10 Benefits of Online Surveys

With such good free online survey apps available to businesses, there is no excuse for ignoring this most useful of marketing tools. Online surveys are the perfect combination of low cost and high effectiveness. Here are 10 of their specific advantages:

1. Cost. Online surveys are far cheaper than telephone, postal or interview-based surveys, thanks to the lower manpower involved and the higher degree of automation.
   
2. Analytics. Free online survey tools make collating and analyzing your data easier than ever before, as well as opening up a world of possibilities for SMEs that were previously only available to large polling companies.
   
3. Coverage. Online surveys can reach as many clients or potential customers as you want. Whether they take place as part of an email blitz or they are open to anyone visiting a website, the level of coverage is entirely up to the enterprise in question.
   
4. Accuracy. You get more honest and candid results from respondents filling in surveys by themselves and in their own time, without a pollster ready to interpret answers or answers skewed by an interviewer being present.
   
5. Data. The information harvested from online surveys is not just limited to question responses. A well-crafted survey can also discover a lot of information about the respondent's lifestyle and consumer preferences, which is very useful for later marketing efforts.
   
6. Ease of use. Respondents find online surveys easy to understand and complete, while marketers find them easy to find the feedback they are looking for, especially with the tools available with online survey apps.
   
7. Personalization. The kind of software available today makes it possible to personalize online surveys with company information, randomized questions, and various forms of protection to keep data private and safe.
   
8. Self-improvement. Online surveys are not only for gauging customers' preferences; they are also a great barometer for one's own business. Use surveys to discover your enterprise's strengths and weaknesses.
   
9. Goals. When an online survey is designed with a specific business goal in mind, it becomes an incredibly focused and powerful tool. Make goals clear ahead of crafting your survey and you cannot go far wrong.
   
10. Competitive advantage. Surveys can also be used to find out how customers view your nearest market rivals. In this way you can stay ahead of the pack.