Why a survey?
Before getting started, think about why you need a survey and what you’re hoping to find out. Is a survey necessary? What will you do with the findings? Would another form of consultation be more appropriate, like a focus group or visitor observation?
Consider whether a survey will enable you to collect all the data you need. For example, it can be useful to carry out a survey to start to explore people’s views, and then conduct extra consultation – a focus group or community open day to – find out more in-depth information.
Setting objectives
Next, set objectives, such as “to identify barriers to visiting our museum” or “to find out what visitors think about our proposed new gallery”. It’s best to set one or two key objectives for each survey and explore these in depth, rather than trying to find out information about lots of different topics.
Content
Consider what type of visitor you would like to respond to your survey, and then design it with them in mind. For example, a survey for children might include two or three questions and allow respondents to draw their answers.
With your objectives in mind, put together a list of questions that you need to ask to obtain the data you’re looking for. Ask the least amount of questions as possible – ideally, people should be able to complete an online survey in 10 minutes or less and a face-to-face survey in five minutes or less.
Begin with short, simple questions, and ask questions that require more thought towards the end of the survey. If you’re asking people about more than one topic, organise your survey into different sections or themes so it’s easy to follow.
Word questions so that they’re as accessible as possible, and explain anything that might not be clear. Help to avoid bias by asking short, concise and neutral questions.
It's generally useful to include a mixture of closed and open questions. Closed questions –which might, for instance, include tick boxes, ranking exercises or sliding scales – produce short, quick responses, while open questions allow respondents to think, reflect and offer more in-depth opinions.
Before the survey goes live, test it with friends, colleagues and – if you can – a couple of representatives of your target audience for sense.
Getting the right audience to respond
When deciding on the format of your survey, think about whether your target audience is more likely to respond better to a face-to-face survey, an online survey, or both.
If you’re conducting a face-to-face survey at your museum, think about which days of the week your target audience tends to visit on and what times of year they visit. Could you survey attendees at events for your target audience, such as family holiday activities? It’s also worth going off-site to places where your target audience hang out, whether that is in shopping centres, cafes or the high street.
If your survey is online, think about the websites or mailing lists your target audience is most likely to engage with. These might be your website and social media pages, or social media pages of community organisations, such as parent and toddler groups and local history groups.
Whether you’re conducting an online or face-to-face survey, a good introduction goes a long way. Concisely explain why you are asking people to give up their time to complete your survey. What will their responses help you to do? For example, their views may help to shape the displays a museum’s new gallery. .
If you can, incentivise participation in your survey by running a prize draw or competition. When considering what to offer as a prize, think about what would most appeal to your target audience – a shopping voucher or free entry to your museum.
Sampling
Try to survey a relatively large number of people (at least 100) to ensure the data is as representative as possible.
If you’re carrying out a face-to-face survey, try to prevent bias by selecting random participants – for example, every fifth person, or the person in a group who most recently had a birthday.
If you’re unable to gather responses from a large number of people, that doesn’t mean the survey is totally invalid. But any subsequent report should be clear about the number of survey participants so that major decisions aren’t made on the basis of the views of a small minority. You might decide to carry out follow-up research to obtain additional data. When you report the data, it’s good practice not to use percentages if your results are based on data from fewer than 100 people.
Who will lead the survey?
Decide who will conduct the survey. Will it be done in-house by staff or volunteers or will you commission a consultant? This decision might depend on the time you have available, your budget and the skills you have in-house. Could you use the survey as an opportunity to train staff and volunteers in visitor consultation methods?
Dissemination
Decide how you’re going to present your findings once you’ve analysed the data you collect. You might write a report, create a presentation or produce an infographic. Think about the people who will read or listen to your report: who are they and what format would they prefer?
Using the data
After collecting and disseminating the survey results, make sure you act on them. To help ensure this happens, create an action list showing who will do what by when. You might not be able to act on all the findings from your survey straight away; think about dividing the list into short, medium and long-term actions – and prioritising the actions that are the most important and within your budget.
Before getting started, think about why you need a survey and what you’re hoping to find out. Is a survey necessary? What will you do with the findings? Would another form of consultation be more appropriate, like a focus group or visitor observation?
Consider whether a survey will enable you to collect all the data you need. For example, it can be useful to carry out a survey to start to explore people’s views, and then conduct extra consultation – a focus group or community open day to – find out more in-depth information.
Setting objectives
Next, set objectives, such as “to identify barriers to visiting our museum” or “to find out what visitors think about our proposed new gallery”. It’s best to set one or two key objectives for each survey and explore these in depth, rather than trying to find out information about lots of different topics.
Content
Consider what type of visitor you would like to respond to your survey, and then design it with them in mind. For example, a survey for children might include two or three questions and allow respondents to draw their answers.
With your objectives in mind, put together a list of questions that you need to ask to obtain the data you’re looking for. Ask the least amount of questions as possible – ideally, people should be able to complete an online survey in 10 minutes or less and a face-to-face survey in five minutes or less.
Begin with short, simple questions, and ask questions that require more thought towards the end of the survey. If you’re asking people about more than one topic, organise your survey into different sections or themes so it’s easy to follow.
Word questions so that they’re as accessible as possible, and explain anything that might not be clear. Help to avoid bias by asking short, concise and neutral questions.
It's generally useful to include a mixture of closed and open questions. Closed questions –which might, for instance, include tick boxes, ranking exercises or sliding scales – produce short, quick responses, while open questions allow respondents to think, reflect and offer more in-depth opinions.
Before the survey goes live, test it with friends, colleagues and – if you can – a couple of representatives of your target audience for sense.
Getting the right audience to respond
When deciding on the format of your survey, think about whether your target audience is more likely to respond better to a face-to-face survey, an online survey, or both.
If you’re conducting a face-to-face survey at your museum, think about which days of the week your target audience tends to visit on and what times of year they visit. Could you survey attendees at events for your target audience, such as family holiday activities? It’s also worth going off-site to places where your target audience hang out, whether that is in shopping centres, cafes or the high street.
If your survey is online, think about the websites or mailing lists your target audience is most likely to engage with. These might be your website and social media pages, or social media pages of community organisations, such as parent and toddler groups and local history groups.
Whether you’re conducting an online or face-to-face survey, a good introduction goes a long way. Concisely explain why you are asking people to give up their time to complete your survey. What will their responses help you to do? For example, their views may help to shape the displays a museum’s new gallery. .
If you can, incentivise participation in your survey by running a prize draw or competition. When considering what to offer as a prize, think about what would most appeal to your target audience – a shopping voucher or free entry to your museum.
Sampling
Try to survey a relatively large number of people (at least 100) to ensure the data is as representative as possible.
If you’re carrying out a face-to-face survey, try to prevent bias by selecting random participants – for example, every fifth person, or the person in a group who most recently had a birthday.
If you’re unable to gather responses from a large number of people, that doesn’t mean the survey is totally invalid. But any subsequent report should be clear about the number of survey participants so that major decisions aren’t made on the basis of the views of a small minority. You might decide to carry out follow-up research to obtain additional data. When you report the data, it’s good practice not to use percentages if your results are based on data from fewer than 100 people.
Who will lead the survey?
Decide who will conduct the survey. Will it be done in-house by staff or volunteers or will you commission a consultant? This decision might depend on the time you have available, your budget and the skills you have in-house. Could you use the survey as an opportunity to train staff and volunteers in visitor consultation methods?
Dissemination
Decide how you’re going to present your findings once you’ve analysed the data you collect. You might write a report, create a presentation or produce an infographic. Think about the people who will read or listen to your report: who are they and what format would they prefer?
Using the data
After collecting and disseminating the survey results, make sure you act on them. To help ensure this happens, create an action list showing who will do what by when. You might not be able to act on all the findings from your survey straight away; think about dividing the list into short, medium and long-term actions – and prioritising the actions that are the most important and within your budget.