Surveying your members without annoying them

Surveys are one of the easiest ways to learn what your members think, and one of the easiest ways to irritate them. A long questionnaire that arrives out of the blue, asks for ratings on twenty features and then disappears without any visible result teaches members that their time is not valued. Next time, they will not bother to open it.

A good member survey is different. It is short, it arrives at a sensible moment, it asks questions the member can answer easily, and it leads to something the member can see. This guide covers how to plan, write and send surveys that members are happy to complete, and that give you answers you can use.

Decide what you will do with the answers first

Before you write a single question, write down the decision the survey will help you make. “Find out what members think” is too vague. “Decide which of three new workshop topics to run first” or “understand why members stop attending live sessions” is specific enough to shape your questions.

If you cannot name a decision, you probably do not need a survey. You may already have the answer in your activity data, your support inbox or the reasons members give when they cancel. The question box on your cancellation page is itself a tiny, well-timed survey.

Keep it short

The single most effective way to avoid annoying members is to ask fewer questions. Every extra question lowers the number of people who finish and the care they take over the answers.

• One question is often enough, especially when it is embedded in an email or appears after an event.
• Three to five questions suits most regular surveys.
• Longer surveys should be rare, clearly optional and honest about how long they take.

Cut any question where you already know the answer, where the answer would not change what you do, or where you are only asking because it seems interesting.

Time it to the moment

A question asked at the right moment gets better answers than the same question asked at random. Link surveys to points in the member's journey:

• A week or two after joining: what made you join, and what are you hoping to achieve?
• Straight after a live event or course: what was most useful, and what would you change?
• After a support conversation: did we solve your problem?
• Once a year: a slightly longer check-in about the membership as a whole.

Keep track of who has been asked what, so no member receives several surveys in a short period. A simple rule, such as no more than one survey per member every couple of months, protects goodwill.

Write questions worth asking

Good questions are specific, neutral and easy to answer. Compare these:

• Weak: “How satisfied are you with our amazing new resource library?” Better: “In the past month, how often did you use the resource library?”
• Weak: “What features would you like?” Better: “What is one thing you tried to do on the site recently but couldn't?”
• Weak: “Would you pay more for live coaching?” Better: “Which of these would help you most right now?” followed by a short list.

Avoid leading words, questions that ask about two things at once, and hypothetical questions about future spending, which people answer optimistically. Include at least one open question, because members' own words are often the most useful part of any survey. Questions members send you unprompted are valuable too, and you can turn member questions into your next month of content.

A sample five-question survey

Here is an illustration for a professional association for independent physical therapists, sent once a year:

1. Which part of your membership did you use most in the past year? (Continuing education courses, the resource library, the member forum, networking events, the newsletter)
2. How well does the membership help you run your practice? (Not at all, a little, quite well, very well)
3. What is one topic you would like us to cover in a course or webinar?
4. What, if anything, nearly made you leave the association?
5. Is there anything else you would like to tell us? (Optional)

It takes about three minutes, mixes quick choices with open answers, and every question maps to a decision about programming, content or retention.

Invite members in a way they will answer

The invitation matters as much as the survey. Say how long it takes, why you are asking and what you will do with the answers:

Subject: Three minutes to shape our upcoming courses

Hi Priya,

We're planning the continuing education program for the coming year, and we'd like it to reflect what members actually need. Would you answer five quick questions? It takes about three minutes.

We'll share what we heard and what we're changing once the results are in.

Then keep that promise. Sharing results, even briefly, is what makes members willing to answer next time. It also shows that feedback leads somewhere, which is a retention benefit in its own right.

Plan your next survey

1. Write down the decision the survey will inform.
2. Check whether you already have the answer in your data or support inbox.
3. Draft no more than five questions, including one open question.
4. Remove leading wording and any question that asks about two things.
5. Choose a moment in the member journey and a limit on how often each member is asked.
6. Write a short invitation that says how long it takes and what happens next.
7. Share a summary of results with members, and compare them with what members give as reasons for cancelling.

Ask less, ask at the right time and show that you listened. Members will keep answering, and you will keep learning.