Introduction To Online Surveys And Question Types

The following is a very brief guide to help introduce the reader to online surveys. There is just so much information to be covered but this should pique some curiosity and provide enough information to get you started!

Why Go With An Online Survey

There are a great many benefits to carrying out your surveys over the internet in order to collect data. Specifically:

Flexibility – It is possible for you to use questions that come with drop-down menus and even direct participants to particular questions that are based upon their answers. This is called question funneling.

Cost-Effectiveness – When carrying out a survey on the internet there will be no postage or printing costs for paper. You will also save a lot of time because you will not have to manually enter the data or take care of analyzing information which the computer can do for you instead. You can even find free online survey solutions.

Speed – It will only take a few minutes before you can begin to receive responses to your survey. The majority of people respond within the first 2 – 3 days of being asked to fill out a survey.

Starting Out

When you have chosen your provider, you will then be required to register to get rolling with the service, enabling you to begin the creation process. But before you get the ball rolling, it might be practical to invest some time in planning out your survey on paper. You will even have the opportunity to create themes for your survey, such as colors, backgrounds, font styles and more.

Questions

One type of question you can use is the open question that leaves space to write in a text box. The survey participants can answer anything they desire in the box. An example question would be: Over the previous year how has our service aided you specifically?

Multiple choice questions are another type that enable the participant to select one result from a group of answers. An example of this question would be: Which of the following services have you been using in the last few months?

• Data leaflets
• Once per week support group
• Internet forum

Along with multiple choice questions you can also use an array of choices where the respondents can choose an answer from one row of answers. An example of this type of question could be: Did the project we offered make you….

• Feel more assured? yes/no/unsure
• Make new contacts? yes/no/unsure
• Deal with your issue better? yes/no/unsure

The last type of question we will mention is the scaled question which leaves the participants with the alternative of selecting from a scale. An example of a scaled question would be:

On our scale of 1 – 5 (1 – in no way and 5 – extremely), how practical were the services listed……