Write the questionnaire for your market research
Some tips and pitfalls to avoid when writing your questionnaireIn order to collect quality information, the questionnaire must be clear, concise and understandable by all. poll&roll gives you some tips for a successful questionnaire.
Structure your questionnaire
The order of the questions is an important element for the quality of the answers.
Care should be taken to start with simple, general questions to identify the target audience and introduce the topic of the questionnaire. These questions are also often used as a filter for the rest of the questionnaire.
EXAMPLE
What categories of beverages have you purchased in the last 3 months ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
This type of question also makes it possible to categorize or select respondents according to the needs of the study.
EXAMPLE
If we use the example above, we can decide that :
- only those who select « beers » will continue the study
- or that some questions will only be asked to fruit juice buyers
Then, like a funnel, the following questions will get to the heart of the subject, and will lead the respondent to reflect in more detail on the study theme.
EXAMPLE
How many glasses of fruit juice do you drink per week ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
The most implicit or complex questions will be placed at the end. This is particularly the case for open-ended questions that require a personal opinion or questions on intimate matters.
Our advice for a successful questionnaire
Keep your objectives in mind. What information are you looking for through the questionnaire? How will I use this question? Each question must be useful and relevant to the study.
Pay attention to the length of the questionnaire. Be careful to keep the number of questions to a minimum in order to avoid tiring the respondent, and thus degrading the quality of the answers collected.
Test your questionnaire It is important to have the questionnaire reviewed before sending it out. This makes it possible to detect any misunderstandings in the wording or order of the questions. At poll&roll, our experts review your questionnaire and suggest optimizations before it is put online.
When you write your questions....
Be concise
Try to use as few words as possible for each question and answer item.
EXAMPLE
Would you subscribe to this service if it were offered by your operator at a price that suits you ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
EXAMPLE
Would you subscribe to this service?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
Avoid professional jargon
The words chosen must be understood by everyone, even by people unfamiliar with the subject and the study.
Stay objective
Questions must be formulated in a neutral manner and must not induce or suggest answers to ensure the reliability of the results obtained.
EXAMPLE
Do you find the price of this service interesting ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
EXAMPLE
How do you rate the price of this service ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
Attention to response intervals
The bearings must not overlap.
EXAMPLE
How old are you ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
EXAMPLE
How old are you ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
Ask simple questions
Avoid mixing several elements.
EXAMPLE
Would you go to the XXX restaurant more often if it offered themed evenings ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
EXAMPLE
Would you be interested in theme evenings ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
EXAMPLE
How often would you attend the theme evenings ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
Avoid ambiguities
Choose formulations that do not leave room for interpretation.
EXAMPLE
How often do you wash your car ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
EXAMPLE
Would you be interested in theme evenings ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
Build your lists with care
The lists must be complete but concise. Try to cover as many cases as possible, without embarrassing yourself with rare or atypical answers. Be sure to provide an exit route for the respondent who would not find a suitable answer on the list.
EXAMPLE
On which social networks are you registered ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
EXAMPLE
On which social networks are you registered ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
The different types of questions
The choice of the type of question is decisive in the accuracy and ease of analysis of the results obtained. There are 3 main types of questions :
Closed questions
Used for simple questions where the majority of the answers can be anticipated by a list of answers. It can be single or multiple response.
EXAMPLE
Are you... ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
EXAMPLE
Do you have a driver's license ?
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
EXAMPLE
What sports do you play ?
MULTIPLE ANSWER QUESTION
Advantages
- Questions that are simple to answer, but also to process and interpret
- Ideal for quantifying behaviours or habits, or for creating profiles
Disadvantages
- Limit and influence responses through the proposed list
- It is important to build the list of answers correctly: as exhaustive as possible. Do not forget a « none » or « other » option
Opened questions
The interviewee is free to write his or her answer.
EXAMPLE
What do you like about this product ?
OPENED QUESTION
Advantages
- The richness and spontaneity of the responses collected
- Respondents are not limited, either in response length or by a preconceived list of responses
Disadvantages
- The analysis of opened questions is long and complex, and must be carried out partly « by hand »
- Opened questions often lead to a refusal to answer by respondents
The scales
Collect answers according to a size ratio.
The scales can be numerical or semantic.
Numeric scale :
EXAMPLE
To what extent are you satisfied or not with our services (0 means that you are not satisfied at all, 10 means that you are completely satisfied. Intermediate notes are used to nuance your answer)
SCALE
Semantic scale :
EXAMPLE
To what extent are you satisfied or not with our services (1 means that you are not satisfied at all, 10 means that you are completely satisfied. Intermediate notes are used to nuance your answer)
SINGLE-ANSWER QUESTION
Advantages
- Scales allow us to nuance quantitative responses
- They also allow to calculate average scores and scores based on semantic elements
Disadvantages
- The interpretation of scales can be subjective. Be careful to write them precisely and to explain the meaning of the numerical scales.
Examples of questionnaires
Do you want to start from a solid base to structure your questionnaire? That's what our sample questionnaires are for!
Examples of questions
Feel free to consult our sample questions to write your questionnaire.
To go further...
A well-designed questionnaire is not sufficient to ensure the quality of the information collected. Properly defining its target and sample size are also key steps in your study.
help Learn more about defining the target