When it comes to collecting feedback, in-app survey questions are one of the most effective tools you can use. They introduce very little friction to your users while allowing you to ask for specific feedback. Moreover, research has shown that more than half of mobile users expect companies to directly ask them for feedback.

However, the amount and quality of feedback you receive from surveys will depend on the quality of those surveys. Knowing what, how, and when to ask in your surveys is crucial. In this post, we will look at some general guidelines for designing survey questions followed by some templates for common questions.

Before the In-App Survey Questions

The Goal of the Survey

The first order of business is to determine what you are trying to learn from this survey. This will help you decide on what type of questions you need to use in your survey.

Target Sample

When you have enough testers, it is considered a good practice to segment them and send more targeted surveys. However, keep in mind that a small target sample can’t provide you with quantitative data, and qualitative data from a large one can be too much to analyze. Besides the size of the sample, also consider the type of people in the sample. Things like age, gender, technical level, etc. will change how you should frame your survey questions.

Sampling Method

If you are going to send a survey to only a subset of your beta testers, it is important to avoid bias in selecting the sample. This bias is introduced when the sample is not representative of your larger target population, like surveying power users to represent all testers for example. A randomized selection is the best approach to avoid this type of bias.

In-App Survey Question Writing Guidelines

Open-Ended vs. Close-Ended Questions

Open-ended questions are good for qualitative feedback and exploratory research to find out what your testers think. They are also a good way to dig deeper into a specific area when coupled with a specific question. Moreover, they can generate useful feedback and insight from a small sample. However, they are wieldy and time-consuming both for your testers to submit and for you to go through so don’t overuse them.

Close-ended questions are good for quantitative feedback and to answer specific questions you might have. This quantifiable data shows you the “big picture”, and is a good way to reveal trends and patterns in your app’s use. Additionally, they are the least time consuming and offer your testers the least amount of friction to complete the survey.

Wording and Language

Ask only one thing per question, and keep your questions short and precise. Avoid using ambiguous wording, negatives, and double negatives as they can confuse your testers. Additionally, limit the number of questions you send per survey to around five questions to boost completion rates.

Use simple language and avoid using any technical jargon that might fly over your testers’ heads. Try to avoid using acronyms and abbreviation in your survey or spell them out when you do. Additionally, don’t use language that might evoke emotion or lead your testers to a specific answer to avoid biased results.

Giving a Choice

Avoid using yes or no question or dichotomies in favor of using a scale. This will give you more nuanced feedback and reveal more insights. Generally, it is good practice to use an odd number scale that has a middle point or “neutral” choice, but you can use an even scale to force a positive or negative choice when needed.

The answers you provide for the testers must be exhaustive and mutually exclusive i.e. they should cover all the possible answers and there should be no overlap between the choices. You can include an “other” option with or without requiring to specify if you can’t cover all the possible answers. For questions that can have more than one answer, consider limiting the number of choices possible. This will force your testers to prioritize their answer and give you a better idea of what matters most.

In-App Survey Question Templates

You can use your survey to collect feedback about many different aspects of your beta app. Here we will list some survey question templates sorted by what they are trying to address.

Product Feedback

What problem/goal are you trying to solve/achieve with the app? (text field)

Did the app help solve your problem/achieve your goal? (scale of 1-5)

What triggers would prompt you to use the app? (text field)

Which feature of the app are most/least important to you? (multiple choice)

How would you feel if you can no longer use the app? Why? (text field)

Which features didn’t work as expected? (text field)

Are there any features you expected to find but didn’t? (text field)

What features would you like to add to the app? (text field for new ideas or multiple choice to prioritize roadmap)

How satisfied are you with the stability of the app? (scale of 1-5)

How satisfied are you with the security of the app? (scale of 1-5)

How satisfied are you with the ability to integrate with other services? (scale of 1-5)

User Experience

How satisfied are you with the look and feel of the app? (scale of 1-5)

What was your first impression of the app? (text field)

How satisfied are you with the ease of use of the app? (scale of 1-5)

How satisfied are you with the installation and onboarding experience of the app? (scale of 1-5)

What confused/annoyed you about the app? (text field)

Market Research

What price would you be willing to pay for this app? (multiple choice)

How clear do you find our pricing? (scale of 1-5)

How would you rate the app’s value for money? (scale of 1-5)

What are the alternatives that you are considering to the app? (text field)

How does the app compare with competitors? (scale of 1-5)

How did you find out about the app? (multiple choice)

Support

How would you rate your customer support experience? (scale of 1-5)

Did we solve/answer your issue/question? (yes or no)

How much time did we take to address your concern? (scale of 1-5)

What type of support communication methods do you prefer? (multiple choice)

Beta Testing

Overall, how would you rate the beta program? (scale of 1-5)

Did you find it easy to know your responsibilities as a tester? (scale of 1-5)

How easy was it to report issues you encounter? (scale of 1-5)

Do you have any comments/suggestions for the beta program? (text field)

General Feedback

How would you rate the overall quality of the app? (scale of 1-5)

How likely are you to recommend this app to a friend or colleague? (scale of 1-10)

Do you have any additional comments/suggestions? (text field)

Tips for Designing In-App Survey Questions