17 common mistakes that wreck your feedback surveys

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A feedback survey is a powerful tool for any business. It’s the best way to get people who have interacted with your company in some way (whether it be as an employee, customer, or passer-by) to share their thoughts and opinions about what you’re doing right and wrong.

Surveys can be a great way to ensure that your business is on the right track. However, if you’re not careful, you can make some common mistakes that will ruin your data and render your feedback survey ineffective.

Here are our top survey mistakes to avoid

Mistake #01 - Not being clear about what you want to know from the survey

Make sure you are very specific about the questions you’re asking and what type of feedback you’re looking for. If you need help with this, feel free to check out our list of feedback survey questions and examples, as well as the Ultimate Guide to Customer Feedback.

Mistake #02 - Surveying too often

This is one of the more common mistakes that we see. Customers just don’t want to be surveyed all the time, especially if they haven’t heard from you in a while. If your business is looking to get feedback on their product or service periodically, then once every few months is plenty.

Mistake #03 - Asking leading questions

You want to get an honest opinion about your company, not a sugar-coated one! Leading questions are easy to spot and will usually have people questioning the authenticity of the survey in their heads before they even begin it. Make sure that you’re asking open-ended feedback surveys questions so that they can answer in their own words. If you’re feeling stuck, try searching for examples of good customer satisfaction survey questions.

Mistake #04 - Surveying the wrong people

This is another common mistake that businesses make. Make sure you’re surveying the right people; otherwise your data will be skewed and not very helpful. For example, if you’re a restaurant, don’t survey people who have never eaten at your establishment before!

Mistake #05 - Asking too many questions

Remember, people have better things to do with their time than answering your questions! Don’t ask for so much information that it becomes time-consuming and burdensome for your customers. For example, if you’re surveying customers on their experience at one of your stores, make sure it doesn’t take so long that a long line builds up behind them!

Mistake #06 - Long and boring forms

This is another common mistake that we see a lot of businesses making, and it’s really easy to avoid! Make sure you’re keeping your feedback surveys short and sweet so they don’t get tedious or boring.

Mistake #07 - Not sharing the results with your team

This should be obvious, but you definitely want to share all of the feedback that you get back from customers. Allowing everyone on your team to see what people are saying about them will help encourage positive changes within your business and employees alike!

Mistake #08 - Not acting on the feedback

This is another common mistake that many businesses make. The whole point of running a feedback survey in the first place is to get actionable insights and improve your business, so don’t just leave all of this information hanging around. Implement the changes that you deem necessary and see how your business improves as a result!

Mistake #09 - Only using feedback surveys for customers

Feedback surveys are a great tool for all kinds of situations. For example, if you’re looking to improve employee engagement, then employee feedback surveys can help identify workplace issues and provide suggestions on how to make improvements.

Mistake #10 - Not providing an anonymous feedback option

This is another common mistake that we see businesses making repeatedly! Especially with employee feedback surveys, it’s important to make sure that employees feel comfortable giving their feedback without fear of retribution. Providing a clear anonymity toggle on your survey is the best way to do this!

Mistake #11 - Not asking for suggestions or ideas

Feedback surveys are not just about hearing how you’re doing, but also what people want from your business! Asking participants if they have any suggestions on changes within your company will give you an idea of what kind of improvements they’d like to see.

Mistake #12 - Not including an incentive

Offering participants some sort of thank you, reward, or benefit for completing your feedback survey will encourage more customer participation. It’s also a great way to ensure that the results are not skewed by one or two people!

Mistake #13 - Not encouraging participants to be honest

It’s important that people feel free to give their honest opinions when answering your feedback survey questions, so make sure to encourage them by saying something like “Your responses are anonymous” or “We want your honest opinion!“. This will help ensure that you get accurate results.

Mistake #14 - Not closing the loop

Make sure you follow up on all of your feedback surveys! If you don’t, then there’s a good chance that all of that valuable feedback will go to waste. Let your participants know what changes you made because of their feedback and how it has impacted your business.

Mistake #15 - Only using online channels

While email is a great way to collect feedback, it’s not the only way! There are many ways to get feedback from your customers, so don’t be afraid to try something new to improve response rates. QR codes, SMS, and contactless kiosks can be great ways to get feedback!

Mistake #16 - Not capturing in-the-moment feedback

This is another mistake that we see a lot of businesses making when running their feedback surveys. Sending post-interaction surveys can lead to stale data and poor response rates. In-the-moment feedback allows you to get real-time insights into the experiences and emotions at the exact time and place of the interaction!

Mistake #17 - Not using a dedicated feedback platform

Using a dedicated customer feedback platform is essential for running successful surveys. Not only does it make things easier for you and your participants, but it also helps you avoid making all of these common mistakes!

So there you have it - the 17 most common mistakes that businesses make when running feedback surveys.

It’s easy to make mistakes when running a feedback survey, but they are an essential tool for businesses looking to improve. Avoid these pitfalls and your survey will be a success!