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Online Survey Tools and Techniques

April 2014

Introductions

Laura QuinnLaura QuinnExecutive Director, Idealware

Introductions

Idealware.org

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What We’ll Cover• Why Online Surveys?• Common Features • A Look at Affordable Software• A Look at Affordable Software• Survey Design Best Practices• Distributing Your Survey

Why Online Surveys?

Online Surveys Gather Data

Respondents answer questions and give feedback and input. Surveyors analyze the data, or create reports.

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Online survey pros and cons

Online surveys are stronger in some areas than others.

Strengths Weaknesses• Easy to use• Quick to build

• Less tangible than paper or phone• Much lower response rate than

h• Affordable and cost-effective phone• Participants must be computer-savvy

And affordable tools don’t all offer the same features.

Common Features

Flexible Look and Feel

Custom colors, font and header graphics let you match your e you a c youorganization’s branding or website.

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“Skip” Logic

Respondents can skip questions that don’t apply to them.

Did you go to our annual gala?

no yes

Did it meet your expectations?

Would you consider going next year?

no yes

Question Piping

Lets you pull answers from one part to another. Can sometimes be combined with skip logic.

In what city do you live?

Portland, ME

Do you belong to any Portland arts organizations?

Website IntegrationSurveys can integrate with existing web-pages.

Ask one-question polls or solicit website feedback.

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Integration Options

Surveys can integrate with existing web-pages

Embed a single question or the whole first page

Pop-up or Pop-under

Or of course, you could always post or email a link.

Data Analysis

Most provide simple reports; import to Excel for analysis.

The ability to analyze data can make or break a survey tool.

More detailed analysis is available…at a price.

The Most Important Feature Is YOU.

Even the most advanced tools can’t design or implement effective surveys.

Consider hiring someone with survey experience.

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The Tools

For Very Basic Surveys Consider a Form

Formsite

• Intuitive drag and drop form design.

• Free version for up to five forms per month, with 50 items per form and up to 10form and up to 10 results per form.

• $19.95 per month for 10 forms with 200 items per form, and up to 1,000 results.

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• Built in to Google Drive

• Large amounts of possible survey responses (dependent

Google Forms

responses (dependent on number of questions.)

• Some integration with Google Drive Spreadsheets

Lower End Options

Simpler, low-cost packages excel when you don’t need complex question flows or detailedquestion flows or detailed analysis support.

SurveyMonkey

Free version has 10 question/100-response limit with no data or report downloads. $17/month for unlimited questions and responses, and solid functionality.

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Free version for up to 50 responses per month. Then from $15/month to $199/month paid for basic

SurveyGizmo

$199/month paid for basic to lots of functionality, with strong integration options.

PollDaddy

Free version offers unlimited responses and questions but lacking in

d d f t dadvanced features and reporting options.

Advanced Tools

• Best for large-scale research, marketing and feedback analysis.

• More advanced question formats and survey logic

f• Libraries of questions and formats

• Advanced statistical analysis

• More difficult to use without training

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Planning and Creating Your Survey

Start with the End in Mind

What are you going to do with the results? What do you want to show in your final report?

Don’t ask things just because you can.

Who Will Be Answering the Survey?

Make sure questions are qrelevant and clear for your participants.

This might mean different surveys for different audiences.

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Keep it Short and Easy to Read

• The shorter the survey, the better the response rate.

• Is each question critical?Is each question critical?• Can participants fill it out in

less than five minutes?

Start Easy and Interesting

• We’d all rather be surfing than taking a survey.

• Ease people in with questions that don’t feel difficult or intrusive.

• “Name” is not always anName is not always an “easy” question.

Group Questions into Logical Sections

Separate questions liberally with headers, in a logical order.Display it all on one page if it’s less than 30 questions or so.

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Does The Response Fit The Question?

How do you feel about AB Foundation?

Unimportant- Unimportant- Somewhat Important- Very Important

One Thing at a Time

• Avoid riding into town with double-barreled questions.

• Ask one question at a time.

Avoid Leading Questions

Don’t ask questions that have obviously desirable answers.

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Get Feedback

• Pilot your survey with a few people before you launch it.

• Do they find any question unclear?• Assume you’ll go through several drafts.

Distributing Your Survey

If You Just Build It, They Will Not Come

You need to promote your survey -- like any other action to support your organization.

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How Should You Distribute It?

• Email to particular lists?

• On your website itself?

• On a discussion lists?

How Many is Enough?

The number of responses, or even the response rate is essentially UNIMPORTANT compared to how well the respondents REPRESENTrespondents REPRESENT what you’re measuring.

Beware of Self-Selection

People respond because they care –which often introduces bias.

Pizza haters won’t take your “Pizza Survey.”

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Rules of Thumb

The more segments you want to analyze, the more

people you’ll need.

About 200 responses will generally provide enough data for most

assumptions and simple analysis.

It doesn’t matter if you have a million responses if they don’t accurately reflect

your population.

Use the 30 rule!

You need at least 30 responses to draw

conclusions about a group or sub-group.

Prizes or Raffles Can Help

But make sure they’ll attract the right audience!

Questions?