Getting people to take your survey can feel like pulling teeth. Low response rates lead to unreliable data and wasted time. But with the right tactics, you can turn survey participation into an irresistible opportunity respondents can’t wait to be a part of.
In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore 17 scientifically-backed methods for boosting survey response rates. Apply these strategies to collect more complete, accurate market insights through your surveys.
1. Offer Survey Incentives
People love getting free stuff. Providing survey incentives gives them a reason to participate beyond just helping you out. Popular options include:
- Cash rewards
- Gift cards
- Discount coupons
- Prize drawings
- Donations to charity
Incentives can increase response rates by up to 30% Even small rewards drive participation Customize incentives based on your target demographic.
2. Send Follow-Up Reminders
The first survey invite often gets overlooked. Sending polite reminders keeps your request top of mind. Studies show reminders boost response rates by up to 25%
But be careful not to pest people with constant reminders. Two follow-ups are optimal. Time them a few days apart. Personalize reminders to show respondents they’re missed.
3. Make the First Question Engaging
A boring first question causes respondents to disengage quickly. But an intriguing opening question piques interest so they keep going.
For higher response rates, avoid generic openers like “How are you today?” Start with an appealing multiple choice or pick-a-number question that draws them in.
4. Explain Survey Benefits
Tell participants exactly how the survey data will be used and who it will help. People are more likely to respond when they feel their input matters.
For example, explain how survey insights will improve customer satisfaction or guide future product development. This gives respondents a purpose.
5. Set Expectations Upfront
There’s nothing more frustrating than a neverending survey. Set clear expectations upfront about:
- Estimated completion time
- Number of questions
- Topics covered
Giving respondents an idea of what to expect builds trust and keeps them motivated to finish.
6. Make It Anonymous
Fear of judgment prevents honest feedback. Guaranteeing anonymity relaxes respondents so they answer openly without worrying about consequences.
Anonymous surveys see response rates up to 60% higher on sensitive topics. For private insights, don’t even collect identifying information like names or emails.
7. Keep Surveys Concise
Survey fatigue is real. Long, tedious surveys lead to abandoned responses. For higher completion rates:
- Only ask relevant questions
- Cut unnecessary open-ended questions
- Split long surveys into multiple shorter ones
Ideally, keep surveys under 10 minutes. Use progress bars to show completion progress.
8. Optimize Mobile Experience
Upwards of 60% of surveys are taken on smartphones today. Slow load times and wonky mobile formatting equals frustration.
Make sure your survey:
- Loads fast on all devices
- Displays cleanly on small screens
- Works with fat fingers
Mobile optimization improves user experience and willingness to complete surveys.
9. Personalize Invitation
Generic “Dear sir or madam” invitations are easy to ignore. Personalized invitations with the respondent’s name and customized messaging convert up to 50% better.
Segment your list and customize invitations based on interests and demographics. This shows respondents their unique perspectives matter.
10. Send at the Optimal Time
Ever take a survey first thing Monday morning? Probably not ideal. Survey timing influences open and response rates.
Research shows Tuesday at 10am is the optimal time for business surveys. Test different days and times to determine what engages your audience most.
11. Provide Progress Indicators
Without context, multi-page surveys feel endless. Add progress indicators like page numbers, percentages completed, or step trackers.
Visualizing the end goal keeps respondents motivated. Progress indicators also reduce mid-survey abandonment by up to 22%.
12. Use Multichannel Follow-Up
Omnichannel outreach improves contact likelihood. If someone doesn’t respond to an email survey, follow up via:
- Text messages
- Social media
- Phone calls
Just like marketing, diversifying survey outreach boosts total responses. But let people opt out easily across channels.
13. Lottery Drawings
In addition to direct incentives, lottery drawings attract respondents with the chance to win big rewards.
To encourage survey completion, enter all respondents into drawings for large prize packages. Or reward each 100th survey taker. This turns your survey into an exciting game.
14. Gamify the Experience
Speaking of games, injecting fun and interactivity into surveys increases engagement. Gamification tactics like:
- Points
- Badges
- Progress bars
Make the survey feel less like market research and more like an enjoyable game respondents want to complete.
15. Use Skip Logic
Nothing’s more annoying than irrelevant questions. Skip logic omits questions that don’t apply based on previous responses.
Skip logic personalizes the survey path so each respondent only sees relevant questions. This minimizes frustration and abandonment.
16. Survey Before Events
People are most receptive to requests at certain moments. For example, ask someone to take a survey:
- At event check-in
- Before a webinar
- After a purchase
Surveying users during natural engagement moments yields up to 70% higher response rates.
17. Follow Up with Results
Showing respondents the survey results demonstrates their contribution mattered.
Close the loop by sharing key findings and how they’ll guide business decisions moving forward. This makes respondents more likely to take future surveys.
Achieve Your Survey Response Rate Goals
Low survey response rates undermine the insights you need to guide data-driven decisions. Applying these science-backed techniques will get more people to complete your surveys.
But conducting effective surveys takes more than just driving responses. You also need advanced tools for survey design, distribution, analysis, and actionable insights.
Our powerful end-to-end survey software enables you to:
- Create professional surveys with customizable templates
- Send mobile-optimized surveys via email, web links, social media, and QR codes
- Collect responses automatically into analyzable data
- Generate interactive reports on key findings
- Integrate with popular platforms like Salesforce, MailChimp, and Excel
Our platform makes it easy to put these response rate best practices into action. Sign up for a free account today to start collecting actionable insights through high-converting surveys.
The success of your business intelligence depends on high survey response rates. Apply these proven techniques to maximize participation so you can make confident data-driven decisions.
Need help filling the shortage of responses?
SurveyMonkey Audience lets you access a wide-range of consumers who are ready to take your survey.
The target population—Are you are trying to obtain responses from a hard-to-reach population (e.g., males age 18 to 24 who play video games)?
Your relationship with survey respondents—Are the potential respondents customers or employees?
The survey invitation—Can you personalize the email invitation to include the potential respondents’ names? How much can you share with respondents about the nature of the research?
The survey length—Will your survey take 5 minutes of respondents time or 15 minutes?
The complexity of the survey questions—Will you be asking respondents to simply answer straight-forward questions or will you ask them to undergo multiple tasks, like visiting a web site and then provide their impressions?
The survey topic—Will your potential respondents have a vested interest in the topic (e.g., improving employee benefits)?
Incentives—Will you be able to sweeten the pot for potential respondents to take your survey with some form of financial compensation, material goods, or information?
Reminder emails—Will you be able to send a reminder to respondents who haven’t completed the survey?
Finally, its worth remembering that if you don’t have access to your target audience, our survey panel, SurveyMonkey Audience, can help you specify and access your target audience, compose your survey invitation, and administer the survey incentive. That way youll get the response rate you want from the people whose opinions you’re looking for, guaranteed.
How to Boost Your Survey Response Rates: Proven Strategies and Best Practices
How do i Improve my survey response rate?
1. Give Your Survey a Purpose The more interesting your questions and the more engaging your survey, the better your response rate will be. Try to send out surveys that have relevance to the customer, and the response rate should improve a great deal. 2. Create an Attractive Survey The better looking your survey, the more it will be completed.
How do you calculate a survey response rate?
To calculate the survey response rate, use this simple formula: Response rate = (Number of people who completed the survey / Total number of people you sent it to) x 100. Imagine your survey targeted 1,200 customers, and only 720 completed it. Your response rate would be 720/1200 x 100 = 60%.
What makes a good survey response rate?
Structure: A professional and engaging survey is more likely to garner a higher response rate. Consider these factors for a better response rate and more reliable data. There’s an art and a science to asking questions that people are willing—even eager—to answer. Here’s what we found helps boost survey response rates: 1.
How do I increase response rates?
Being transparent about what you plan to do with the information you collect puts respondents at ease and can increase response rates. For instance: If you’re sending your survey via email, tell your respondents in the email body exactly how you plan to use their data. Add some information and context to your typeform’s Welcome Screen.
