Guides › Research & News
Write survey questions that get honest answers
A ready-to-build questionnaire with neutral wording, sensible answer options and a note on anything that could bias the results.
When to use it
Before launching any customer or market survey
Step by step
Be clear on the decision
Write one sentence on what decision the survey will help someone make, who you'll ask and how long it should take them.
Draft and check the questions
Paste this prompt into your AI assistant.
Prompt to copyI need a survey for [audience] to help us decide [decision]. It should take under [5] minutes. Write 8 to 12 questions in a sensible order, starting easy. For each give: the question, the question type (single choice, multiple choice, scale, open), the answer options, and why we're asking it. Then review your own draft: flag any leading, double-barrelled or confusing questions, missing 'don't know' options, or answer scales that aren't balanced, and fix them. Finish with 2 screening questions to make sure we reach the right people.Test it on a colleague
Ask one or two people outside the project to answer it and tell you where they hesitated.
Build it
Copy the final questions into Google Forms or your usual survey tool.
What you get
Q3: How often do you buy ready meals? (Single choice: Never / Less than monthly / Monthly / Weekly / Several times a week). Why: sizes the market. Fixed: 'How much do you love our tasty new range?' became 'How would you rate the taste of the new range?' with a 5-point scale.
Tips
- Ask the assistant to estimate how long the survey takes to complete, then cut anything that doesn't serve the decision.