to expect.

#2: Don’t Ask Leading Questions

Your customers aren’t naïve. They know when you’re trying to push your agenda, and if they encounter this, they just might abandon your survey.

Craft your questions so that they are neutral. You don’t want to lead respondents to an answer. Consider these three scenarios:

Please rate product X on a scale of one to five.
Tell us what you think about product X. (This asks them to type out why.)
Tell us the reasons why product X is the best on the market. (You provide check boxes of items that show why you think it’s great.)

Scenario number one and two are neutral. Scenario number three obviously leads the customer and just might irritate those who don’t think your product is great.

#3: Limit Your Use of Matrix Questions

Matrix questions are the ones that require respondents to fill in little circles.

Why do these questions make people crazy? Respondents can get confused with these as overdone matrices are complicated and hard to follow.

This also hurts you as your customers may abandon the survey altogether or just choose to make a pretty pattern as they mark your circles.

If you must use a matrix, limit your header options to five so it isn’t so complicated.

Final Thoughts

Now that you know how to design a survey that users will love to complete, let’s look at some final tips for maximizing your responses:

Let your customers know the survey is coming. Tell them why you’re sending it and how you’ll use their results. Tell them the survey is confidential.
Give your respondents time to complete the survey. If sending online, one week’s time is generally sufficient.
Design your survey so it’s easy to read. Make your sections clear and pay attention to the flow from one section or question to another.
Send a reminder during the week-long survey period. Thank those who competed the survey and remind others of the deadline. Consider offering respondents an incentive for participating. It could be an outright perk, or you could enter them in a drawing after they complete your survey.

Finally, if you plan to send more surveys in the future, you want to let your customers know their opinions matter.

Shortly after the survey, send them an email outlining the responses and the actions you are going to take. Thank the participants again.

Follow these steps, and you can bet they’ll be there for you the next time you want to survey them.

Surveys help you make the best decisions for your business. Are you ready to get started with your free Survey Town trial? Start with your free account today, and you can upgrade at any time.

Images: Brooke Cagle

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What Is A Good Net Promoter Score?

Survey Tips

Your Net Promoter Score (NPS) measures the experience customers have with your business. It also predicts your company’s growth potential.

When measuring the customer experience using the NPS, you want to answer the question, “What is a good Net Promoter Score?”

In this article, we dissect that question and provide you with an answer. First, let’s look at how the score is calculated.

The NPS Calculation

Promoters (score 9-10) are loyal enthusiasts that you can expect to keep purchasing from you and referring others which fuels growth.
Passives (score 7-8) are satisfied, but they are not enthusiastic customers. They are vulnerable to your competition.
Detractors (score 0-6) are your unhappy customers who can damage your brand and hinder growth through their negative word-of-mouth.

You subtract the percentage of detractors from the percentage of promoters to get your Net Promoter Score. The top score you can get is 100, and that’s only if everyone is a promoter.

What’s a Good Score?

So, you want to know what your Net Promoter Score should be. While this is a simple enough question, the answer is, “It depends.”

It is widely accepted that a score below 0 means you have work to do, a score of 50 is excellent, and a score of 70 and above is top notch.

It’s also worth noting that any positive score means you have more promoters than detractors. (tweet this)

That being said, your score depends on your industry and the region of the country you live in. It also hinges on your customers – their age and income as well as other demographics. Your NPS is based on how long your customers have been associated with your business.

To really understand your score, compare it to the score of others in your industry. If you are consistently scoring higher than your competitors, you’re doing something right and are set for growth.

Use your research as a benchmark. This helps you gauge the success of the customer experience you provide your customers.

Final Thoughts

The bottom line is that your score should reflect your efforts at the overall customer experience.

If you’re working hard to improve your service and relationship with your customers, it stands to reason that your score will be positive.

If you find you have a negative score, then it’s time to create a customer service strategy.

Surveys help you make the best decisions for your business. Are you ready to get started with your free Survey Town trial? Start with your free account today, and you can upgrade at any time.

Images: Timothy Muza

8 NPS Survey Best Practices

Survey Tips

Net Promoter Score surveys are one of the best ways to gauge customer loyalty and NPS is a straightforward and important metric that can help you propel your business while also learning what you can do to improve your long-term growth. The Net Promoter Score (NPS) survey helps you understand how much your customer values your business because it answers the question, “Are you going to recommend our company to others? And why?”

Sending an NPS survey provides you with the feedback you need to understand where you stand with your customers and how you can improve. As with any KPI you measure, NPS comes with its own set of best practices. In this article, we look at eight of our suggested NPS survey best practices so you can use your score to move your business forward.

#1: Don’t Batch and Blast

You want to plan your NPS survey sends. Sending in one big batch isn’t the best idea because it doesn’t account for your customer’s stage in their relationship with your company.

Consider your NPS surveys like your automated email workflow. Send them at particular stages and according to specific triggers. For example, you might send one after a purchase, two purchases, etc. You’ll experience better insights by sending surveys based on specific triggers and at unique times in your customers’ lifecycle.

#2: Send at the Right Time

You also don’t want to send your surveys too early in your customers’ lifecycle. They need a chance to experience your products or services before they can offer an opinion on your business. If they haven’t spent much time with you, they may not be able to verbalize if and why they might recommend you.

#3: Measure Regularly

To be effective, you want to measure your Net Promoter Score on a regular basis. You might find that the first time you survey your customers isn’t as effective as the second time. Their opinions may have more time to form, and they might even have a chance to change their minds.

We suggest you measure NPS regularly so you can engage customers at different times during their lifecycle with your business.

#4: Use the Feedback

We hope this one is an obvious Net Promoter Score best practice because why measure something if you don’t plan to use the results? The worst thing you can do is measure your Net Promoter Score without sharing and using the feedback. Make sure you take action on the feedback, and that your first step is sharing it with your employees. You want to get buy-in from your employees because they are the front line and providers of the customer service.

Discuss your NPS regularly at team meetings and strategize ways to increase retention and overall company growth. You also want to look at ways to reduce your customer churn rate (the rate at which customers leave your business).

#5: Send Follow-Up Emails

First, you sent your NPS survey to your customers through email. If you followed step one, then you also sent it at the right time—perhaps after a purchase. Once your customers have completed your survey, you want to send them a follow-up email based on their score.

This is a great way to follow-up with your customers and let them know you value their opinions and will use their feedback to improve your business.

By following up, you let them know you appreciate their involvement. It also lets them know you are actively paying attention.

Your follow-up email after the NPS survey can include the following:

Thank-you note
Acknowledgment of their score
If they left a positive score, ask them to leave you a Google review
Offer them something free—a discount, whitepaper, video or other downloads

Remember that negative comments aren’t something to ignore. Your customers who complain really might be the ones who care because they are looking for something more. If you provide it to them, you might find that their next NPS is higher.

#6: Ditch your Pride

It can be difficult to look at negative NPS comments and know you have to change. Your gut instinct may be to ignore negative comments or disregard them, but that isn’t going to help you better your customer service and relationships. You want to concentrate on how you can improve, not on how you can change your customer’s mind.

#7: Use the NPS as a Tool

Another first instinct is to think of your NPS as market research. It’s not that at all. It’s a tool to use to change the way you do business. It’s something you can use to change your way of operating. Your Net Promoter Score helps you understand and improve your businesses’ operations. It helps you improve the entire customer experience.

Again, you want to involve your entire staff and make sure everyone is on board with improving the customer experience. Help your staff see the importance of your “promoters.” Help them understand what they need to do to keep these customers so they can help your business grow. You also want to help your employees understand your “detractors” and how they can help move them from the negative side to the positive promoter side. Finally, you want your employees to be aware of the NPS survey best practices so that they can help you stay on track.

#8: Improve Employee Engagement

How do you get your employees to buy into improving your Net Promoter Score? The best thing you can do is make sure your employees are engaged and fulfilled in their job. If your employees aren’t engaged, they can’t—and won’t want to—satisfy the needs of your customers.

Consider asking your employees the Net Promoter Score questions. If they are detractors and not promoters, do what you can to improve their experience so they can improve that of your customers.

Final Thoughts on NPS Survey Best Practices

Knowing your Net Promoter Score is important, but what you do with it is what sets your business apart from the competition. The most important NPS best practice is to make sure you act on feedback quickly.

Your business is about more than selling a product or service. It’s about creating happy, long-term customers who are loyal brand ambassadors and who are excited to share your product with their peers. To increase your growth and propel your business, you want to focus on your customers and doing what you can to improve their experiences. If you do this, your NPS will rise naturally.

Ready to get started with your free SurveyTown trial and try your hand at testing these Net Promoter Score best practices? Start with your free account today, and you can upgrade at any time.

Images: Tim Gauw

3 Net Promoter Score Questions To Ask

Survey Tips

When you use Net Promoter Score questions in your survey, you start the process of identifying loyal customers.

You start to recognize and distinguish your brand ambassadors. These are the people who will help lead new customers straight to your door.

With Net Promoter Score (NPS), you can quantitatively measure and then encourage customer loyalty.

To help you, we look at three Net Promoter Score questions to ask in your next survey.

#1: The Standard Net Promoter Score Question

In your initial Net Promoter Score survey, you don’t want to ask numerous questions. Keep it very short and to the point with the formulaic question customers are growing used to seeing.

The standard Net Promoter Score question looks like this:

Based on your experience, how likely is it that you would recommend our (product, brand or service) to your friends, family or colleagues?

Your scale should range from 0=not at all likely to 10=extremely likely.

With this NPS question, you’ll be able to do your Net Promoter Score calculation.

#2: The Reason Why Question

Your next question is really a follow up to the Net Promoter Score question. In addition to the main NPS question, you should invite respondents to let you know why they feel the way they do.

Provide a text area where your customers can actually write out their comments. You’ll find that you may receive glowing reviews or some negative comments here.

The “reason why” question should look like this:

Why did you provide this rating? or What is the reason behind your rating?

#3: The Follow Up Question

With this last question in your Net Promoter Score survey, you want to know what you can do better.

This is where you find out what your customers really think and how they perceive your shortcomings. The responses to this question in your NPS survey will help you determine which areas of your products and services need improvement and which ones are meeting or exceeding expectations.

For this question, craft something like this:

What is one thing we could do differently to increase the value of our (product or services) to you?

With this question, you leave it wide open for your respondents to offer their suggestions and hopefully, constructive criticism and comments. As we mentioned earlier, keep your survey to no more than three questions to encourage more responses.

You might even find you can eliminate either question #2 or question #3 or re-word them to encourage the kind of comments you are looking for, especially if your dropout rates are too high.

Final Thoughts

Now that you know the right questions to ask to get your NPS and additional feedback, you’re well on your way to using the Net Promoter Score to gauge customer loyalty.

You can use your Net Promoter Score to:

Segment your customers by their loyalty to you
Identify those customers who are unhappy and unwilling to refer you
Discover what drives your customer loyalty and how you can improve upon it
Benchmark your results against those in your industry

Finally, remember that according to NPS best practices, the power of the Net Promoter Score comes in what you do after the survey and after you have your score. Don’t miss this critical part. How you respond to your customers after you receive their feedback is integral to the entire process.

Your follow up may mean the difference between increased customer loyalty or an at-risk customer that walks away. Follow up is key to your success, and it’s what helps you encourage and gain long-term loyalty.

You earn your customers’ loyalty by creating relationships with them. Using the Net Promoter Score survey, you can start creating valuable and genuine relationships with your customers by showing them that you value their feedback and that you are willing to take action on it.

Your Net Promoter Score survey allows you to start a new conversation with your customers—one where they feel valued and important to your business.

Are you ready to get started with your free Survey Town trial and try your hand at Net Promoter Score surveys? Start with your free account today, and you can upgrade at any time.

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