| 2. Ask
questions that provide the information
you need - Always keep your objective and
the information that you need to gather
to achieve it in mind while asking the
questions. Also, it is best to avoid the
temptation to gather "extra"
bits of information that are "nice
to know" but irrelevant to your
objective. 3. Ask important questions
first, demographic questions last - Since
it is very easy for online survey
respondents to abandon your survey,
always ask the important questions first
and the demograhic questions last.
4.
Organize the questions in logical groups
- Always organize the questions in
logical groups. It makes it easier for
your respondents to understand and answer
the questions, thus increasing the
quality of the results.
5. Use
plain, easy to understand language - The
most effective surveys always use plain,
easy to understand language. Using
unclear or ambiguous language will give
you misleading results. So test your
survey thoroughly to ensure that it is
indeed easy to understand.
6. Avoid
technical terms, jargon, and acronyms -
If you use technical terms, jargon, and
acronyms, your respondents might not
understand them, get frustrated, and
abandon your survey. So strictly avoid
them.
7. Use
even number of responses - Whenever
possible, use even number of responses
for multiple choice questions. That way
the respondents have to give a positive
or a negative opinion, they can't give a
"neutral" answer.
8.
Randomize the responses - Whenever it
makes sense, randomize the order in which
responses are displayed. This removes
"order bias" from the
responses.
9. Avoid
unnecessary graphics and embedded
components - Although it might be
tempting to use graphics and embedded
components, their use increases the time
it takes to download and display your
survey. So use them only when it is
absolutely necessary and certainly don't
overdo it.
10. Be
sensitive to the feelings of your
respondents - Always be sensitive to the
feelings of your respondents. If you
offend them, they might abandon your
survey. So test your survey to ensure
that it is not offending to any group of
people.
11.
Thank the respondents - Your respondents
spend the time to take your survey. So
never forget to thank them for completing
the survey.
12. Keep
it short - As a general rule, keep your
survey short, simple, and to the point.
© Web
Based Survey Software (http://www.web-based-survey-software.org) 2004
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