Multiply Your Respondents by Offering the Right Incentives

One major way to improve the response rate to your survey is to offer a prize or reward with it. No matter what reward you deem appropriate, it is important that it also suits your respondent. If it is an impractical gift or prize that cannot be used at his location, he will not be wasting time in taking your surveys anymore.

There are several types of surveys; targeting specific needs of the surveyor. Two of the most common are customer feedback and customer satisfaction surveys. Many of the survey makers get confused between the two, and therefore, lose a good opportunity to collect relevant input from customers.

Types of Incentives:

There are three basic types of incentives. You, first, need to decide which one you can afford to offer.

» Individual Prizes

Every survey that gets completed earns your respondent a reward of monetary value. This means that all those who attempt your survey get something in return. The gifts don’t have to be expensive. They could be anything from a $5 Starbucks card to a donation to their favored charity. However, don’t go overboard with redeem cards and only promise what you can fulfill without going bankrupt.

» Summary of Results

• This reward is advantageous in two ways:
• It’s relatively cheaper.
• It’s very appealing for business-to- business survey respondents.

Although this is a low cost option for your survey, you must keep in mind the dedicated resources to create (write and design) the summary so that it can be presented in a professional manner.

» A Sweepstake Reward

Since your respondents only get a ‘chance to win’ reward, the monetary value or usability is preferably kept higher. You could offer a chance to win PlayStation 4, or better yet, a chance to win free products from your own range. This is a surefire way to arouse interest to your survey. The winner should be selected randomly from the respondents

Things You Should Consider!

Once you have selected the type of incentive, it is imperative to keep in mind the following advice:

» Where is the Winner?

When you allow your respondents to opt into your offer, they are sure to provide contact info. Give them a detailed contact form so that you are well aware where to send them their gifts.

» How much will it cost to get it there?

Once the respondents complete the survey, it’s time for you to fulfill your promise. Where items like gift cards and summary of results can be granted immediately, other material or low cost gifts like free products of your brand will need to be shipped to your winner’s specific location. That sort of prize may not cost your company anything in purchase but it may cost a lot on shipment charges, especially, if you have a global clientele or a variety of respondents from different cultures. Be prepared for these hidden costs.

» Make sure the incentive has value to the respondent.

You need to make sure that what you offer to the respondent can actually be used by him. Don’t send Starbucks gift cards to a respondent living in South Africa. Your respondent’s contact form should provide enough information for you to decide how you can encourage him to complete the survey and be ready for more.

Hope these tips will be helpful in multiplying the number of your respondents. If you have any suggestions, do leave them in the comments below.