Community Alive: Using Surveys to Harvest Meaningful Feedback from Your Constituents

1. Community Alive: Using Surveys to Harvest Meaningful Feedback from Your Constituents August 20, 2004

2. Session Goals • Understand value of online surveys for Non Profit Organizations • Learn how to design and deploy a survey • Learn how to customize a survey to your needs • Learn tips for optimal survey design and analysis MarketTools, Inc.

3. Online Surveys Online Surveys- one of the most meaningful investments you can make • An interactive constituency – the bedrock of a successful nonprofit • Harvest previously unavailable compelling information and tie it into your work • Connect with your community at lightning speed • Use surveys for fundraising, advocacy, programming, membership building, communication and marketing • Information yields intelligent innovation MarketTools, Inc.

4. Online Surveys Tools Online survey tools: • Collect vital feedback within minutes to help you make important decisions • Are fast, easy-to-use and affordable (no paperwork, mailing costs or experts needed) • Can be a key component of your community building efforts MarketTools, Inc.

5. Create and Deploy a Survey How to Create and Deploy a Survey • If you can use e-mail, you can create and deploy a survey MarketTools, Inc.

6. Create and Deploy a Survey • Select Survey Type MarketTools, Inc.

7. Create and Deploy a Survey • Choose Design Theme • Edit Survey Title • Modify (if from template) or Insert Questions MarketTools, Inc.

8. Create and Deploy a Survey • Address Survey • Enter names • Choose List • Import new list MarketTools, Inc.

9. Create and Deploy a Survey • Create Email Invitation MarketTools, Inc.

10. Create and Deploy a Survey • Deploy/Launch Survey MarketTools, Inc.

11. Create and Deploy a Survey • Analyze Results MarketTools, Inc.

12. Survey Best Practices “If you build it (smartly) they will come” • A well-planned survey yields the highest response rates and the most meaningful data • 10 tips to elicit valuable feedback and improve quantity of your survey response rates MarketTools, Inc.

13. Survey Best Practices Tip #1: • Clearly define the purpose of the survey • (fuzzy goals = fuzzy results) • What is the goal of this survey? • How will you use the data you are collecting? MarketTools, Inc.

14. Survey Best Practices Tip #2: • Keep the survey short and focused • Shorter surveys yield higher response rates and lower abandonment rates • Survey-taking should not exceed 10 minutes MarketTools, Inc.

15. Survey Best Practices Tip #3: • Keep the questions simple • Be specific, direct and don’t use jargon MarketTools, Inc.

16. Survey Best Practices Tip #4: • Used closed-ended questions whenever possible • More practical for data analysis • Yes/no, multiple choice or rating scale MarketTools, Inc.

17. Survey Best Practices Tip #5: • Keep rating scale questions consistent MarketTools, Inc.

18. Survey Best Practices Tip #6: • Make sure your survey flows in a logical order • Inverted pyramid model – from broad to narrow in scope MarketTools, Inc.

19. Survey Best Practices Tip #7: • Pre-test your survey MarketTools, Inc.

20. Survey Best Practices Tip #8: • Tuesday and Wednesday are optimal launch days if sending survey via e-mail • Avoid Friday, Saturday or Sunday MarketTools, Inc.

21. Survey Best Practices Tip #9: • Consider using reminders MarketTools, Inc.

22. Survey Best Practices Tip #:10 • Consider offering an incentive • Boosts response rates by 50% MarketTools, Inc.

23. Survey Templates • A dash of inspiration… • NPO Survey Templates MarketTools, Inc.

24. Survey Templates • Fundraising Survey Template MarketTools, Inc.

25. Survey Templates • Volunteer Satisfaction Survey Template MarketTools, Inc.

26. Survey Templates • Membership Survey Template MarketTools, Inc.

27. Case Study • You’ve created a quality survey which produced a wealth of data…now what? • Start by looking at surveys-in-action MarketTools, Inc.

28. Case Study: Main Line Health • Case Study: Main Line Health • How a nonprofit healthcare provider used results from an online survey to create a new service MarketTools, Inc.

29. Case Study: Main Line Health Background: • Main Line Health is a Philadelphia-based healthcare provider with 7,700 employees and 1,300 physician customers. They were seeking feedback on how to best focus resources. • Used focus groups and telephone surveys in past, but wanted to economize and optimize market research dollars. MarketTools, Inc.

30. Case Study: Main Line Health Situation: • What are the needs of our customers? • Specifically, are female patients interested in the concept of an online menopause information service? MarketTools, Inc.

31. Case Study: Main Line Health Main Line Health Survey: • Designed a survey for a targeted group of respondents • Survey consisted of nine questions • Survey inquired about respondent’s interest in proposed services • Also inquired if respondent had a GYN physician and, if not, if she wanted to be contacted about scheduling an appointment. MarketTools, Inc.

32. Case Study: Main Line Health Results: • 100 responses in first couple of hours • 11.6% response rate exceeded expectations and competed with rates of major companies with large marketing budgets. MarketTools, Inc.

33. Case Study: Main Line Health More Results: • Developed their Online Menopause Information service • Received 25 new physician appointments –immediately recouped survey subscription cost • Made successful transition from traditional pen and paper surveys to survey software • Now use online surveys for eliciting feedback about their Web site and collecting research for employee recruitment evaluations. MarketTools, Inc.

34. Summary • A well-defined, targeted survey enables you to easily process results, intuitively draw conclusions and intelligently relate these conclusions back to your work. • Through online surveys, nonprofits can become more responsive, efficient and successful organizations that serve their communities to their fullest potential. MarketTools, Inc.