Friends often complain that they are always unable to complete survey invitations after finally receiving them, which dampens their enthusiasm for participating in online surveys. Let’s briefly talk about this very common and realistic problem. First of all, we must have a clear understanding that online surveys, like other types of market research, have a target population, so it is completely normal to be told that they do not meet the requirements. It is not that the survey websites and companies are deliberately making things difficult for the participants. At the same time, there are indeed some tips for participating in online surveys that can better help you answer the survey smoothly.
First, always take the initiative to check whether there are survey invitations and participate in online surveys as soon as possible. Don’t think that there is no difference in when you participate in the survey after receiving the survey letter. The fact is that the earlier you participate, the more likely you are to complete the survey task. The reason is very simple. Each questionnaire has a certain target group setting and sample size setting. For example, a company hopes to collect 100 opinions of consumers aged 25 to 30 on car brands. Each member of this age group will receive an invitation to the survey, and obviously only the first 100 completers will. is considered valid. To borrow an advertising slogan: Take the first step and get the upper hand!
Second, pay attention to the “none of the above” option, that is often the option you really need. In the first few questions of many surveys, there will be something like this: "Are you working for the following companies: 1.XX; 2.XX; 3.XX; 4. None of the above." Many friends will be confused by this and speculate. Is this survey focused on a certain field listed in 1, 2, and 3, and specifically choose a certain option? What I want to explain is that more than 90% of the possibility of this question is to exclude people in related fields from participating in the survey to avoid affecting the reliability of the survey results. So the correct and desired answer is "none of the above."
Third, ensure consistency in answering the questionnaire before and after. Nowadays, many survey companies' questionnaires are hosted by their partners, so in fact, the authenticity of the answers in the answers to online questionnaires is not so strict. But precisely because of this situation, in order to ensure the quality of the survey, the same question is often asked multiple times in different positions of the questionnaire. So my suggestion is that when answering the questionnaire, you should at least know what questions you are answering and what your answers are.
Fourth, never make the simplest logical mistakes. How would you feel if you were browsing the results of a questionnaire and found that someone was 60 years old, unmarried, and had children 6 years old? So as with the previous advice, at least know what you are answering.
These tips are not meant to teach participants how to "cheat"! In fact, I think the best way is to take every questionnaire seriously, even if you find it annoying no matter how long or numerous the questionnaire is. You can go have a cup of coffee, stretch your legs and feet before coming back, but don’t answer randomly without looking at the questions. This not only affects your personal credibility, but also affects the quality of the survey results, and even creates a trust crisis in online surveys. What's more, doesn't a more complex investigation mean a richer reward?