Learning about better understanding your customers’ needs is sometimes like being a 1-person paddle boat upstream.
Particularly when you need the right tools or questions, it’s a lot of effort to understand them, much less to execute what you can learn.
When you need to get a large amount of data quickly and easily, one of the best approaches to gathering customer feedback data is using closed-ended questions.
They’re a great way to conduct survey research effectively with a large audience and help to avoid tiring your customers.
In this article, we’ll mainly explain the various question types and examples of closed-ended questions, and we will give you an overview of the difference between open-ended question and close ended question.
What are close ended survey questions?
Close-ended survey questions are great for brief answers to simple personal questions.
They’re also the most convenient surveying method for your customers. Long questions often deter or discourage your customers from participating in a survey.
Close-ended questions require short, fixed responses. Limiting the available answers makes it easier to analyze your data and act accordingly.
Close-ended questions are common in multiple-choice questions and surveys. Product survey questions can benefit from close-ended questions, which might provide higher response rates.
“There are many advantages of using closed-ended survey questions, especially when you desire to receive a high response rate from your busy customers.”
Difference with open-ended questions
Close-ended questions, an essential tool for efficient surveys, demand concise responses.
Simplifying the answer choices encourages customer engagement and streamlines the analysis of data.
Often seen in multiple-choice surveys, user research and product assessments, these questions maximize response rates.
In contrast, open-ended questions provide a platform for in-depth insights, allowing respondents to express themselves freely.
Understanding when to use each approach is crucial in gathering valuable information.
5 types of close ended questions and their examples
There are many forms of closed-ended questions, and using the right one is best for the most accurate results.
Yes, closed questions, or no questions are the simplest form of closed-ended questions.
Closed-ended questions examples include:
- multiple-choice
- ranking questions
- checkboxes
- drop-downs
- rating scales
Our close-ended questions examples are kept simple and to the point – adding too much detail can limit your customer and can result in a rushed answer.
Usersnap has many templates that can help you create impactful close-ended questions that help your surveys stand out.
1. Dichotomous questions
Dichotomous questions are the limited responses to two answer results. The answer results are simple, single – one-word answers with the single-word answer varying from yes or no, to true and false, or blue and black or white and gold 😉. Agree or disagree is also another option.
These two response answers are a great way to include many questions in your survey without tiring your respondent.
Examples of dichotomous questions
A simple example of a definitive answer to a dichotomous question is:
“Was your support issue resolved?”. It’s easily answered with a yes or no.
For true or false, an example would be the one-word answer, “Is the sky blue?”. When using agree or disagree, a good example would be one’s own words, “Is stealing bad?”.
This one would be the most basic among all closed-ended question examples for customer feedback surveys.
How Usersnap lets you add multiple-choice surveys
The radio button poll question type on Usersnap allows you to customize the possible answers.
After you’ve collected your responses, you’ll get a donut chart in your project statistics page on Usersnap to view and analyze the results.
Try using simple words and adding emojis to the answer options to make it more engaging.
2. Multiple-choice questions
Multiple-choice questions are the most common method used in most surveys and research.
These questions include several responses and are very flexible, allowing for various questions.
Examples of multiple-choice questions
A good example of a multiple-choice question would be:
“Which feature of the product did you like the most?”. Responses will list features that you want to measure and see how many customers like them.
Another popular example is “How did you hear about us?”. Possible answers are social media platforms, word of mouth, and others.
Multiple-choice survey questions are the most flexible among all closed-ended survey questions examples.
3. Rating scale questions
Rating scales let you assess the degree of agreeableness your customer has regarding a question. This way, you can gauge the success or rating of a particular aspect of your business.
By having your customer rate a question out of five, you can accurately see how your respondent corresponds to your statement.
Rating scale questions can be superior to open-ended questions as they grasp the initial thoughts of your consumer.
Rating scale questions are frequently seen in user acceptance testing to see new features’ success.
Examples of rating scale questions
An example of a rating scale question would be, “How satisfied were you with your ability to find what you were looking for?”. A 1 means strongly disagree, while 5 means strongly agree.
Another example would be, “How likely are you to repurchase?”.
Here are a few more samples of rating scale questions:
- Does the Product feature make it easy for me to accomplish my task?
- Are you satisfied with the product’s quality?
- Did the [product/service] help you to reach your goals?
- Was your use of the [brand/service] a positive one?
- How would you rate the service you have just received?
- How would you rate your experience with our company?
For all samples 1 = Strongly disagree to 5 = Strongly agree.
Using Usersnap to create rating surveys
Now that you’ve learned about a few survey question types, what’s the best way to start?
Here’s how we do it:
Usersnap offers multiple rating scales to send close-ended micro surveys, including 5-star rating, 10-scale number rating – typically used for NPS, thumbs up/down binary rating, emoji ratings, and text radio buttons.
Measure customer sentiment and user experiences (UX) with Usersnap’s rating microsurveys.
They’re easy and quick to respond to, guaranteeing more feedback, and easy to analyze and gain insights.
When you send micro surveys on a website or in-product, please make sure it’s not too invasive.
Our tips:
Two tips from Usersnap when setting up your survey: select the “bottom left” or “bottom right” modal position, and use the floating mode instead of blocking mode.
The floating mode means the feedback widget doesn’t interfere with the users’ actions on the page, and they can click to answer the survey when they like.
Also Read:
1 to 5 rating scale surveys to collect feedback, with examples
4. Rank order questions
Another method to cut down on open-ended questions is to use rank-order questions. You can ask questions that have your participant rank their preferences in ascending to descending order.
Through this, you can determine what your customers care more about and what is least relevant to them.
This is a great way to ask important questions shortly and quickly.
Examples of rank order questions
With this example, the surveyor can quickly determine what matters the most to survey respondents.
They avoid the need for a lengthy explanation with unnecessary information.
Here’s another example of a survey question with vital information.
The company here notices that users prioritize supporting applications most and will be able to divert more focus in that area and less towards battery life.
We’ve prepared more examples for your inspiration:
5. Checklist-style questions
Checklist-style questions are another fast method to gather data that might appear mundane to your respondent.
Allowing the option to select multiple options from your predetermined list of answers will encourage them to answer.
These questions require careful analysis, but they help capture data that is easy to analyze.
Examples of checklist-style questions
With this question, you can quickly determine which areas your business might be lacking.
Using this in a checklist-style question over a rank-order question will allow for faster answering.
If the respondent selects two options, then you can determine that the other two areas are in no need of improvement.
This example would help you understand what your customers care about.
The company may decide that utilizing anchovies as toppings is futile and move on to a different topping that might be more popular if the survey findings show that anchovies are not a popular item.
Here are a few people answer a few more checklist-style questions.
What’s the real difference between open-ended vs. close-ended questions
Understanding the differences between close-ended essay questions and open-ended questions is crucial in choosing which you need.
3 situations when you should use close-ended questions
Knowing when to use close-ended questions can help you create surveys that are convenient to answer for your participants.
1. Audience is not interested in survey
People have busy schedules and not everyone might be keen on answering questions in their free time.
Close-ended questions are the best solution to keeping your survey short and to the point.
Using too many open-ended questions can result in a survey with a low completion rate.
You can also add fun ideas like would you rather questions to add some spice to your surveys; this works great on younger audiences.
2. You need quantifiable data
Using close-ended questions is a great way to gather lots of quantifiable data.
This will make it easier to collect data measure. These close-ended survey questions are easy to create and provide statistical data that is imperative to your research objectives.
These data is best used to estimate an issue or figure out a quantity regarding a specific matter. This data is counted easily and provides information that requires more context and further statistical analysis only.
3. To categorize respondents
One of the best ways to create demographic studies is to use a limited number, limited range, close-ended questions.
Questions include age, employment status, gender, and other relevant questions.
Demographic studies help you understand your customers and will lay a foundation for future studies.
3 situations when you should use open-ended questions
Open-ended questions can be beneficial in specific instances requiring direct insight and unfiltered answers.
1. Conducting expert interviews
Open-ended questions require answers past a simple yes or no. The response needs to evoke critical thinking and get an uncut opinion from your respondent.
These types predetermined answers of questions work best when interviewing industry field specialists. The goal is to expand your knowledge in a specific area from a more skilled individual.
2. Small population studies
When surveying a small group of individuals, you may benefit more from a deeper survey. Statistical data will have less relevance, and you will gain more insightful information using open-ended questions.
Each respondent will provide their own words and information, and statistical analysis only will be possible due to the small number of participants.
3. Preliminary research
A good way to discover new varieties of opinions is to ask open-ended questions; this can result in new ideas, which can be the basis for quantitative research.
| Don’t (Closed) | Do (Open) |
| Are you satisfied? | How satisfied or dissatisfied are you with this process? |
| Did it act as you expected? | What would (did) you expect to happen when you …? |
| Did you find it? | Before a task: • Please tell me when you’ve found the item. • Explain how you would find that. After a task: • Where did you find the answer? • Where was the item? • What did you find? |
| Do you think you would use this? | How would you fit this into your work?How might this change the way you do that today? |
| Does that work for you? | What do you think about that? |
How to collect quantitative data
Collecting quantitative data effectively with UAT testing tool involves a streamlined process:
- Define Research Objectives: Clarify your goals for data collection, keeping them in line with Usersnap’s capabilities.
- Data Collection Method: Leverage Usersnap’s survey and feedback tools for quantitative data gathering. Design clear questions, and use predefined answer options.
- Sampling and Collection: Reach your target audience by using Usersnap’s features to distribute surveys. Ensure consistency and accuracy in data collection.
- Quantify Responses: Code responses into numerical values for analysis. Usersnap’s features facilitate this process.
- Data Analysis: Usersnap offers tools for analyzing quantitative data, enabling you to extract valuable insights.
- Interpret and Present: Understand the results within the context of your objectives. Use Usersnap’s visualizations to present findings.
- Iterate and Improve: Learn from the process, make adjustments, and continually enhance your data collection efforts.
By combining Usersnap’s features with these steps, you can efficiently collect and analyze quantitative data to gain valuable insights.
Qualitative data collection
Collecting qualitative data effectively with Usersnap can be summarized in a streamlined process:
- Set Research Objectives: Clearly define the goals for qualitative data collection that align with Usersnap’s tools and features.
- Data Collection Strategy: Use Usersnap’s survey and feedback tools to gather qualitative insights. Create open-ended questions that encourage detailed responses.
- Participant Selection: Target the right audience using Usersnap’s distribution features to ensure relevant feedback and insights.
- Data Gathering: Utilize Usersnap’s features for data collection, making it easy to capture textual responses, screenshots, and annotations.
- Data Organization: Usersnap’s tools can help you categorize and tag qualitative data for efficient analysis.
- Data Analysis: Leverage Usersnap’s capabilities for qualitative data analysis. This may include sentiment analysis, keyword identification, and thematic coding.
- Interpret and Present: You can gain insights from the qualitative data within the context of your research objectives. Usersnap provides visualization options for presenting findings.
- Iterate and Enhance: Continuously improve your data collection process based on the insights gained and feedback received.
By integrating Usersnap’s features into these steps, you can effectively collect, analyze, and interpret data to derive valuable insights for your projects and research.
Bonus questions: Likert scale questions
Implementing them with Usersnap is a straightforward process, allowing you to gain valuable insights from your users.
Here’s a step-by-step guide to using these questions effectively:
- Define your objective by understanding what you want to measure or evaluate. Are you looking for user satisfaction, feature preferences, or usability feedback?
- Create clear questions: Craft well-defined questions that align with your objectives. Clarity in your queries ensures respondents understand what they’re answering.
- Choose your scale: Likert scales typically range from 3 to 7 points, with 5 points being the most common. Select a scale that best suits your survey’s purpose.
- Use Usersnap’s survey features: Usersnap provides user-friendly survey creation tools. You can easily add Likert scale questions to your survey, customize their appearance, and decide where they appear in your user interface.
- Select your audience: Decide who will participate in your survey. You can target specific user segments, such as new users, paying customers, or beta testers.
- Collect responses: Once your survey is live, Usersnap will help you collect responses from your chosen audience.
- Analyze and visualize: Usersnap offers tools to help you analyze the data, including graphs and charts that make it easier to understand the results.
- Act on insights: Use the feedback gathered through questions to inform your product decisions and improvements. Make data-driven choices that benefit your users.
By incorporating these questions into your Usersnap surveys, you can efficiently gather structured feedback and quantitative data, providing valuable input for enhancing your products and services.
How to collect survey responses with Usersnap
When it comes to collecting valuable survey responses, Usersnap has proven to be an invaluable tool for thousands of companies.
Two key takeaways emerge from their collective experience.
First, the clarity and specificity of answer options in close-ended questionnaires are of paramount importance.
It’s essential to ensure that the answer choices accurately reflect the thoughts and behaviors of your customers. Crafting questions that resonate with your users and their language is the foundation of effective data collection.
Secondly, the timing of your surveys can significantly impact both response rates and the quality of the answers received.
The ideal timing occurs after customers have fully engaged with an experience but while the memory of that interaction is still fresh.
For instance, let’s say you’ve introduced a new statistics page in your product and want to gauge the ease of use for its analysis features. The optimal moment to trigger the survey would be after users have interacted with page elements or spent a reasonable amount of time exploring the page.
Usersnap is designed to let you configure the timing of the survey distribution easily.
As you can see above, you can target the people on that specific page after X amount of time on a page, or trigger the survey after a user behavior event with an API event. Get started with Usersnap and deliver what users want. Collect your first 20 feedback items for free, upgrade to continue acting on the insights.
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