Online Survey Basics

Some people take surveys right away because they like it. Taking surveys gives them an opportunity to share their opinions with the people who really matter. Others, who aren't so keen, tend to drag their feet, and as a result, miss out on a valuable opportunity to give feedback. 

Surveys are kind of boring, so I rarely, if ever, take a survey as soon as I receive it in my mailbox or email inbox. With paper surveys, this hasn't yet been an issue. With email surveys, on the other hand, slow and steady does not win the race.

The first time I encountered a survey with a time limit was when I bought a new laptop computer. The retailer emailed me a survey about the quality of its customer service. I waited at least a week before finally deciding to take it. Well, imagine my surprise when I clicked on the link for the survey and discovered that it was no longer available. Inferred message to consumer: Yeah, we cared what you thought about our customer service a week ago. Now, we couldn't care less.

The second time I encountered a survey with a time limit was when I received an email for a study targeted at writers. Again, I waited about a week before taking it and, again, felt surprised when I discovered that it wasn't available. Inferred message: Hey, we value your opinion, but we can't wait indefinitely for you to give it.

I understood the time limit on the second survey. But I couldn't understand why a retailer would limit the amount of time a customer had to give feedback about his customer service experience. But that's not the real issue here. 

The real issue is that neither email survey invitation indicated that I had a limited amount of time to participate in the survey. Had I known I that the survey would only be available to take for let's say—for the sake of argument—four days, then I would have made sure I got to it in four days or less.

Putting time limits on surveys, I've since learned, is not unusual and, according to Jonathan Rick, CEO of the Jonathan Rick Group, is actually a good idea. 

Time limiting is important, said Rick in an email interview, as long as the deadline is spelled out up front. (One point for me)

He went on to explain the purpose of putting time limits on surveys. Deadlines create an incentive for people to participate sooner rather than later [because] the sooner you can get your customer to the finish line, the greater your chance of closing the deal; memory and time are closely related, so the less time that passes between an experience and questions about it, the better one's memory of it will be; and data submitted after the survey results have been tabulated aren't helpful. (Three points for the survey creators)

Well, there you have it. Whether they like taking surveys or not, if consumers value opportunities to give feedback, they should try to take them as soon after receiving them as possible. And if businesses or researchers really value public opinion, they might want to consider letting the public know "up front" that their surveys have deadlines.