Sample survey questions and examples
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While SurveyMonkey makes creating, conducting, and analyzing an online survey super simple, we know that sometimes the hardest part is figuring out how to ask that first question. Whether you’re looking for a survey template, or just need some inspiration from sample questions, we are here to help.
With over thousands of expert-written sample questions, it’s easy to get the insights you need. Learn more about our sample survey questions and examples below.
What is a good survey question?
A good survey question provides you with valuable insights and important information about your audience, whether they are customers, parents, or conference attendees. It is concise, strategic, and will equip you with insights that are actionable. Here are the 5 elements of a good survey question:
- The question is clear, concise, and written in direct language so it’s easy to understand. Plus, also make sure it’s free from grammatical and spelling errors which might send respondents away from taking your survey.
- It’s free of any bias or emotive language so that the respondent isn’t persuaded toward one choice or away from another.
- It’s relevant, timely, and make sense to what the respondent is doing at the time. For example, you wouldn’t send a event feedback survey to one of your customers that never even attended the event.
- It addresses only one topic avoid confusion and keep the answer focused on a single thought.
- It doesn’t offer absolutes, meaning, the answer choices have room for more nuanced responses. Asking if an individual loves or hates something won’t give you a clear indication of their true feelings.
Importance of asking good survey questions
If you do it right, your survey questions will show you crucial information about your target audience. You’ll find what they value, what’s stopping them from doing business with you, why they leave your website without making a purchase, and more. Here’s why it's important to ask good survey questions:
Gain valuable data
Formulated correctly, your survey will provide you with valuable data that can be reported on clearly. For example, a good closed-ended survey question can give you numbers in the form of percentages, such as the number of customers that has a positive experience with customer support. These type of questions are best for viewing SurveyMonkey automatic charts and graphs. A good open-ended question will let you hear feedback straight from the customers mouth, which can make reporting in a word cloud especially valuable.
Ensure data is unbiased
You want your survey questions to yield answers that truly reflect how your survey takers think and feel. By removing any survey bias, you’re ensuring you have the most accurate reflection of your audience. This includes making sure that your questions aren’t leading or loaded.
Inform the business of customer needs
Good survey questions will yield actionable insights that you can use to improve your overall business model. For example, if you ask a customer how satisfied they are with your product or service, in a range from 1-5, you’ll have the data you need to make adjustments.
Uncover issues
A good survey question can give you some eye-opening information on your audience—like employees for example. If you ask employees whether they would recommend your company to a colleague or friend, and the response is overwhelmingly negative, then you’ve uncovered an issue in the employee experience that needs to be addressed.
Improve your entire employee experience
Momentive, the maker of SurveyMonkey, offers solutions for building a better, more diverse workplace.