General
      Back to home
      1. Benchworks by Elentra Knowledge Base
      2. General

      Best Practices: Increasing Response Rates

      This article includes valuable information on Best Practices for increasing response rates through incentives.

      Various factors, including the data collection process, can influence response rates. One effective method is to conduct surveys during in-person meetings with high attendance, as this ensures that respondents have sufficient time and focus to complete the survey. Additionally, some institutions have incorporated our survey into their graduation requirements. Following up personally with non-responders is another effective strategy to boost response rates.

       

      Considerations to keep in mind are as follows:

      • Prelaunch

        • Check with your IT to ensure our SPF record is on the email server
        • Collaborate with other campus organizations to strategically schedule surveys
        • Survey fatigue, which arises when there are an excessive number of surveys being conducted on campus. It is important to be mindful of this and find ways to alleviate it to boost response rates.
        • Take into account the mindset of students, such as whether they are currently attending classes or if it is during midterm or finals season.
        • Include an estimated time for completing the survey in the invitation, typically around 15 to 20 minutes
        • Restrict the use of ISQs to information that is essential and necessary. Use the a "need to know," not "nice to know." rule.
        • Hide irrelevant questions (Benchworks support can do this upon request)
        • Require completion during class/lab or make part of their grade/extra credit.
        • Use Generate single survey link to courseware
        • Create QR code and distribute to students
        • Utilize the strategy of sending all reminder emails to increase response rates. We suggest spacing the reminders one week apart. They only go to non responders.
        • It is recommended to keep surveys open for a duration of one month before graduation for current students and extend it to two months for alumni. This allows participants ample time to complete the survey at their convenience and increases the likelihood of receiving a higher number of responses.
        • Avoid conducting surveys during holiday periods.
        • Promote the incentive right from the start and make it known to participants.
        • Discuss the assessments with your students in advance to explain the importance of their feedback.
        • Send alum survey to alumnus to personal email in place of .edu
        • Have staff/faculty members scrub your participant list to ensure correct email addresses.
        • Nursing:  Launch directly after they receive their NCLEX scores; graduates tend to be in great spirits.
        • Mention the incentive at the start of each email.

        Incentive ideas

        • Offer a free meal for them to attend and finish as a group.
        • Incentivize with school swag
        • Dining, bookstore, or Amazon gift card
        • Achieving a specific response rate results in group reward (coffee coupon, extra credit, opt out of a quiz) for participants

        During launch

        • Track your survey responses. Usually at least one person has taken the survey by the end of the first day. If there are no responses, send yourself a test message to ensure email deliverability.
        • Check participants completion by name utilizing the Manage Participants feature
        • Send additional reminder emails are concise and to the point
        • Send a text notifying the participant to check their email