How to Find the Best Survey Tools in the Market

It is a difficult and painstaking task to research all kinds of survey software in order to obtain the best survey software in the market. However, you can apply simple logic so as to choose the most appropriate survey tool online.

Let us discuss three important points that can help you as an employer or provider to make an ideal choice on survey tools:

• Make a list – Try and create a list of candidates and also search major search engines and online directories for quality survey tool providers. You can even ask your friends and partners to suggest some popular survey tools. You may have to use the most significant keyword phrases that match with your company products or services. For example, use lengthy keyword phrases such as ‘employee engagement software survey’ to find a good survey tool that focuses on improving employee workplace experience. It is advisable to include all types of options so that you have a fair idea of the main options and also the least important ones.
• Make comparison for product attributes – It is best to design a product-based spreadsheet to compare features like price, customer support options, delivery preferences, query types, other advanced features, reports, user management preferences and much more. You can underline each and every attribute that is vital to your company projects. Most survey software online sites offer exhaustive information that can be used to engage your grid.
• Restrict your research and study top candidates in detail – It is better to arrive at a final conclusion after in-depth analysis of the top class candidates. You can compare the best attributes and also short-list the best survey tools. If you plan to use the software products occasionally, then go for a less expensive tool. But, you may have to compensate with more tools if there are chances of additional surveys, therefore it is best to purchase a higher priced survey software that gives superior results and unlimited performance guarantee.

While survey tools are literally scattered around the market, it is up to you to exercise discretion and get the best survey tools suitable for your projects.

Choosing the Best Software for Online Market Research and Customer Satisfaction Surveys

It can be difficult to choose appropriate market research software to conduct your online customer satisfaction survey. There are so many choices out there. For those that are new to online surveys, it can be extremely overwhelming. Here are a few tips to get you started:

1. Start with free products. Free products are the best for beginners. Because they lack certain functionality, free online platforms tend to me simple, intuitive, and user-friendly. It gives you the opportunity to learn your way around online survey technology. You are create short and simple surveys without being too overwhelmed.

2. Consider paid software for increased functionality. If a free product does not offer all the functionality that you need, it is time to consider paid software. Assess all your needs and the functionality of all paid options. Larger businesses may require more detailed and customizable surveys, advanced skip logic, filters, and multimedia support. Do your research!

3. Get a free trial of any paid software you are considering. Instead of investing upfront, try to get a trial of the software you are considering. It will allow you to get familiar with the software before committing. The trial will help you determine if it is what you really want. It’s also a good idea to allow other employees to spend time getting familiar with the software during the trial period—especially if they will be using it. They can also provide feedback on the software.

The Importance of the Net Promoter Score (NPS)

The Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a useful tool to assess customer loyalty to your brand. It is becoming extremely popular today particularity with Fortune 1000 companies. In fact, two-thirds of all Fortune 1000 companies use this metric.

A Net Promoter Score (NPS) is calculated based on the results from the net promoter survey question. The question asks customers “How likely is it that you would recommend this [product/brand/company] to a friend or colleague?” Respondents are given response options ranging from 1 = not at all likely to 10 = extremely likely.

How a person responds determines whether they are a Promoter, Passive, or Detractor. Promoters are individuals who answer the aforementioned question with a 9 or 10. These individuals are loyal enthusiasts. They will continue to buy products and/or services from your company. They also would refer others, thereby promoting growth of your company. Passives respond to the survey question with a 7 or 8. These consumers are satisfied with your products and/or services, but they are unenthusiastic. They are not necessarily loyal to your brand or company and may pursue business with your competitors. Detractors answer the question with a response of 6 or below. These individuals are unhappy customers. They can ruin the reputation of your company or brand via negative word-of-mouth.

The Net Promoter Score (NPS) is calculated by subtracting the percentage of Detractors from the percentage of Promoters. Scores can range from -100 (if every respondent is a Detractor) to 100 (if every respondent is a Promoter). A positive score (anything over zero) is considered to be a good score. A score of over 50 is considered to be outstanding.

Tips on Creating Effective Employee Engagement Surveys

Today’s companies are very interested in hearing about the attitudes, feelings, and behaviors of their employees. In other words, they like to give employees a voice. Organizations are also interested in engagement and/or disengagement of employees. This is why many organizations are interested in conducting employee engagement surveys. They are becoming an incredibly popular tool.

Why should organizations consider conducting employee engagement surveys? First, it makes employees feel valued. Employee engagement surveys allow employees to express their opinions, problems, and feedback related to the work environment. It is a way that employees can confidentially communicate with top-level management and provide insight to improve the business.

If you would like to conduct an employee engagement survey, there are various questions you must first ask:

1. Do you know what you will do with the feedback? When employee engagement surveys are administered, respondents often have expectations that their feedback will be taken into account by upper management and ultimately be used for the betterment of the organization. If the feedback will not be used, it becomes a futile effort.

2. Do you need professional assistance with the survey? Many people feel as if they can handle the administration of an employee engagement survey by themselves. However, having a professional help with the survey campaign can be incredibly beneficial. Having an external organization can ensure confidentiality given that this company does not have a personal relationship with employees. A professional survey-consulting firm can also help with questionnaire design to ensure that the survey accurately measures what you are trying to uncover.

3. Who will review the survey results? Sometimes its best to have multiple individuals review the findings from an employee feedback survey. Establishing a committee to review the feedback can be very beneficial. This committee can include both respective individuals from lower as well as upper management.

Why Your Business Should Invest in Pulse Surveys

How are pulse surveys different from other types of surveys? Pulse surveys are typically shorter in length and more precise. The goal is not to gather a vast breadth of information—but rather a few questions in depth. A typical purse survey only contains about five to ten questions. Pulse surveys are also unique because they are not just administered at one point in time. Rather, they are given on a regular basis at particular intervals. Pulse surveys may be administered monthly, quarterly, yearly, and so forth.

There are various benefits of pulse surveys. Because they are given regularly at particular intervals, an organization is able to acquire constant and continuous feedback from employees and customers. Therefore, feedback is always up to date. Data gathered from pulse surveys lend themselves to dashboard analytics where data is updated in real-time. With pulse surveys, companies can also track employee and customer attitudes and perceptions over time—rather than just during one point in time. Pulse surveys provide insight into trends and change.

Pulse surveys are also beneficial because change based on feedback can occur immediately. For example, if various employees have an issue with a certain policy, an intervention can occur right away. The subsequent pulse survey can assess if the intervention actually improved employee perceptions. If customers are having problems with a particular product, a pulse survey can alert management at a company. The company can subsequently address the stated issues and administer a follow-up pulse survey to determine if the product is up to customer standards.

Five benefits of online surveys over paper surveys

Paper surveys are becoming a thing of the past. Today, online surveys are taking over. Check out these top five reasons you should opt for online surveys over paper ones:

1. Anonymous. With online surveys, respondents are more likely given the opportunity to remain anonymous. Because they can remain anonymous, the respondents are most likely to answer questions candidly and honestly. This can provide more valid data. 
   
   
2. Fast & efficient. With paper surveys, it takes a long time to administer, collect, and analyze data from the surveys. Online surveys can be coded in a matter of minutes. Results are collected immediately. When the survey ends, all data is available for easy analysis in your statistical program of choice.
   
   
3. Costly. Paper surveys are expensive. There are paper, printing, and postage costs. If you are doing an in-person or telephone survey with an interviewer, it will also cost to hire manpower. Online surveys do not incur any of these costs given that everything is virtual. 
   
   
4. More advanced survey design. Paper surveys can be long and elaborate. However, when they are, they are confusing to respondents. Online survey tools allow for advanced skip logic but make skipping around less confusing. Respondents can navigate the survey quickly and easily leading to less frustration and survey fatigue.
   
   
5. Allowing for randomization. When respondents always answer the same option for every question, this can skew the results and decrease the validity of the survey. Re-arranging survey questions can avoid this issue. You can randomize questions on a paper survey. However, you will need to create various versions of the survey, which can get costly and complicated. Online surveys allow for randomization with a simple click of a button. 
   
   
   
   
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How to best tackle demographic survey questions

Writing demographic survey questionnaire design can be tricky because they ask personal information. However, there are best practices to help take the awkwardness out of writing these types of questions.

Race & ethnicity

One of the best practices is to first ask a person about their ethnicity. Ethnicity refers to what someone identifies with culturally. A great initial question is: “Are you of Hispanic or Latino origin?” giving respondents the option to answer “yes” or “no”.

Then, it’s best to ask about race—the physical characteristic of a person. The most commonly used categories for questions are below:

• American Indian/Native American
• Asian/Pacific Islander
• Black/African-American
• White/Caucasian
• Other (specify)

Gender

There was a time when gender was a dichotomous category but things have changed greatly since then. Simply giving respondents the option of “male” and “female” may leave some respondents confused given that they don’t identify with either category. One of the best practices is to offer various options with the option of writing in a response. Instead of asking about “gender”, it’s best to ask about “gender identity”. Some great response options include:

• Male
• Female
• Male-transgender
• Female-transgender
• Gender variant/non-conforming
• Other/not listed (specify)
• Prefer not to answer

Marital status

Like gender, marital status is not what it used to be. The best practice is to include various categories that properly encompass the type of society we live in today. A great example of categories is the following:

• Single
• Married
• In a domestic partnership
• Divorced
• Separated
• Widowed
  
  
   
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