Event planning surveys: Pre-event survey questions & templates

Event planning surveys are the planner's superpower, turning guesswork into guaranteed success. They encompass a range of feedback tools, from early check-ins to post-event evaluations, ensuring every part of your gathering hits the mark.

To start, pre-event survey questions are invaluable. They reveal exactly what attendees expect and value before the big day, allowing you to confidently shape your agenda, fine-tune logistics, and prepare for every requirement. For instance, these early questions are especially useful for gauging interest, confirming technical readiness for virtual events, or validating your content topics.

But the feedback shouldn't stop there. By continuing to use targeted event survey questions throughout the lifecycle of your gathering, you gain the data needed to continually refine your approach.

This guide provides comprehensive examples of event survey questions, essential event survey templates, and simple analysis tips to help you act on event feedback and create consistently better experiences.

Event survey questions are most effective when you use them at the right moments before, during, and after your event. Each touchpoint helps you understand attendee expectations, measure the live experience, and improve logistics and ROI.

Use surveys to shape planning, guide real-time adjustments, and learn what worked after the event. The examples and tips below show how to collect targeted feedback and turn it into decisions that strengthen your next event.

When to ask event survey questions:

Do you plan fundraisers, conferences, weddings, or community events? No matter the size, every event needs coordination.

Event planning question examples are your blueprint for a successful gathering, giving you a crystal-clear picture of what attendees need and expect. For example, using targeted pre-event survey questions allows you to strategically shape your agenda, confirm logistical needs like dietary restrictions or accessibility, and set expectations early on.

Furthermore, when you need a fast, consistent starting point, an event survey template keeps your feedback collection organized, comparable, and easy to launch.

SurveyMonkey event questionnaires are built by survey experts to help you collect reliable feedback without slowing down your planning. Explore the survey question examples and templates below, or browse our full library of free survey templates to create a better event from day one.

You need an accurate headcount to plan confidently. Send a simple pre-event RSVP questionnaire to collect names, addresses, party size, availability, and how guests want to hear from you. You can also use surveys to check availability if you’re still setting the date.

This survey template asks:

You can also use the RSVP and Contact Information Survey Template to gather information on people’s availability and communication preferences. If you want to collect sign-ups and session choices in one place, try the Event Registration Form Template.

Before you decide on that team-building exercise, offsite, or holiday party, send a corporate event questionnaire to gather what you need to make an informed decision. Poll attendees about guests, dietary restrictions, and access needs. Use the Event Invitation Form Template to keep responses organized and easy to act on.

This survey template asks:

Use surveys to understand volunteers’ availability, coordinate roles, or collect donations. Use the Volunteer Application Form Template to capture role type (on-site or virtual), time-slot preferences, skills/interests, and contact details to simplify scheduling.

This survey template asks:

Measure attendee satisfaction with this post-event feedback survey, designed with experts at Eventbrite. Use the General Event Feedback Survey Template to track what worked, identify areas for improvement, and plan fixes for the next run.

This survey template asks:

If overall satisfaction drops below your target, shorten session length and adjust pacing on the agenda. Compare scores with your prior events or segment benchmarks to gauge progress and prioritize changes.

Ask attendees whether the sessions were informative, how you could improve your event, and whether they’re likely to attend again. Use the Professional Event Feedback Survey Template to collect consistent post-event data you can act on.

This survey template asks:

Tip: Use question logic to send follow-up questions to anyone who rates a session 3 or below on a 5-point scale. This helps respondents quickly explain what needs improvement.

Send this pre-event template to invitees before your event to collect RSVPs and tailor the experience based on attendee preferences. Use the Event Planning Survey Template to launch quickly and keep responses organized.

This survey template asks:

Send this template to invitees to obtain legal waivers from individuals participating in riskier activities. Use the Waiver Form Template when an activity involves elevated risk (e.g., physical activities, equipment use, off-site travel) or when you need a photo/video release. Confirm requirements with your legal counsel.

This survey template asks:

After your event, send a survey to learn what attendees thought of the menu, speakers, activities, and overall experience. Clear feedback helps you understand what worked well and what you can improve next time.

Attendees remember the most in the first few hours after an event ends. Send your post-event survey right away so you capture feedback while the details are still fresh. You will get clearer insights into what guests enjoyed, what they would change, and what they hope to see in the future.

If you want feedback in the moment, collect responses during the event itself. The SurveyMonkey Anywhere app lets you gather responses with or without Wi-Fi, making it ideal for conferences, festivals, fundraisers, or outdoor venues.

Broad questions make it harder for attendees to give meaningful answers. If your event included multiple sessions, entertainment acts, menu items, or presenters, ask about each one individually. A specific question, such as “How satisfied were you with the keynote speaker?” gives you guidance you can actually use.

Specificity also helps you spot patterns, compare similar activities, and understand which elements of the event created the strongest experience.

Unless you need contact information, let attendees know their responses are anonymous. People give more open and honest feedback when they know their identity is protected. Anonymity encourages constructive criticism about speakers, timing, accessibility, food, or overall satisfaction.

You can still include one optional question at the end for attendees who want to share their name or join your mailing list.

Survey incentives can increase response rates, but the wrong incentive can lead to rushed or low-quality answers. Instead of giving rewards to every respondent, enter participants into a raffle for a prize or a widely appealing gift card. This approach keeps people motivated without encouraging them to speed through the survey.

Remember to collect contact information in a separate field so you can notify winners while keeping the rest of the survey anonymous.

Raw numbers are helpful, but comparisons make your results meaningful. Review your event feedback data alongside results from similar events to understand your performance. If 67% of attendees say they would recommend your event, benchmarks help you determine if that is strong, average, or an improvement from prior years.

When you use the General Event Feedback Survey Template, you can compare your results to SurveyMonkey industry benchmarks for attendee satisfaction. Benchmarks help you track trends, identify strengths, and focus on areas that will have the greatest impact on future events.

Virtual and hybrid events open the door to a wider audience, so strong feedback becomes essential. Start by collecting complete contact information during registration, including an email address and a secondary contact method. This helps you keep attendees informed and makes follow-up surveys easier. If your event serves a specific profession or industry, asking for job title or role can help you tailor questions to each group.

Focus your questions on the parts of the experience that happen only online. Ask about stream quality, audio clarity, how easy it was to navigate the platform, and whether chat or Q&A tools were helpful. Time zone fit also matters for global audiences, so include a quick check on scheduling. Be sure to ask about accessibility features such as captions, transcripts, and screen reader compatibility so you can create an inclusive experience for everyone.

Tip: Get some of the best practices for collecting feedback on virtual events.

Looking for more tips? Here are simple ways to survey virtual event attendees:

Great events don’t happen by accident. They improve when you ask clear questions, listen closely to attendees, and act on what you learn. SurveyMonkey gives you expert-built templates, flexible design options, and simple analysis tools so you can collect meaningful insights at every stage of your event.

Whether you are planning a virtual conference, a hybrid workshop, or an in-person celebration, you can get started quickly and stay organized with templates for RSVPs, logistics, session feedback, and post-event reflection. Each template is designed to help you understand what attendees expect, what they experienced, and what will make your next event even stronger.

Ready to build your own survey? Get started free and create event surveys that lead to better decisions and experiences.

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