{"id":19689,"date":"2025-02-26T10:00:33","date_gmt":"2025-02-26T09:00:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/then.agency\/articoli\/survey"},"modified":"2026-10-07T22:34:08","modified_gmt":"2026-10-07T21:34:08","slug":"survey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/then.agency\/en\/articoli\/survey","title":{"rendered":"Surveys: how to gather insights and improve the experience"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>In the world of experience design \u2014 whether for users, customers or employees \u2014 one of the most effective and underrated tools is the <strong>survey<\/strong>. Used correctly, surveys are not simple questionnaires, but strategic levers able to guide every phase of the design cycle: from initial research to validating solutions, all the way to continuous improvement. Designing a survey does not simply mean asking questions, but structuring an effective listening channel, able to generate relevant, actionable insights.<\/p>\n<p>In this article we will see how to build effective surveys to improve the experience in <strong>UX (User Experience)<\/strong>, <strong>CX (Customer Experience)<\/strong> and <strong>EX (Employee Experience)<\/strong> contexts, with a look at best practices validated by industry leaders such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nngroup.com\/articles\/surveys\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Nielsen Norman Group<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.qualtrics.com\/experience-management\/research\/survey-design\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Qualtrics<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.medallia.com\/blog\/what-is-a-customer-experience-survey\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Medallia<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2>Why use a survey in an Experience Design project<\/h2>\n<p>Surveys are a tool for <strong>active listening<\/strong>, able to return quantitative and qualitative information directly from the people involved in the experience: end users, customers, employees.<\/p>\n<p>In UX, surveys help to:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>validate design hypotheses;<\/li>\n<li>collect post-interaction feedback;<\/li>\n<li>measure satisfaction.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In CX, they are essential for:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>tracking perception across touchpoints;<\/li>\n<li>identifying critical moments in the customer journey;<\/li>\n<li>calculating key metrics such as <a href=\"https:\/\/then.agency\/en\/articoli\/net-promoter-score-nps-what-it-is-and-why-it-matters\">NPS<\/a> and CSAT.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In EX, they make it possible to:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>monitor employee well-being;<\/li>\n<li>identify friction points in HR processes;<\/li>\n<li>build a people-centered work environment.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Types of surveys: which to use and when<\/h2>\n<h3>1. <strong>Onboarding Survey<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Useful for understanding the first impressions of a user or employee. They answer questions like: &#8220;How was your first experience with the product?&#8221;<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>Example<\/strong>: a home banking app can send a short survey at the end of the user&#8217;s first login to gather feedback on the usability of registration and initial setup.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h3>2. <strong>Post-interaction Survey<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Triggered right after an interaction (e.g. customer support, purchase). They make it possible to collect fresh, timely feedback.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>Example<\/strong>: after a chat with technical support, a SaaS service can ask the user whether the problem was solved and how satisfied they are with the answer they received.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h3>3. <strong>Pulse Survey<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Short, recurring and targeted. Ideal for EX, they monitor team mood and help spot weak signals before they become structural problems.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>Example<\/strong>: an HR team can send 3 quick questions every two weeks about stress, workload and motivation, to detect any critical trends.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h3>4. <strong>NPS (Net Promoter Score)<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>It measures perceived loyalty with a single question: <em>&#8220;How likely are you to recommend this product\/service to a friend?&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>Example<\/strong>: an e-learning platform can use NPS at the end of a course to understand whether participants are satisfied enough to recommend it to other colleagues.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h3>5. <strong>CSAT (Customer Satisfaction Score)<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Direct questions that rate satisfaction at a specific touchpoint or service.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>Example<\/strong>: after an order is delivered, an e-commerce store can ask the customer to rate the punctuality of the shipment and the quality of the packaging.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h2>The characteristics of a good survey<\/h2>\n<h3>1. <strong>Clear and concise<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Every question must be easy to understand. Avoid jargon and double negatives.<\/p>\n<h3>2. <strong>Focused<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Every survey must have a specific goal. Too many questions cause drop-out.<\/p>\n<h3>3. <strong>Balanced between quantitative and qualitative<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Alongside closed questions (scales, ratings, multiple choice), include open questions for qualitative depth.<\/p>\n<h3>4. <strong>Well designed for mobile<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interaction-design.org\/literature\/article\/questionnaire-design-how-to-plan-write-and-administer-effective-surveys\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Interaction Design Foundation<\/a>, usability on smartphones is now an essential requirement. The survey design must be responsive and readable.<\/p>\n<h3>5. <strong>Timely<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Timing is everything. The most effective surveys are those sent right after the experience you want to investigate.<\/p>\n<h2>Common mistakes to avoid<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Questions that are too long or ambiguous.<\/li>\n<li>Forcing answers with mandatory fields on sensitive topics.<\/li>\n<li>Using inconsistent rating scales.<\/li>\n<li>Ignoring the data collected: failing to follow up is a sign of disinterest.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>The role of surveys in Then&#8217;s methodology<\/h2>\n<p>Surveys are central to Then projects: from monitoring satisfaction with NPS surveys, to gathering insights on key touchpoints with post-interaction surveys.<\/p>\n<p>A concrete example is the project for a fashion retail chain, where data analysis highlighted problems in the online checkout. Thanks to a targeted redesign, CSAT increased by 18% in three months. Surveys are integrated with interviews, <a href=\"https:\/\/then.agency\/en\/articoli\/usability-test\">usability tests<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/then.agency\/en\/articoli\/customer-journey-mapping\">journey mapping<\/a>, in a synergistic, flexible approach.<\/p>\n<h2>Analysis and activation: the real value of the survey<\/h2>\n<p>A well-designed survey generates data. But it is the analysis and the ability to <strong>trigger concrete change<\/strong> that make the difference.<\/p>\n<h3>Best practices for analysis<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Segment results by persona, journey stage, touchpoint.<\/li>\n<li>Compare data across recurring surveys to identify trends.<\/li>\n<li>Integrate survey data with observational or behavioral data.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Best practices for activation<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Prioritize the areas with the highest impact on the experience.<\/li>\n<li>Involve the internal team in reading the data.<\/li>\n<li>Tell users about the improvements introduced thanks to their feedback.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Conclusions<\/h2>\n<p>In an ecosystem where experience is the real competitive advantage, the survey is the most accessible and strategic tool for creating connections, gathering insights and guiding people-centered decisions.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Three key actions to remember:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Use clear, relevant, well-timed surveys<\/li>\n<li>Analyze the data by segmenting and monitoring trends<\/li>\n<li>Trigger concrete, shared actions, and communicate the results<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you want to explore how to turn surveys into a strategic tool for your experience projects, <a href=\"https:\/\/then.agency\/en\/solutions\">learn more about our solutions<\/a> and find out how we can support you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Types, timing and the right questions to gather useful insights at every project stage.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":17615,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_title":"Survey: what it is, meaning and how to create a questionnaire","rank_math_description":"What a survey is, how it differs from a questionnaire and how to design it to get useful answers. With question types and examples.","rank_math_focus_keyword":"survey","fonti_articolo":"<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nngroup.com\/articles\/surveys\/\">Nielsen Norman Group, \"Survey Design\"<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.qualtrics.com\/experience-management\/research\/survey-design\/\">Qualtrics, \"Survey Design Best Practices\"<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.medallia.com\/blog\/what-is-a-customer-experience-survey\/\">Medallia, \"Customer Experience Survey\"<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.interaction-design.org\/literature\/article\/questionnaire-design-how-to-plan-write-and-administer-effective-surveys\">Interaction Design Foundation, \"Questionnaire Design\"<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","riassunto":"<p>A survey is not a questionnaire. It is a listening channel, and as such it has to be designed.<\/p>\n<p>The main types and the right moment for each: onboarding surveys, post-interaction ones, short recurring pulses, NPS and CSAT.<\/p>\n<p>What makes a survey good: clarity, a focused goal, a balance between numbers and open answers, readability on a phone, timing. And the mistakes that compromise the results before you even read them.<\/p>","footnotes":""},"categories":[52],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19689","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-research"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/then.agency\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19689","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/then.agency\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/then.agency\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/then.agency\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/then.agency\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19689"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/then.agency\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19689\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/then.agency\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17615"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/then.agency\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19689"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/then.agency\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19689"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/then.agency\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19689"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}