Using an online survey to help gain loyal visitors

[netsavy006]

There is a free service out there that you can use to make your own survey for your website, blog, or forum:



http://www.surveymonkey.com



When you visit the website, you create an account (username, password, website). Once your account is created, then you go on to creating your customized survey. It's best to make the survey no more than 5 or 6 questions.



Why this survey thing is good for your site/blog/forum, is because you can put questions in there that you can use to help your site, like you can make one question along the lines of:



How can we improve this website? or What features would you like to see added in the future?



So, by creating a survey, you can collect data to help you make a better website, blog or forum.



When you are finished with your survey creation, they will give you the link to your survey, and provide further instruction on how to set it up on your website/blog or forum.



If you'd like to see one set up, you can visit my blog (located in signature), and on the left navigation locate the link, Click here to answer a one question survey (it's on the left side right under the logo banner).



Well I thank you for taking the time to read this and I hope this helps you out and I hope that the survey creations will help you with helping to get and keep loyal visitors to your website, blog, forum.



Andy...

 

[Jazzy]

To be frank and honest, most people can't be arsed with filling out a survery. If a site owner doesn't know him/herself how to keep making improvements, then no survey in the world is going to help.

 

[netsavy006]

Well the improvements that you can make to your site/blog/forum could be all in the questions that you ask.



You could have a site that has a lot of pictures in it but doesn't have a gallery, but you never thought to put in a gallery, but thanks to one of the questions you may have thought to put in the survey, a person mentioned putting your pictures in a gallery.



Now, that gives you something to work off of.



Or you can ask the question about what you'd like to learn on this site, and people may reply with answers that you may not of thought of providing, and that gives you content ideas.



This is just a couple of examples of how I see the survey as a good thing.



But I do understand and respect your point on how people may not want to take a survey, which is why I say not to make it lengthy, because people wouldn't want to fill out survey's that are many questions and pages long.

 

[Jazzy]

Most sites like Off Topix have a suggestion and feedback area designated. To leave a suggestion or give feedback, there is no time comsuming survery to complete. I don't care if it's only two questions, I'm not going to bother answering them and will just move on to the next thread. Not trying to give you a hard time, Andy, and I appreciate your point of view as well. I'm just speaking for myself and others might be willing to take a survey.

 

[Ashley]

To be frank and honest, most people can't be arsed with filling out a survery. If a site owner doesn't know him/herself how to keep making improvements, then no survey in the world is going to help.

I'm one of those people, to be honest. I'd rather put my thoughts/opinions on what I want to see added or removed in the feedback section, rather than a survey. Besides that, will those things even be accurate? I suppose it depends on the memberbase. I'd never use this on any forum I have. Wouldn't be worth it.

 

[Nebulous]

I don't think its really necessary, if you have a feedback section on your forum, then that's all you really need.

 

[Ashley]

I don't think its really necessary, if you have a feedback section on your forum, then that's all you really need.

Agreed. Many forums have a thread in the feedback section with something like, what is your favorite and least favorite thing about 'insert forum name here' and I think that kind of survey is more than enough. You don't need to go all out and be detailed right away.