Creating a Survey

Surveys are one of the most direct ways to find out what your customers and prospects actually think. They're a low-cost way to get a deeper understanding of your business, your process, your customers, and your market. By the end of this article, you'll have a survey ready to launch that can surface real insight into your customers and prospects.

Why create surveys?

• Customer feedback - Having an understanding of your customers' needs can increase retention and brand loyalty
• Product/Service feedback - Allow customers to tell you what they really feel about your product or service and where it could be improved
• Your competition - When bringing on a potential prospect or new client, you can get valuable insight into their prior vendor and the reasons they chose to make the switch or are looking to make the switch to your company

Define your goals for the survey

Before creating a survey, get clear on what you're hoping to achieve:

• What do you hope to learn or have a better understanding of through the survey?
• Are you creating the survey for a certain segment or for a particular buyer persona?
• After the survey is completed, what do you hope to use the collected data for?

Determine the survey type and how users will receive it

If you are creating a survey to receive customer feedback, you will only want your survey to be available to customers. Alternatively, if you have a cancellation survey, you will only want customers who canceled the service to see it.

• Determine the type of survey you will create
• Determine how you will deliver the survey. Will it be embedded on your website, landing page, email, etc.?

Create your survey

You'll build your survey using an Act-On Form. To get started, click Content > Forms > Create form (top right); see the Forms Composer User Guide:

Create your Form as follows (see Build a Form to use as a guide with step-wise instructions):

1. In the Properties tab:
   • Set a response page that users see when they finish the survey.
   • Set a cap if you are looking to receive a set number of responses.
2. In the Design tab:
   • Add a rich text block with an introduction, instructions, etc.
   • Create your survey with text blocks, combo boxes (dropdown lists, radio buttons, & checkboxes), text boxes, images, etc.
   • Add a Submit button.
3. In the Review tab, check your survey is as you want it.
4. Save your survey Form.

Distribute your survey

Once you're finished designing the survey, it's time to distribute it. You have a few options when it comes to getting your survey out:

• Embed the form using a Public URL hyperlink.
• Embed the form using an iframe.
• Embed the form using the External Post Method.
• Embed the form using the Get Code option.

Check your results

Once your survey is out, check on the results as follows:

1. Go to Content > Forms.
2. Hover over your Form, and click View report:
   
3. Responses and performance reports are available, as well as Form details. See Using Form Reports.

As your survey results begin to populate, you will have a new wealth of information at your disposal. Use your results to take action, make changes, and if needed, improve what isn't working. Keep in mind, if you are surveying a specific industry or certain job titles, for example, you can use this information to create blog posts, infographics, etc. with your findings.