Assuring Your Online Survey is Secure

Posted on May 16, 2012 by | Leave a comment

More and more companies are using online surveys to gather data from their customers. While this is a great way gauge the pulse of consumers, it is critical to assure the surveys are safe and the data that is given is protected. QuestionPro has two survey software features that will help keep the data safe and your reputation intact.

Password Protection

One way to assure surveys are secure is to enable password protection for your surveys. Global Password Protect gives one common password for respondents to which only they will have access. This tool works with survey respondent tracking and the ABBS option will continue to function. Passwords can only be up to 64 characters long.

To configure password protection through QuestionPro, simply Login, go to Survey and then Select Survey. Then proceed to Survey Control and Security.

 

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) Option

You can also protect your online surveys by using the SSL option within QuesitonPro. When this feature is employed, the links for the surveys are automatically encoded using SSL, which is the industry standard encryption technology. SSL adds another layers of security and ensures that no one else has access to the data. The SSL technology encrypts data that gets passed between QuestionPro’s servers and the survey respondent.

It’s easy to enable SSL security with online surveys. The survey designer simply clicks the “Edit” link for the “Survey” and “Survey Control.” Then select the SSL option and save.

One limitation of SSL is that it cannot be used with custom URL branding. If you want to use the SSL option, you cannot use the Custom URL and if you want to use the Custom URL option then you cannot use the SSL option. Keep in mind that this is a technical limitation that is NOT unique to QuestionPro.

With options such as SSL and password protection, your online surveys will assure a protected level of security that you can instill in respondents. The data is protected and therefore, respondents can feel safe providing valuable feedback to your company. By addressing security with your customers, you assure them you care enough about them to make sure their feedback and data is protected.

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Posted in Best Practice, Feature Enhancements

How to Optimize Your Survey for Mobile

Posted on May 14, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Mobile technology is more popular than ever before, as we have no doubt all noticed from the ever-present mobile phones and tablets on our possession at all times. According to Cisco’s Visual Networking Index, global traffic to mobile devices is expected to increase 18-fold by 2016. Smartphone use tripled in 2011, and it’s expected that mobile devices will use 2.6GB of data per month.

What does all this mean for online survey creation? Quite simply, you must be optimizing your online surveys for mobile devices since that’s where people are accessing their email and browsing the web. To address this need, QuestionPro surveys are automatically optimized for mobile respondents using our mobile device auto-detection and the latest HTML5 rendering. Lets take a look at they key features of mobile optimized surveys.

What is a mobile optimized survey?

A mobile survey is simply a assessment taken on a mobile device like a smartphone or a tablet. A mobile optimized survey is easy to read and is designed specifically for people using small touchscreen devices. The text is larger and the buttons easier to click. All QuestionPro surveys are mobile optimized.

How do I create mobile surveys?

QuestionPro makes the survey configuration process easy for the individuals creating online surveys.  You will create the survey in QuestionPro and send it to respondents using email, Facebook, weblinks, popups or QR codes – just as you would with any other survey.

QuestionPro then uses “mobile device auto-detect” to identify that the respondent is viewing the survey from a mobile phone or tablet. The survey is automatically optimized for such mobile devices, which means it will look good, be easy to read, thus making it easy to complete. There is no additional set up or configuration that’s needed. It’s that easy!

What devices work with mobile surveys?

The respondent’s mobile device is automatically detected. As such, most modern mobile browsers are compatible with our mobile surveys. These devices include iPhones, iPads, Androids phones and tablets, Windows Phone, BlackBerry and many more.

As more and more individuals do their online computing from mobile phones and tablets, it’s critical to make sure your surveys are accessible through those devices. With QuestionPro’s online survey optimization, it’s as easy as can be to design one survey that’s user-friendly for mobile. Don’t miss out on obtaining valuable survey responses because you’re not thinking in mobile terms.

 

 

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Posted in Best Practice, New Feature, QuestionPro

Ways to Use Data Segmentation in the Survey Process

Posted on May 9, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Data segmentation is one of the most useful tools when creating online surveys. The process helps your business identify opportunities for growth, target communication toward specific audiences, and reduce costs from having multiple survey campaigns. QuestionPro has different types of data segmentation grouping options available, including Custom Variable Based and Time Based. Lets look at data segmentation and what it can do for your survey research.

Segmentation lets you sort responses based on parameters such as question responses, custom variables or time frames. You can access the data segmentation tool within QuestionPro by clicking through Surveys – Reports – Advanced – Analysis – Grouping/Segmentation. A maximum of ten segments at a time are allowed.

Once the segmentation is set up, you can add filters to the data segments to allow for analyzing multiple pieces of data. For example, you create one group where the selection criteria chooses “male,” and the second group where the selection criteria selects “female.” A benefit of QuestionPro’s system is that you do not need to create the segments before the survey commences. In fact, the segments may be created anytime during the data collection because it is independent of the process.

Custom Variable Based Grouping

QuestionPro allows you to create custom variable segmentation based on the following groups: email list code, external reference variable, and custom variables. An email list code is exactly that – the email list you use to end out the email survey. It is easy to aggregate custom variables simply by separating the data values with commas.

Time Based Grouping

A useful way to segment data is through time-based filters, which allows you to analyze your data based on a particular time frame (e.g. when the survey was completed). Time based grouping can be set up at any point during the data collection process. Simply go to Surveys – Reports – Advanced Analysis – Grouping/Segmentation. Clicking on the “new data segment” button lets you name the groups and select the data segment. A helpful feature of QuestionPro’s time based grouping is you can account for different time zones.

Data segmentation can be one of the most helpful tools for analyzing your survey data and getting the most out of the process. The more you can break down the data into categories and understand the responses, the better your information will be and you will be prepared to tackle your businesses’ challenged armed with the most comprehensive information.

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Posted in Best Practice, customer research, QuestionPro, Research Tools and Apps

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How to Integrate External Variables Into Your Survey

Posted on May 7, 2012 by | Leave a comment

External variables are useful tools that will make your survey even more powerful. Specifically, the variables are additional information about your customers or survey respondents that is then integrated within the survey. This can result in even more accurate responses.

QuestionPro makes it easy to include external (or custom, as it is also known) variables into your survey creation. Lets take a look at custom variables and how they are best used.

External variables may be used in the Questions / Answer Options on the survey as well as within the email invitation to take the survey. Within the QuestionPro system, the external variables are stored with the Respondents Response. You can upload the information from an Excel spreadsheet or CSV file with up to 255 custom variables with up to 128 characters each.

How to Insert External Variables

When you use the QuestionPro Email Management tool, you can upload the variables with each person’s email address. If you are not using our email management program, you can still use external variables. You will simply correspond the information via the survey URL.

How External Variables Used for Analysis

You can conduct survey analysis with external variables using the Grouping option. For example if you have uploaded the department as an external variable. Once that is done, you can set up groups for each department and run analysis for the various departments. The advantage of this is the ability to hone the results and test specific categories for data patterns.

How External Variables Work with Dynamic Replacement

QuestionPro’s Dynamic Replacement option allows you to replace random text with dynamic data. How does this relate to external variables? The variables/data stored in the External Variables can be used for the dynamic replacement and pre-population.

Limitations of External Variables

Like many components of survey research, there are some limitations to external variables. First, each variable can only store up to 64 characters. Second, multi-lingual characters may not be saved in external variable fields. Therefore it’s probably best to stick with English characters. Third, only alphanumeric characters work as variable fields. As such, the pound or hash symbol (#) cannot be used. We also recommend you not use commas and quotation marks as variables.

External variables are another tool that can be used to better segment your data and give you meaningful online survey results. QuestionPro’s survey software allows you to easily insert these variables into the survey as well as your email template. Yet another tool to ensure you get the most out of your online survey process.

 

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Posted in Best Practice, customer research, QuestionPro, Research Tools and Apps

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Stopping Respondents from Dropping Out of Surveys

Posted on May 2, 2012 by | 1 Comment

What’s one of the most challenging components of survey research? More than likely, it’s the people that start to complete a survey and then stop mid-way through the process. This is quite frustrating to survey administrators who see it is a missed opportunity to gather response data.

QuestionPro has thought long and hard about this problem and we’ve come up with two options you can use to curb this behavior and get the online survey responses you need.

Save and Continue

The “Save and Continue” option lets your survey takers save the responses and return to complete the questions at a later time. This tool is especially helpful if the survey is long with numerous questions.

The “Save and Continue” option works by storing the partially completed survey in as an incomplete response. The respondent is later reminded to continue the survey via an email reminder with a continuation URL. When the respondents continues taking the survey, the question set is updated and marked as complete. However if the respondent does not complete the survey, the responses are simply stored as partial/incomplete.

There are a few things to keep in mind if you plan to use the “Save and Continue” option when creating surveys. First, a page break is necessary for “Save and Continue,” meaning the online survey must be more than one page. Second, the branching and skip logic tools only work during active sessions. As such, they will not function with the “Save and Continue” option. Finally, randomization logic may not work properly with the “Save and Continue” option.

Time Limit

The other helpful tool to limit survey response drop off is using a countdown timer or time limit. A countdown timer is a feature that actually sets a time limit on a survey. Respondents must complete the survey within a certain period of time (minimum time limit is 1 minute and the maximum is 60 minutes). When the timer runs out, the survey closes and responses are coded as incomplete. The countdown timer is displayed right on the survey screen.

Answering a survey within a given time frame actually increases the quality of responses because it is essentially capturing the first thing that comes to the respondents mind. The advantage of this feature is reducing dropout rates. If a survey responder is under a time limit, he is more likely to complete the survey.

 

The time limit feature works best for market researchers and those conducting employee satisfaction surveys. The countdown timer is also reminiscent to the latest trends in online gaming, or gamification. Major companies are using games to get their customers more involved. Online mobile surveys have followed suit, which makes the countdown timer a natural for your survey responses.

 

Both the countdown timer and “Save and Continue” functions are easy to set up when you configure your survey. And with tools like these, you are already on a better path to obtaining accurate answers and more survey responses than before.

 

 

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Posted in Essay, Research Tools and Apps

How Mobile Surveys Can Help You Get Reponses

Posted on April 30, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Survey research is not what it used to be. And chances are, it will continue to evolve with the popularity of smart phones, iPads and the like. In fact, 46% of Americans are using smart phones. So why not use this technology to help enhance your survey response rates and data gathering techniques?

QuestionPro has debuted a new online survey tool to help you conduct surveys using smart phones and iPads, and even when there is no connection to the Internet. SurveyPocket is a mobile survey application that allows for the gathering of survey data in the field by using a smart phone or iPad as the data-gathering equipment piece. The application is an innovative tool that helps you collect and store data – with or without a wireless connection.

What is the best application for SurveyPocket?

On-site Surveys – Using mobile devices, you can send out a team of interviewers to an event where you gather the survey responses live. Examples of these include prospect information gathering at trade shows, customer satisfaction surveys at movies or entertainment venues, and political exit polls.

Training and Evaluations – Use SurveyPocket to collect feedback after a training session or workshop. Gathering the data at the heel of the session will ensure the most accurate responses.

Personal Mall Intercept Survey – Mall intercept surveys are used to reach a large segment of the population. Given that approximately 2/3 of U.S. households shop at a mall during any given two-week period, using SurveyPocket for mall intercept surveys is a great way to gather information from the masses.

SurveyPocket Features

There are several features that make SurveyPocket a great mobile survey tool, including …

  • Has the ability to collect GPS data of where the survey was administered.
  • Has the ability to collect the unique smart phone UID if used on smart phones.
  • Has the ability to collect response information until the smart phone or iPad is connected to the Internet, at which point it will then upload the data.
  • It has a simple UI so training is kept to a minimum.
  • The ability to cope with any language required.
  • The ability to work on iPhones, Android, and iPads.

Another great feature of SurveyPocket is it works exclusively with the SurveyAnalytics survey platform.

Do not limit yourself to the old ways of collecting survey data. If you are collecting data in the field, consider QuestionPro’s SurveyPocket as a way of gathering accurate data quickly and effectively, without the hassle of being wired in.

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Posted in customer research

Why Feedback Surveys are Critical for Customer Satisfaction

Posted on April 25, 2012 by | Leave a comment

When it comes to customer service and determining if your business is meeting its clients’ needs, online feedback surveys are one of the best ways to ascertain your successes and failures. With a few simple online tools and carefully crafted questions, you can gain valuable insight from your customers that will lead you to more profit and happier consumers.

There are key reasons why your business should regularly implement satisfaction surveys. First, the responses will help you gauge how well you have performed with your customers – your source of income. Second, surveys help you understand the unmet needs of your customers and tailor your service strategies to meet those demands. And finally, surveys enable you to gather information about new ideas, products and services that your customers are after.

Effective Online Surveys

To get the most out of your customer satisfaction survey, the questions need to focus on the entire consumer experience. This includes initial conversations, the quality of service received, the products themselves, ease of payment, and closing details.

QuestionPro makes it easy to create online surveys that measure customer satisfaction. Our surveys include a large library of industry standard templates and questions that have been pre-tested by experts. QuestionPro has the tools to automate responses and analyze the data in a quick and clear manner. And all this can be done quickly and easily.

You do not need to be a programming expert to create a survey with QuestionPro. The questionnaires are easily configured with QuestionPro’s intuitive wizard interface, which you can then customized to fit your company. The responses are tabulated and given to you in a layout that includes charts and graphs. Which means you don’t need to employ a team of experts with degrees in statistics or analytics to analyze the data.

Two Keys to Survey Success

Once you are ready to implement customer surveys, there are two critical components that you must keep in mind. First, make the process of completing the survey painless for the customer. Use approximately six questions that won’t take more than 30 seconds to a minute to complete. Write the questions in an easy to read manner, and make the survey accessible from mobile devices.

Second, be sure to DO SOMETHING with the data. This is critical to ensuring your customers that you are listening to them. There is no point in collection customer satisfaction data if you don’t plan to use it to improve your service. The customer is taking the time to complete the survey; make sure you show them you are listening.

Customer satisfaction surveys are one of the most effective ways to measure your company’s successes, areas for improvement, and get critical feedback from your revenue sources. QuestionPro makes this a painless process to implement without the special skills of computer programmers and analytic experts. Do not ignore this quick and easy tool to get instant feedback.

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Posted in Uncategorized