A good survey is short, clear and sent to the right people at the right time. This guide takes you through each step, using a guest-feedback survey for a small hotel on St Vincent’s windward coast as an example. The same approach works for a member survey, a customer poll or a community consultation.
Step 1: Decide what you want to learn
Write down the decision the survey should inform. Our hotel wants to know whether to add airport transfers from Argyle and whether guests would pay for a day trip to the Tobago Cays. Every question should serve that goal. If it does not, cut it.
Step 2: Choose your respondents
Guests who stayed in the last three months, who agreed to be contacted. If you have mixed audiences, such as overseas guests and local diners, consider separate surveys or a first question that routes them.
Step 3: Write the questions
- Start with an easy rating question: “How would you rate your stay overall?”
- Use multiple choice where possible; it is faster on a phone.
- Ask one thing per question.
- Add one open question at the end: “What one thing would you change?”
- If you ask about prices, give the currency: US dollars for visitors, Eastern Caribbean dollars for residents.
Keep the whole survey to a few minutes. The survey builder offers rating scales, choice, text and matrix questions.
Step 4: Use branching
If a guest says they arrived by ferry rather than by air, skip the airport transfer questions. Branching logic keeps the survey relevant and short.
Step 5: Brand and test
Add your logo and colours, then fill in the survey yourself on a phone. Ask a colleague to do the same. Look for confusing wording and questions that do not work on a small screen.
Step 6: Share it
Send the link in a short email a few days after departure, and follow up once with those who have not answered. You can also share the survey by SMS, on your website or with a QR code on the check-out desk.
Step 7: Analyse carefully
Results appear live. With a small hotel, you may get dozens of responses, not thousands, so look for patterns rather than exact percentages, and read the open answers carefully. Export responses if you want to combine them with booking data. Filter by country of residence to see whether European and North American guests answer differently.
Step 8: Close the loop
Tell respondents what you changed because of their feedback. A short “You asked, we listened” note in your next newsletter shows that their time mattered and makes them more likely to answer next time.
Should you offer an incentive?
A small thank-you, such as a discount on a next visit or entry into a prize draw, can lift response rates. Keep it modest so it does not attract people who only want the prize, and make sure the rules of any draw are clear.
Privacy
Explain how answers will be used, and avoid collecting sensitive data you do not need. Mailpro stores responses in Switzerland, outside US jurisdiction. For more about survey options, see online surveys in SVG.