Are there any drawbacks of mailed marketing surveys still relevant? Mail surveys can efficiently organize data depending on objectives with almost anything that can be achieved with the help of the Internet.
Some businesses and organizations still employ mail surveys in measuring employee and customer satisfaction.
Mailed Marketing Surveys
The mail survey is the frontiersperson of self-administered questionnaires, a quantitative data collection method. In this strategy, the researcher sends the questionnaires in a postage-paid envelope through the postal system. Meanwhile, the participants will be asked to answer queries written on paper. After completing the questionnaire, the respondents will mail it back through the mail.
Mail surveys are often straightforward, understandable, and have few open-end questions. Analogized with telephone surveys, the cost of executing a mail survey is typically lower. To make the most out of it, mail surveys should be utilized when the researcher wishes to know if the consumer wants modifications on the product or service, their opinion regarding the company’s eventual plans, or time-sensitive matters.
Applicability of Mailed Marketing Surveys
Mail surveys can be used in gathering data only if they fulfill any of these:
- You know or maintain access to the full name and home address of the components of your target folk.
- Since it is more demanding to conduct a written survey than a vocal survey, your respondents must read and write well. Therefore, it is also perfect if their educational level is exceeding average.
- The survey’s players are likely to be concerned or curious about the research goals, e.g., enhancing the brand’s quality.
- The survey does not have time restraints. However, sending and receiving a mail survey can be a month-long process.
- Instructions in the questionnaire can be quickly followed, and the questions are simple and can be understood without difficulty.
Advantages of a Mailed Marketing Surveys
- Convenience: Mail surveys allow respondents to answer the questionnaires at their speed. Survey participants have the freedom to use as much time as needed when answering the survey, which will result in more comprehensive responses. They can also respond to the questionnaire anywhere they want to, as long as they have a survey tool.
- Administration: For those who will allocate and supervise the mail survey, not much experience is needed. This survey does not oblige the authority to make judgments during high-pressure tactics. For researchers, they are permitted to curtail sampling errors. They also have the jurisdiction of what the respondents can see on the questionnaire, unlike online surveys where software compatibilities and technological issues affect how the survey will be displayed.
- Geographical stratification: A mail survey can precisely target different inhabitants segments.
- Cost: Mail surveys do not need much workforce. A man alone can allocate the fundamental survey process. Analogized with telephone surveys and face-to-face interviews, the expense of conducting a mail survey is relatively lower. This type of survey is optimal if large sample size is involved. Let us state that the players are approximately 40,000. Mailing them is cost-effective than contacting them one by one. On assessment, a standard medium-scale mail survey can command at least $5,000. On the perverse, a telephone survey or a face-to-face interview requires double or triple your budget for a mail survey.
- Honesty: Research shows that survey participants give more because respondents are more comfortable sharing their views or opinions through writing.
Other strengths of a mail survey include being able to contain lengthy and complex questions and visuals that will aid respondents in answering certain questions can be incorporated, and can ensure confidentiality and anonymity.
Drawbacks of Mailed Marketing Surveys
- Coverage errors and Response Rates: A mail survey usually generates a 3-15% response rate. It is not the immediate drawback of employing this type of survey. The real problem is how to get a reliable and entire list of participants from the target population. When dying to do so, this will result in range errors. Examples are incomplete mailing lists, e.g., excluding members of the family that are temporarily out like college students. Partial results and obsolete information are also contained in coverage errors.
- Questionnaire strategy: Since mail surveys do not deliver follow-ups, the questionnaire design can make or damage the study. Therefore, questions must be concise, straightforward, and accurate.
- Respondents: Mail surveys are inappropriate ineffectual for very young children, disabled or sick individuals, those with language barriers, and marginally literate or illiterate.
- Administration: Researchers have no control over whether or not the survey has been wholly responded to or what will occur to the questionnaire after being sent.
Goals and Frustrations
People often feel of selling as a talking exercise. But in fact, selling is a better listening exercise. Every good salesperson will tell you their victory comes with an understanding of their prospects. You can tailor your message to each individual when you know about your prospects’ needs, frustrations, wants, and goals.
Objectives of a Survey
Market research: utilizing surveys to gather data about a demand to assist with strategic planning. Publish data and distribute to improve expertise in the enterprise.
Lead generation: operating surveys as a first-contact marketing tactic to determine prospective customers and construct a list of leads.
Lead qualification: utilizing surveys as a second reference to comprehend people who have already answered
Customer satisfaction: employing surveys to assess customer happiness and identify problem areas before they grow into more substantial issues
Final Thoughts
Surveys should be as long as they ought to be – but not lengthy. To maximize reaction, maintain it short and straightforward. It would benefit if you had a sense of what you require to accomplish your objectives. Sometimes this may need a longer survey – even if it does offer the overall response. As a rule, try to keep your survey to 10-20 queries (mostly multiple choice). When utilizing a paper survey, it is better to keep it to two pages. If you are using an electronic survey, keep all the questions observable so people can see how long it is.