Industry surveys are essential for businesses to gather data about their current and potential markets. Though industry surveys are immensely beneficial, they can also be a massive waste of time, money, and other resources if not done correctly. To help you avoid pitfalls in your next industry survey, we’ve discussed tips for creating an engaging industry survey that will drive optimal responses.

  1. Reflect On the Type of Questions that Need to be Answered

To create an effective industry survey, you need to be able to objectively reflect on the type of questions that need to be answered. You cannot put your personal bias or desires into the equation because it will skew the results and make the data useless for you. 

Put yourself in the customer’s shoes, and ask yourself what you would want to know if you were in their position. Ensure there is a balance between what you want and what you need. It’s easy to get distracted by your own needs or wants, but they may not be as relevant to a customer’s experience.

Next, remember that keeping the objective resonating in every question is very important. Don’t derail no matter how tempting. Each question should systematically lead to achieving the objective; otherwise, you have a lengthy list of questions that represent a lot of effort on behalf of your audience—and they will get tired of it before they even finish!

  1. Make Sure Your Questions Are Straight to the Point to Obtain Stronger Answers

Data that cannot be analyzed is useless, so ask clear and easy-to-understand questions.

You should avoid open-ended questions unless you’re okay with receiving open-ended answers. Be more specific with the questions. For example, instead of asking, “What are some ways you can increase your income?” ask, “Are you planning on working more hours or getting a side job? Or something else?

Lastly, avoid asking questions that have “and” if there’s more than one answer. For example, don’t ask, “Which would you choose: a higher salary or better benefits?” because people might want both! Instead, ask about each one separately.

  1. Two Key Factors When Conducting Industry Surveys: Ethicality and Honesty

When you set out to conduct research in a specific field, there are two key factors that you’ll want to keep in mind: ethicality and honesty. There are legal and ethical requirements for research, so adhering to these is of the utmost importance. 

However, being critical of your data and results is just as important as abiding by the law when it comes to industry surveys.

If your industry survey is focused on one specific area or topic in your field, you want to ensure that your results are presented truthfully and without bias. 

Even if you don’t find any groundbreaking information or significant trends, you must accurately report the methodology and results. It will only make you look worse if you try to bury negative data—it’s much better to take a critical look at your findings and draw honest conclusions based on what your research has revealed.

Final Thought

In conclusion, conducting an industry survey is not just about asking questions and getting answers. There should be a standard for doing so. You need to take your time and follow the procedure outlined above.  It is an excellent call most times to reach out to professional industry survey platforms. To help you keep up with this standard and avoid bias, reach out to Grapedata. We can create a custom survey for you to get the results you need without having to worry about whether or not they are accurate or unbiased. Get started now.