{"id":102039,"date":"2015-06-11T13:53:11","date_gmt":"2015-06-11T18:53:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/2015\/06\/11\/tips-for-creating-web-surveys-for-completion-on-a-mobile-device\/"},"modified":"2024-04-14T04:14:42","modified_gmt":"2024-04-14T09:14:42","slug":"tips-for-creating-web-surveys-for-completion-on-a-mobile-device","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/methods\/2015\/06\/11\/tips-for-creating-web-surveys-for-completion-on-a-mobile-device\/","title":{"rendered":"Tips for Creating Web Surveys for Completion on a Mobile Device"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Kyley McGeeney<\/em><\/p>\n\n

Updated July 1, 2015<\/h5>\n\n
\"PM_2015-06-11_web-surveys-on-mobile-01\"<\/figure>\n\n

“If you’re doing a Web survey, you’re doing a mobile survey,” according to Michael Link, chief methodologist for Nielsen, recent American Association for Public Opinion Research president and a leading authority on mobile surveys.[1. Link, Michael, Jennie Lai and Kelly Bristol. 2013. \u201cAccessibility or Simplicity? How Respondents Engage With a Multiportal (Mobile, Tablet, Online) Methodology for Data Collection.\u201d Presented at the Annual Conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Boston.]\u00a0Indeed, in Pew Research Center’s American Trends Panel<\/a>, a nationally representative, probability-based panel designed to be primarily Web-based, fully 27% of respondents completed their most recent survey on a smartphone (another 8% used a tablet to do so).<\/p>\n\n

With so many respondents taking Web surveys on smartphones, creating surveys with smartphone respondents in mind is critical. This includes both writing the questions with mobile respondents in mind and ensuring that your software properly renders the questions regardless of the type of device respondents are using.[2. Mitchell, Nicole. 2015. \u201cThe Changing Landscape of Technology and Its Effects on Online Survey Data Collection.\u201d Presented at the Annual Conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Hollywood, FL; Barlas, Frances, Randall Thomas and Patricia Graham. 2015. \u201cPurposefully Mobile: Experimentally Assessing Device Effects in an Online Survey.\u201d Presented at the Annual Conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Hollywood, FL.] If surveys aren’t designed for completion on a smartphone, there can be data quality issues such as inaccurately recorded responses, lazy answers and skipped questions.[3. Antoun, Christopher. 2015. \u201cEffects of Mobile versus PC Web on Survey Response Quality: a Crossover Experiment in a Probability Web Panel.\u201d Presented at the Annual Conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Hollywood, FL; Barlas, Frances and Randall Thomas. 2015. \u201cThe Mobile Influence: How Mobile Participants Affect Survey Results.\u201d Presented at the Annual Conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Hollywood, FL; Mitchell, Nicole. 2015. \u201cThe Changing Landscape of Technology and Its Effects on Online Survey Data Collection.\u201d Presented at the Annual Conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Hollywood, FL.] Furthermore, if they become frustrated, smartphone respondents are more likely than others to abandon a survey altogether.[4. McGeeney, Kyley and Jenny Marlar. 2013. \u201cMobile Browser Web Surveys: Testing Response Rates, Data Quality, and Best Practices.\u201d Presented at the Annual Conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Boston.]<\/p>\n\n

Luckily there are things researchers can do to make surveys more smartphone-compatible. The following are eight tips for creating better surveys for completion on a smartphone.<\/p>\n\n

1. Software should be mobile optimized<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Mobile optimization means the software automatically detects the device used, specifically the screen size, and adjusts the layout of the survey accordingly. The font and spacing are larger, as are any buttons that need to be pressed, so that respondents don\u2019t need to pinch to zoom. Additionally, there is no horizontal scrolling, but there may be vertical scrolling.<\/p>\n\n

2. Shorter is better<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

This refers to both the number of questions and the questions themselves. The longer the survey is, the more likely it is to lose respondents \u2013 true for any survey, but especially true for surveys taken on a mobile device. And because smartphone screens are small, shorter questions and response options make it easier for smartphone respondents to read and answer questions, which should improve data quality.<\/p>\n\n

3. Avoid fancy features<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

It\u2019s tempting to include features such as sliders and spin wheels in surveys. However, research has shown that these kinds of features are difficult for mobile respondents to use correctly because they require a high degree of dexterity.[5. Antoun, Christopher. 2015. \u201cEffects of Mobile versus PC Web on Survey Response Quality: a Crossover Experiment in a Probability Web Panel.\u201d Presented at the Annual Conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Hollywood, FL.]\u00a0They also may require more time for respondents to use than simpler formats. It\u2019s best to stick to radio buttons, checkboxes or text boxes, if possible.<\/p>\n\n

4. No grids<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Surveys presented in grid format are meant to use space efficiently by placing questions and response options into a matrix design. But grids also have drawbacks on all devices. For example, researchers have found that grids make it easy for respondents to simply choose the same response for each item in the grid, a phenomenon known as “straightlining.” These data quality issues are even more pronounced on smartphones, as grids often require both vertical and horizontal scrolling, meaning that not all questions and response options may be visible at once.[6. Sterrett, David, Michael Stern, Gwendolyn Rugg, Ethan Raker, Jiwon Baek and Ipek Bilgen. 2015. \u201cThe Effects of Grids on Web Surveys Completed on a Mobile Device.\u201d Presented at the Annual Conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Hollywood, FL.]\u00a0These issues can also cause smartphone respondents to leave the survey.[7. Wang, Mengyang, Allan McCutcheon and Laura Allen. 2015. \u201cGrids and Online Panels: A Comparison of Device Type from a Survey Quality Perspective.\u201d Presented at the Annual Conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Hollywood, FL.]<\/p>\n\n

5. Ask multiple questions on the same screen<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

If grids aren\u2019t ideal, then what is a better option? The answer: It\u2019s okay to put multiple questions on the same screen.[8. Richards, Ashley, Rebecca Powell, Joe Murphy, Shengchao Yu and Mai Nguyen. 2015. \u201cGridlocked: The Impact of Adapting Surveys Grids for Smartphones.\u201d Presented at the Annual Conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Hollywood, FL.]\u00a0Previously it was en vogue in Web surveys to put one question on each screen. But slower mobile load times can unnecessarily burden smartphone respondents. One way to get around this is to group questions about the same topic on the same screen.[9. Mavletova, Aigul and Mick P. Couper. 2014. \u201cMobile Web Survey Design: Scrolling Versus Paging, SMS Versus E-mail Invitations.\u201d Journal of Survey Statistics and Methodology, 2(4), 498-518; McGeeney, Kyley and Jenny Marlar. 2013. \u201cMobile Browser Web Surveys: Testing Response Rates, Data Quality, and Best Practices.\u201d Presented at the Annual Conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Boston.]<\/p>\n\n

6. Maximize use of the smartphone screen<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

There is only so much real estate on a smartphone screen, and it is precious.\u00a0Avoid cluttering up the screen with logos or graphics (they take longer to load anyway). Additionally, position navigation buttons at the bottom of the screen so that respondents are forced to scroll past all questions and response options; that way nothing is missed.<\/p>\n\n

7. Use a unique URL in the survey invitation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

\"PM_2015-06-11_web-surveys-on-mobile-02\"<\/figure>\n\n

Don’t require respondents to enter an access code, username and\/or password to access a survey. Doing so creates one more barrier to completing the survey. This is especially true for smartphone respondents, as these requirements mean respondents will have to switch back and forth between the survey\u2019s invitation email and the mobile Web browser. For an easier user experience, create unique URLs for each respondent so that when they click the link in their invitation, they are automatically taken directly to their survey and can begin immediately.<\/p>\n\n

8. Invite respondents through a text message<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

As long as you have explicit consent to send text messages to respondents, consider sending survey invitations via text message in addition to email. Include the survey URL in the text message so respondents can click directly to the survey instead of having to wait for them to check their email.<\/p>\n\n

For further reading on this topic please see the American Association for Public Opinion Research\u2019s (AAPOR) report<\/a> of the Task Force on Emerging Technologies in Public Opinion Research and the AAPOR webinar \u201cSmarter Smartphone Surveys 201: Data Collection Methods and Survey Design Considerations<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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