Examples of survey incentives

Increase survey participation by offering rewards to your survey responders

Trying to decide how to entice people to respond to your survey? There's lots to consider! If you decide to reward respondents for taking your survey, your next step is to decide on what type of reward to offer. Here are some examples of rewards and what to keep in mind when choosing survey rewards.

• Examples of survey rewards
• Choosing the right survey incentive

Examples of survey rewards

Examples of rewards commonly used as survey incentives include:

• Small amounts of cash
• Gift certificates
• Coupons or discount codes that promote your organization or business partners
• Points towards your loyalty program
• Small physical gifts, product samples, or branded swag from your organization
• Digital resources, like exclusive content, downloadable content, or trial subscriptions
• Entries into a sweepstakes for a larger prize
• Donations to a charity

Choosing the right survey incentive

• Consider the resources you'll need beyond the incentive itself. Think about the cost of getting, preparing, providing, and/or distributing the rewards. These could include time, packaging, workers, or even contracts with outside vendors.  
• Keep rewards small to make sure you get quality feedback. If your rewards are highly desirable, you may attract people who know nothing or little about your organization. Incentives can sometimes lead to biased results; respondents who expect to receive significant rewards are less likely to share criticism and are more likely to give praise.
• Decide how many rewards you can afford to give out.  If the number of rewards you can offer is limited, plan to monitor the results closely. That way, you can close the survey when the response limit is reached.  
• Identify any terms and conditions that participants need to meet to earn the incentive. Explain these terms and conditions clearly in your survey.

Questions?