Online Surveys 101 – Understanding Online Surveys

Need to know how to conduct a survey? If you’re new to online surveys, you may be feeling intimidated. This series of articles takes the mystery out of online surveys so you can create engaging surveys with confidence.

Why online surveys?

Online surveys are a fast, affordable, and effective way to get feedback from people over the Internet to improve your business. What used to take months, if not years, with traditional survey methods, can be done in a short time frame. Getting to know customers better is easier and more accessible now for everyone—from lone entrepreneurs to mega corporations.

Online survey tools

Many tools are available for conducting online surveys, but not all have the same features. Most are web-based, such as SoGoSurvey. That means you have access to your surveys and data from anywhere; you just need a web browser. It also means you don’t have to install software on your computer or worry about data security and software updates. The vendor takes care of that.

Benefits of online surveys

Anyone can learn how to conduct a survey and take advantage of the power of online surveys to:

• Get quick feedback in real-time
• Reach more people – via email, social media, websites, blogs, and mobile phones
• Save money – there’s no overhead; just create your survey and launch
• Do the number crunching for you with reporting tools
• Save time with presentation-ready charts and graphs – no data analysis skills required

When to use online surveys

You can do a survey any time you need important feedback. For example, a market researcher may want to find out whether a new TV commercial would be appealing to women. Online surveys can help you:

• Uncover opportunities for new products or services
• Learn what products, services, features, and programs your customers like the most
• Pinpoint weaknesses in customer service
• Find out how customers see your brand and your competition’s
• Find out what your employees think about new benefit programs

Types of online surveys

Following is a list of the most common surveys:

• Customer Surveys
• Market Research Surveys
• Employee Surveys
• Healthcare Surveys
• Government Surveys
• Event Feedback Surveys
• School Surveys
• Website Feedback Surveys

SoGoSurvey provides field-tested survey templates for these industry-standard surveys to help you get started.

Ready to try your hand at online surveys? Sign up now.

If you’re already a SoGoSurvey customer, see Need Help Designing Your First Survey?

Stay tuned for the next article in this series on how to conduct a survey: Online Surveys 101 – Define Survey Goals.