How to write a survey people finish

People finish surveys that are short, clear and easy to start. Ask only what you will act on, put one idea in each question, open with an easy question, and test the survey on one or two people before you share it.

This guide is from the team behind Sibr, a polling, survey and paid-study app on the Internet Computer, open to Pi Network users and everyone else. The advice works on any survey tool; the last section shows how to apply it on Sibr.

Why do people quit surveys?

Most people quit because the survey asks for more effort than they expected. Common causes:

• Too many questions. Effort adds up with every screen.
• Unclear questions. If people have to reread a question, many guess or leave.
• Hard questions early. A long text box on the first screen feels like homework.
• No sense of progress. People want to know how much is left.

SurveyMonkey analysed about 100,000 of its surveys and found that people spend less time on each question as a survey gets longer: around 30 seconds per question for questions 3 to 10, and around 19 seconds per question by questions 26 to 30. In a separate analysis, the sharpest rise in drop-off came with each added question up to about 15 questions. Shorter answers are not always worse, but rushing is a sign that attention is fading. Survey researchers call this "satisficing": giving an answer that is good enough instead of a careful one.

How long should a survey be?

Make it as short as your decision allows. A useful test: for each question, write down what you will do differently depending on the answer. If you cannot name an action, cut the question.

As a rough guide:

If you only have one question, you probably want a poll, not a survey. See Polls vs surveys.

How do I write clear questions?

Clear questions are short, specific and ask about one thing.

• One idea per question. "How happy are you with our price and quality?" is two questions. Pew Research Center calls these double-barreled questions and advises splitting them.
• Use everyday words. Write the way you would ask a friend.
• Be specific about time. "In the last month, how often did you..." beats "How often do you...".
• Give options that cover every case. Add "Other" or "None of these" when the list might not fit everyone.
• Keep options short and parallel. Similar length and grammar, so no option stands out.

For how wording and order can push people toward an answer, read How to get honest answers.

What order should questions go in?

Start easy, go from general to specific, and end with anything personal or open.

1. An easy first question that matches the survey title, so people feel they are in the right place.
2. The core questions, grouped by topic.
3. Rating questions after people have thought about the topic.
4. One optional open question at the end, such as "Anything we missed?".

Order matters for honesty as well as completion: an earlier question can change how people read a later one.

How do I make a survey feel quick?

• Show one question at a time on phones. Each screen feels small and progress is visible.
• Prefer choice questions over text. Tapping is faster than typing.
• Write a one-line introduction that says how long it takes and why it matters.
• Thank people and, where it fits, reward their time. See Paid surveys with Pi.

Should I test my survey first?

Yes. Pew Research Center describes pretesting as an essential step. Ask one or two people to answer while you watch, without helping. Note where they pause, reread or ask what you mean, and fix those questions. Ten minutes of testing often saves a whole round of unusable answers.

How to do it on Sibr

1. Sign in at sibr.online with Pi, or with Google, Apple or a passkey through Internet Identity.
2. Open Surveys and start a new survey. Pick Start from scratch or one of five templates: Customer feedback, Event feedback, Product research, Community opinion or Quick rating. You can change everything afterwards.
3. Add up to 20 questions. Each can be single choice, multiple choice, a rating from 1 to 5, or a text answer. Choice questions take 2 to 10 options.
4. Set when the survey opens and closes, and optionally limit it to certain countries or add a SIBR reward for each completed response.
5. Publish, then share the link or the QR code. Anyone with the link can open the survey; answering needs a Sibr account.
6. People answer one question at a time by default, and can switch to see all questions at once.
7. Watch results arrive and check Completion by question to see where people stop. See Results, insights and CSV export.

Sources

• SurveyMonkey, survey completion times research (about 100,000 surveys): https://www.surveymonkey.com/curiosity/survey_completion_times/
• SurveyMonkey, survey questions and completion rates research: https://www.surveymonkey.com/curiosity/survey_questions_and_completion_rates/
• Pew Research Center, Writing Survey Questions: https://www.pewresearch.org/writing-survey-questions/
• Krosnick, J. A. (1991). Response strategies for coping with the cognitive demands of attitude measures in surveys. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 5(3), 213 to 236.