SMS Surveys: Definition, How to Send SMS Surveys and Benefits

SMS Surveys: Definition, How to Send SMS Surveys and Benefits

Introduction

SMS Surveys are an easy and affordable way to send customers surveys. They’re simple, but they can be used for more than just customer satisfaction surveys.

Sending SMS Surveys has even been said to have a higher response rate than some online surveys. Read on to discover how true this statement is.

 

What is an SMS Survey?

An SMS survey is a survey of people who are able to receive text messages. This can be as simple as asking people if they have read a particular kind of article or visited a certain website. 

SMS surveys are also a great way to get insights into what people think about your brand, products, and services. If you want to use SMS surveys to find out what’s happening with your market, you can ask questions that relate directly to their personal interests or lifestyle

SMS surveys can be sent to your existing customers or to those who have shown interest, but then never taken the next step. For example, a company might run an “In-Store Survey” – asking shoppers which products they would purchase based on the store layout and displays. 

Or they could run a “Fashion Survey” – asking participants about their clothing habits and preferences (like fashion magazines)

 

Best Practices for SMS Surveys

Here are some best practices for sending a successful SMS survey:

  • Keep your SMS Survey Brief: Longer surveys have higher response rates, but less than 15% of respondents will complete them. Keep it short.
  • Make an Introduction: You want to make sure your respondent knows why they’re taking the survey in the first place so they feel like they’re part of something bigger. This also helps you understand what questions they want answers to before you ask them any questions.
  • Follow-up on your SMS Survey: You want to keep in touch with your respondents after they take your survey so they feel like they matter and that you care about their feedback. 
  • Test Different Send Time: If you want more information about how long it will take for responses, try sending them at different times throughout the day or week or even over different days/weeks during one month (it’s fun!). 
  • Get Permission from Respondents before Sending them an SMS Survey: It’s important for them to know that this is confidential information. You should also send a message stating exactly what data will be collected so people know how important privacy is before they give consent (or don’t).

Example Use Cases for SMS Surveys

SMS Surveys are a great way to reach your audience. SMS surveys can be used for a variety of purposes, and have been proven to be effective in helping businesses find new customers and improve retention rates. 

Here are some examples of how you can use SMS surveys:

  • Customer Loyalty Programs: SMS surveys can be used to grant rewards or promotions via text messages to customers who meet certain criteria.
  • Customer Feedback: SMS surveys are also a great way to get feedback on what your users like/dislike about your brand.
  • User Experience Improvement: Another way to improve your user experience is by sending surveys to users before and after launching new features to see if there are any issues that need fixing. 
  • New Product Development: You can send out polls or surveys early on in the development process to your list so that you can get feedback from potential users before you decide what features will go into future iterations.

 

Let’s take a look at some examples of how you might use SMS surveys:

  1. A company wants to better understand what its customers really think about its brand. They send out an SMS survey and ask customers if they’d like to be part of their loyalty program. Customers who respond “yes” will receive special offers in the future.
  2. A company wants to learn more about how its products are being used by people in different countries. They send out an SMS survey that asks people if they’ve tried using their product before, how often they use it, what they like most about using it, and other questions related to the product’s usage.
  3. A company wants to know if people have any complaints about their product or service so that they can fix them before anyone becomes unhappy with them (or worse, they sue!). They send out an SMS survey asking customers for feedback on what could be improved with current offerings or suggestions for new ones.
  4. A company is looking for new customers. The company could send one SMS survey to a group of people who’ve recently joined your loyalty program and ask them if they’d like to receive more information about the program.

 

Pros & Cons of SMS surveys

SMS Surveys are a great way to reach your customers, get feedback and collect data. The advantages of using SMS Surveys are:

  • They are easy to send and use. No need for a website or software to set up, just an SMS sent to the number you want to target.
  • They are cheap. Sending an SMS Survey is as cheap as sending a text message, so there’s no cost involved in running it.
  • They work on almost any phone or mobile device. You can send surveys from your computer or mobile device while you’re out and about, helping you reach your audience wherever they are.

 

The disadvantages of using SMS Surveys are:

  • You’ll have to pay for each message you send out and for each person who responds (unless you’re using an automated system). 
  • It’s hard to get people to respond when you’re sending out surveys via text message (it’s much easier if you’re asking people over email or on social media).
  • There’s no guarantee that everyone who receives the message will open it. If the recipient is reading through their phone and doesn’t see it, then you miss out on being able to connect with them. But even if someone does open the message, it might be hard for them to read it because many phones have small screens; sometimes people have problems seeing text messages in general.
  • Another disadvantage is that SMS surveys don’t allow for much customization or personalization.



Conclusion

SMS surveys are a great way to reach a wide range of people at once, and they’re especially useful for gathering data about the demographics of your audience. SMS surveys are quick and easy ways to get feedback from your customers. 

But don’t just send it out on a whim. You need to make sure your questions are clear, that you have permission to send the survey and that you’re not overloading them with too many questions in one go. You also want to keep it brief, so they’re as comfortable responding as possible.