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You shouldn't feel pressured to bulk up a survey with questions. The more questions you ask, the less likely it is that a customer will finish the survey. As a rule of thumb, ask no more than 10 questions, and preferably fewer. For example, you might only want to know someone's overall experience. In that situation, you can simply ask, "Please rate your overall experience on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the worst and 10 the best." You can glean more information from a customer if you ask questions that can't be answered with a "yes" or "no." For example, don't ask, "Were you happy with your experience?" Instead, you can ask, "What would you change about our business to improve it?" The second question can't be answered with a "yes" or "no." If you use open-ended questions, you must decide where to put them. Some experts suggest putting them at the front of the survey so they are answered first. However, recent research suggests that open-ended questions can make a customer more positive than they normally would be when filling out the rest of the survey. Accordingly, you might want to put them at the end. You'll only waste people's time if you ask a bunch of irrelevant questions. Instead, you can segment your customer base. For example, you don't need to ask recent customers their opinions about your customer support, since they probably haven't used support yet. Segment your customer base any way you want. For example, if you offer many different services, you can segment them based on the service they use. Alternately, you can segment customers based on how long they have done business with you. One reason so few people offer feedback is that they don't really think you care. However, you should assure customers that you will respond promptly if they have a problem. Write, "We will respond ASAP to any concerns." Remember to follow through. You'll harm your business' reputation if you promise to respond promptly but don't.
Ask only questions you want answers to. Consider open-ended questions. Tailor questions to your customers. Promise to respond promptly.