How many times have you been stopped in the street and asked your opinion on the latest brand of mayonnaise, the policies of a political party or if you think your town should spend more on Christmas decorations? Surveys are a tried and trusted way of gathering data on people’s opinions and can carry some serious clout. Now thanks to the Internet, online surveys are even more effective as a data gathering tool, with a much wider reach and consequently, a greater influence on business decisions.

There is a saying that if you put five scientists in a room you’ll come out with ten opinions. It seems everyone has an opinion about everything. The trick of successful online surveys is that they have the ability to collate a mountain of data effectively. By using careful analysis techniques of the data, you can find out what people think of your latest advertising campaign, for example. If the response is negative, it enables you to move quickly to rectify the situation, stopping you wasting money and time on advertising that doesn’t work.

What kind of data do online surveys produce?

It really depends on what kind of questions you ask. Generic questions will produce generic responses, so if you want your online surveys to be effective business tools you need to quantify exactly what you want to know the answer to in the first place. Be specific - by keeping your response times short you will generate a far better level of response than if your survey is too involved, too complicated or asks too many diverse questions. Pick a topic that will give you an insight into a specific area of your business, for example are you using too much packaging? If the majority of responses come back as yes, then you are in a position to restructure the packaging side of your business and make some considerable cost savings in the process.

Online surveys can be data mined for information instantly. Choose an online survey software package that allows you to correlate the responses as they come in. This will give you a graphic representation of how people are responding to your survey in real time, meaning that you don’t have to wait for weeks for the data to be analysed by more traditional methods.

Understand the responses to your online surveys

Once you have the data in from your online surveys you can then be pro-active in your response to your customer’s opinions. If they don’t like the colour of your new vacuum cleaner, you can change it straight away before launching it onto the market. Pre-launch product surveys can save both money and your company’s reputation and prevent you from making a costly mistake. But you have to understand what motivates people to respond in the way that they do, so if your product is aimed at a particular demographic then ensure that your survey is also aimed at the same group. There’s no point in gathering data from a 45-65 age group if your product is aimed at teenagers. Survey the people you want to buy your product. It engages them with you on a very personal level and they feel more involved with the decision making process, rather than simply having a new product thrust upon them. As a result, your product will stand a far better chance of being successful.

Online surveys are quick and easy to construct and produce effective data that can help to push your business forward. If you’re not sure how to create an online survey for yourself then talk to a professional agency who have the experience and marketing ability to create it for you. They will also help you to analyse the results effectively and draw the best conclusions from the data your survey generates. Online surveys are remarkably effective business tools that give you a great ROI, help you make important business decisions and engage your customers.