We just did an online survey for a client and sent it to their enewsletter subscriber base. I was blown away by the response, which surpassed our highest expectations by a factor of two. The information we gathered was invaluable. For instance:
Spin-Off Lists. Answers to questions about preferences allow us to divide respondents into appropriate groups for future marketing efforts. For instance, market growers are a modest but lucrative segment of our client’s market. We can now spin off an email list of just market growers and send information and offers tailored to them.
Specific Suggestions. Respondents were full of terrific suggestions on additional products, catalog content and web site design. What’s more, it was gratifying to hear that many enjoy our enewsletter so much they’d like to receive it more often!
Newsletter Content. Seeing the questions people ask in aggregate gave us a great handle on what we need to address more frequently in newsletters and on the web site. Answering those questions can only help customers be more successful gardeners, which will in turn mean more business for our client.
Testimonials. Most of the comments we received were not only positive and heart-warming…they’re valuable testimonials for future newsletters and catalogs.
Many email management systems have built-in survey capabilities that are easy to use and affordable. I highly recommend you look into them – the bang for the buck is huge!
