Todd Hollander Market Research

A common mistake made by those conducting online surveys is failing to send reminder emails to potential respondents. Another common mistake is to send out too many reminders. Here is some advice that will help you develop an effective reminder system.

Failing to send reminder emails to potential survey participants can result in unacceptable response rates. Conversely, annoying respondents by sending too many reminders can adversely affect both the response rate and the quality of the data collected. Therefore, it is important to send the right number of reminders with the right wording at the right time.

One of the reasons some researchers fail to send reminders is that they think the reminder should be sent only to those who have not yet completed the survey. The problem is they don’t know how to do it. Although it is possible to identify those who have already completed the survey, the tactics for doing this are risky and can be viewed as underhanded (see “How to calculate response rates for online surveys“).

The good news is that you can send an email reminder to everyone on the mailing list without annoying those who have already completed the survey. Here’s how…

1. Forward the original invitation
2. Change the Subject Line to: Reminder: [original invitation subject line]
3. Add this text at the top of the message: If you have already completed the survey, thank you. If you have not, please see below.

That’s all you need to do. Nine times out of 10, one reminder at the mid-point of the data collection period does the trick. Occasionally, a second reminder is needed. Important: Never send more than two reminder emails - it will only annoy people.

The bottom line: Some people will take your survey as soon as they receive the invitation email. Others will need a follow-up email reminder. One reminder at the mid-point of the data collection period is best. Never send more than two reminder emails.

E-mail invitations are the preferred method for requesting participation in online surveys. Here are a few tips for making sure your email invitation is well received and produces the results you want.

Email invitations for online surveys often include a personalized greeting. It is standard practice to include a hyperlink to the survey so respondents simply click on the link to launch the survey.

As a rule, the survey invitation should communicate:

1. That the recipient is being invited to take part in a marketing research study
2. The purpose of the research
3. Who is conducting the research
4. How to complete the survey
5. How long the survey will take
6. What the the incentive is (if any)
7. How the privacy of survey respondents is protected
8. That the recipient can opt out of further contact with the sender

I am often asked how much information about the survey should be revealed in the invitation. My advice is to include just enough information about the survey to garner an acceptable level of participation but not so much that you tip off potential respondents on either the screening requirements for completing the survey or the specific questions that will be asked. Here’s why: If the invitation contains too little information about the the survey and the incentive for completing it, the response rate may be too low; conversely, if too much information is revealed, some unqualified respondents could modify their responses to screening questions in order to ensure that they are allowed to participate.

Sample Invitation

From: jsmith@acmeresearch.com

Subject: Request for Help with Toothbrush Research

Message:

Dear Mrs. Jones,

You are invited to help improve a leading brand of toothbrush by taking part in a short survey. Please click www.acmeresearch.com/toothbrush to launch the survey.

As a token of our gratitude for taking part in this survey, you will be eligible to enter your name into a prize drawing for one of five $100 prepaid gas cards.

This survey is genuine marketing research. It should take no more than 10 minutes to complete and is being conducted in accordance with the CASRO guidelines. This that means your identity will not be revealed to any other company, and you will receive NO marketing as a result of taking part in this survey. If you want to know more about CASRO or Acme Research, click on one of the appropriate links at the bottom of this message.

To start the survey, please click this link: testsurvey.

Thanks and best regards,

John Smith
President
ACME Corporation
Address
City, ST, Zip
Toll-free phone: xxx
E-mail: jsmith@acmeresearch.com

To find out more about ACME Research, click here www.acmeresearch.com.

To read the CASRO guidelines, click here www.casro.org/codeofstandards.cfm.

To read the terms and conditions of the prize drawing associated with this survey, click here www.acmeresearch.com/project32/tc.

You were selected for this study from a list supplied by XYZ corporation. If you would like to find out more about XYZ or request that you be removed from their list, click www.XYZ.com/Privacy.htm

The bottom line: A well-constructed email invitation will not only increase the response rate for your online survey, but will also improve the the quality of data you receive from respondents.