Surveys are one of the cheapest ways to find out what your customers really think, and one of the easiest to get wrong. A survey sent to the wrong list, dressed up as research but really a sales pitch, or promising anonymity it doesn’t deliver, can damage trust and break UK rules. Mailpro’s survey builder helps you design, send and analyse surveys properly.
Surveys UK organisations run
- Customer satisfaction surveys after a purchase, a stay or a service visit.
- Supporter and member surveys for charities, clubs and professional bodies planning their next year.
- Staff surveys on wellbeing, hybrid working or training needs.
- Market research before launching a product or opening a new location.
- Event feedback after conferences, open days and fundraisers.
Design and customisation
Build surveys with multiple-choice, rating scales, free text and more, then apply your logo and colours. Branching logic sends respondents down different paths depending on their answers, so a dissatisfied customer is asked why while a happy one is asked for a review. Keep surveys short; every extra page loses respondents.
Research or marketing? The UK line
Genuine research is not direct marketing, so a survey invitation doesn’t automatically need marketing consent under PECR. But the ICO is clear that if a survey is really a way to promote products or collect data for marketing, a practice sometimes called “sugging” (selling under the guise of research), the marketing rules apply. Keep survey invitations free of promotional content, and only use answers for marketing if people agreed to that. The Market Research Society’s Code of Conduct is a useful standard for UK research projects.
Anonymity: say only what is true
If you send a survey by email to a named contact and link the response to their record, it isn’t anonymous. It may be confidential, but under UK GDPR it is still personal data. If you promise anonymity, for example in a staff survey, use an anonymous link and don’t collect identifying details. Small teams need extra care, since a department and a job title can identify someone.
Distribution
Send a survey link in a newsletter or a dedicated email, text it to mobile subscribers, embed it on your website or print a QR code for a reception desk. See the options for sharing a survey.
Getting a good response
- Say how long it takes in the invitation, and keep the promise.
- Send from a person, such as the manager or the chief executive, rather than a no-reply address.
- Time it well. A day after a stay or a purchase works; the middle of the Christmas rush or a bank holiday weekend usually doesn’t.
- Offer incentives carefully. A prize draw is fine, but it must be run fairly, and the entry details shouldn’t be used for marketing without consent.
- Make it work on a phone, since many people will answer from one.
- Protect sensitive surveys with a password when only a specific group should answer.
Results you can use
Live survey statistics show answers as they come in, with charts for each question. Export responses to share with colleagues or combine with sales and CRM data.
Privacy and hosting
Responses are stored on Mailpro’s private Swiss infrastructure, outside US jurisdiction, and are never sold or rented. The UK recognises Switzerland as adequate. Set a retention period for raw responses and delete what you no longer need.
Mailpro is priced by sends, not contacts, and you start with 500 free credits. Ready to build one? Follow our guide on how to create an online survey.