Survey Questions to Ask Attendees After an Event
You did it! You planned and executed an amazing event. Now all that’s left to do is sit back and relax, right…?
Not quite. Your event is over, but there’s still an important step remaining on your event management checklist: Sending a post-event survey to attendees.
Why should I send a survey after my event?
It’s crucial to reach out to attendees in the days immediately following an event. At this point, your event and your brand are fresh in their memory. If you want to get an honest opinion and gauge how you’re doing, you need to strike while the iron is hot.
Sending a survey is also an effective, non-intrusive way to get in front of your audience again. By adding this touchpoint to your event communications, you can cultivate strong customer relationships that can ultimately lead to more brand loyalty, sales, and increased attendance at your next event.
What tools should I use to create and send my survey?
Creating an attendee survey is easy (and generally free) with tools like SurveyMonkey, Google Forms and Typeform.
When you’re ready to send your survey, use your favorite email marketing tool to schedule emails and send your survey to the right people using segmented, custom lists.
What should I say in the survey email?
Your email to attendees should be gracious, short, and sweet. Thank attendees for coming to your event, and briefly ask them to fill out your survey. You might say something like:
“We’re so glad you could join us at the most recent Spanish Conversation Group meeting! In order to help us improve the next event, we’d love it if you could spare two minutes answering a few questions about your experience.”
To increase participation, you can also offer an incentive—such as a product discount or a chance to win a gift card—for attendees who complete the survey.
What should I ask in my survey?
Your questions will depend on your particular event, your business, and your goals. Here are a few ideas to help you get started crafting your survey questions:
- Overall event rating. Find out how attendees feel about your event in general by asking them to rate it on a scale from 1 to 10.
- Specific event rating. Get into the nitty gritty: Ask guests to rate the food, music, vendors, check-in experience, speakers, entertainment, etc.
- How did they hear about your event? This question can help you make decisions about where to promote your events in the future.
- What could be improved? Give attendees an opportunity to write their thoughts and offer specific suggestions.
- Would you recommend the event to a friend or colleague? This question can be an effective way to get an informal read on your event’s Net Promoter Score.
- Demographic information. Gathering data on age, gender, and location for your attendees can help you tailor future events and promotions.
- Household income. The answers to this question can come in handy if you’re interested in attracting sponsors. If you feel awkward asking about money, include a disclaimer: “We know, weird question. But this info helps us secure sponsorships for future events.”
Okay, I received a bunch of survey responses. Now what?
It’s time to interpret the data! Use the feedback from survey responses to learn what your attendees really think and to shape the program at your next event.
Did people love the keynote speaker? Did they wish you offered a coat check? Did they rave about the swag bags? Look for themes in the survey responses to pinpoint what you’re doing well and where there’s room to improve. Then, make changes as needed, and start planning your next awesome event.
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