đ In Brief: The Essentials of Satisfaction Surveys
đ Ideal number of questions: 8 to 12 questions maximum to maintain a response rate above 30%
â±ïž Optimal response time: 3 to 5 minutes (beyond that, the abandonment rate increases by 70%)
đŻ The 4 essential question types: Usage questions (3-4), Demographic questions (2-3), NPS/CSAT rating scales (2-3), Open-ended questions (2-3)
â What you’ll discover in this guide:
- 14 ready-to-use question examples for your survey
- The 3 key metrics to measure: NPS, CSAT, and CES
- How to effectively analyze responses with Artificial Intelligence
- Critical mistakes to avoid to maximize your participation rate
đĄ Expert Tip: Send your survey within 24-48 hours after customer interaction to get responses that are 40% more genuine and actionable.
To effectively measure your customers’ satisfaction in 2025, a customer satisfaction survey should contain between 8 and 12 questions maximum, structured around four essential pillars: product or service usage, demographic data, rating scales with indicators like the Net Promoter Score, and open-ended questions to gather qualitative feedback. The main objective is to achieve a high response rate while collecting truly actionable data to improve your offering.
The three most effective question types in a satisfaction survey are first, rating scale questions from 0 to 10 that enable quick and reliable quantitative analysis, second, NPS questions that identify your promoters and detractors in a single indicator, and third, targeted open-ended questions that reveal qualitative insights that numbers alone cannot capture.
Are you wondering specifically which questions to ask to transform your occasional customers into loyal brand ambassadors? Creating an effective satisfaction survey cannot be improvised, especially in a context where 70% of customers abandon a survey that is too long or poorly structured.
>> Create your Online Survey with Dragân Survey, click here

| Question Type | Main Objective | Response Format | Ease of Analysis | Recommended Number |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Usage Questions | Understand customer behavior | Multiple choice / Scale | ââââ Easy | 3-4 questions |
| Demographic Questions | Segment your audience | Multiple choice / Ranges | âââââ Very easy | 2-4 questions |
| Rating Scales (NPS, CSAT, CES) | Quantitatively measure satisfaction | Numerical scale 0-10 | âââââ Very easy | 2-3 questions |
| Open-ended Questions | Gather qualitative insights | Free text | ââ Complex (AI recommended) | 2-4 questions max |
How They Use The Service/Product
The first thing you need to establish is how the customer uses your services. This helps you to determine the distressful points of customers and how they use your services/products to deal with this. It might also help you to find new ways to market your products.
You should also be looking at ways in which your product/service doesnât help your customer and how you can make improvements to relieve those pain points.
Some of the questions you might want to ask include:
1. How often do you use our product/service?
2. Does the product help you achieve your goals?
3. What do you like most about our product/service?
4. If you could improve something, what would it be?
Demographics Of The Audience
While this is basic information, it is also vital. It tells you who is using your product/service and other information that can help your marketing team, sales team and other leaders to make important decisions. This can help marketing and sales teams to reduce costs and improve conversion rates when they target those who are more likely to use your product.
Some of the questions you might want to ask include:
5. How old are you? (You can group ages to be more polite).
6. Where do you live?
7. What is your household income? (You can again group income brackets for more privacy).
8. What is your employment status/job role?
Satisfaction Scaling Questions
This is important because you need to determine the exact emotional state of the respondents of the survey. Are they very happy or just a little happy with their brand interactions? This is the easiest aspect of a survey to assess when you use a number or descriptive scale.
You can use a number scale from 1 to 10, or something similar. You can use a descriptive scale that includes terms like Strongly Like, Like, Strongly Dislike and Dislike. It is best that you donât have something in between, âno opinionâ option. This is because there tends to be data skew towards no opinion, and you should be aiming to get a trend to either like or dislike.
A couple of example questions could include:
9. On a scale of 1-10 with 1 being strongly dissatisfied to 10 being extremely satisfied, how would you rate the [feature] of our product?
10. On a scale of extremely likely to extremely unlikely, would you recommend us to your friends or family?
Open Text Questions
These questions allow respondents to create their own answers. They are harder to analyze but they can also be a goldmine in terms of data and potential insights into the thoughts of your audience. It can also show you the emotional pull of customers that you might not have thought of. Finally, you can look at how audiences are writing and get lots of information about their demographics, education and how they look at life.
A few examples of open text questions include:
11. In your own words, please describe your opinions of our brand.
12. Is there a way in which we can improve your experience when you come to our office/shop?
13. What are your concerns with our product?
14. Is there something that our support staff can improve?
Question types such as NPS, CSAT and CES
To be able to reach its full growth, it is important for each company to regularly assess the level of satisfaction of its consumers through the services it has to offer. This analysis is carried out using certain satisfaction indicators such as the Net Promoter Score (NPS), the Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT), and the Customer Effort Score (CES).
Net Promoter Score (NPS)
The NPS indicator was designed in 2003 by Fred Reichheld. It helps evaluate the probability that a customer might recommend a product or a brand to his entourage. It is in the form of a question that the customer must answer by rating between 0 and 10. The rating given by the customer helps to obtain the percentage of unhappy consumers, passive consumers, and satisfied consumers. The answers can be interpreted as follows:
o ratings from 0 to 6 are given by dissatisfied consumers,
o scores of 7 and 8 offer the possibility of identifying passive consumers,
o ratings from 9 to 10 are given by satisfied consumers.
Once all the responses have been collected, the NPS calculation is carried out by subtracting the percentage of dissatisfied customers from the percentage of satisfied customers. If the value obtained is greater than zero, it means that the company’s satisfaction index is acceptable. On the other hand, if the NPS is less than zero, this indicates that the number of dissatisfied customers is greater than the number of satisfied customers. The company must therefore implement a strategy as soon as possible to reverse the trend.
Drag’n Survey provides companies with software to facilitate the analysis of their clients’ Net Promoter Score type questions. Thanks to Artificial Intelligence, they can obtain the results of the questionnaire in a few seconds, and thus develop improvement strategies, as soon as possible.

Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT)
The CSAT is the indicator most used by companies to measure the level of satisfaction of their consumers. It consists of collecting the customer’s impressions right at the end of an interaction with the company. Experience has shown that the newer the interaction, the more the customer is able to give an objective answer.
It is therefore important to ensure that the latter receives the question automatically at the end of his operation via the website. On the other hand, if the interaction takes place in a physical store, it is necessary to reserve at the counter or at certain key places of the premises, a space dedicated to this questionnaire. The CSAT is rated on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being âvery low level of satisfactionâ and 10 being âvery high level of satisfactionâ.
Customer Effort Score (CES)
The CES is an indicator which makes it possible to assess the level of satisfaction of a customer, by measuring the effort which it must provide to carry out an action with the companyâs place. This score provides information on the company’s customer course, the quality of which inevitably affects the loyalty rate of its consumers.
Measuring CES is simply asking customers how much effort they had to put in to get in touch with the business. The customer will have to give a score between 1 (very low) and 5 (very high). The questionnaire must be given to him as soon as his interaction with the company is over, to be certain of obtaining the most spontaneous response possible. The result of the CES is obtained by dividing the sum of all the notes that are sent, by the number of answers recorded. The higher the result achieved, the greater the level of effort, and therefore this requires an immediate improvement in regard to the customer experience.
Example Customer Satisfaction Survey, The Importance of Design
The design of a survey plays a key role in increasing the response rate and obtaining quality feedback. Beyond the content itself, the form is essential to encourage customers to take a few minutes to share their opinions.
Some best practices for customizing the design:
- Use the brand’s colors and logo to create a survey that matches its image. The customer will feel at home.
- Add a personalized introductory message, such as “Dear [First Name], your opinion is invaluable for improving the [company name] experience.”
- Display a progress bar to indicate the remaining time. Respondents will be more inclined to complete the survey.
- End with a personalized and warm thank-you message.
- Optimize the mobile display, the preferred medium today for responding to this type of solicitation.
By applying these design customization tips tailored to your brand and target audience, you will maximize the number and relevance of the feedback collected through your survey. Valuable information to better meet your customers’ expectations.
Example Customer Satisfaction Survey with Video
Integrating a background video into the survey can make it more attractive and engaging. The video can also help contextualize the questions and refresh customers’ memories about their experience.
Example Customer Satisfaction Survey with Split Page
Dividing the survey page into two distinct parts can improve readability and visual organization. You can place the questions on the right and the visuals on the left. This layout allows respondents to focus on the questions while having a clear overview of the associated elements.
Example Customer Satisfaction Survey with Banner
Adding a customized banner at the top of the survey is an excellent way to reinforce your brand’s visual identity and create consistency with your other communication materials. The banner can include your slogan and representative images or illustrations of your company. Ensure that the banner is aesthetically pleasing and professional without being too imposing to avoid distracting respondents.
Example Customer Satisfaction Survey with Split Line
Separating the survey sections with split horizontal lines can bring a modern and dynamic look to your customer satisfaction survey. This subtle design trick helps visually structure the survey and guide respondents’ eyes from one section to another.
The use of Artificial Intelligence in a satisfaction questionnaire
Analyzing customer feedback through open-ended questions is sometimes difficult. This is not a problem when 10 or 30 consumers express themselves freely. With 100, 1,000 or 10,000 comments, the analysis is much more complicated and time-consuming.
With the Artificial Intelligence module of Drag’n Survey, it is possible to instantly analyze a very large amount of text. It is no longer necessary to manually process the data, categorize it and label it. Everything is computerized.
Instantly assess the level of satisfaction in a satisfaction survey
Drag’n Survey’s AI is specialized for users who wish to carry out customer satisfaction surveys. Following the automatic analysis of comments, a general trend on customer satisfaction is restored. It is thus possible to identify the percentages of positive, negative, and neutral comments.
Display a tag cloud for Positive and Negative feedback in a customer satisfaction survey
Once the general degree of contentment has been restored, it is possible to obtain a cloud of keywords for the Positive and Negative indices. This helps to immediately identify words that are related to customer dissatisfaction and satisfaction.
The objective is to immediately identify what is going on and not working, in order to implement a rapid and targeted actions to improve customer satisfaction. For example, in a large retail store, it helps to understand that the waiting time at the checkout exceeds the acceptable threshold and that it is necessary to open new ones at very specific times.
5 tips for creating a satisfaction survey
Taking customer feedback into account through a satisfaction questionnaire is the best way to optimize a company’s services. This approach requires rigor and precision, mainly while preparing a survey.
Set clear goals
The satisfaction questionnaire must meet specific objectives. Its preparation depends on the information that the company wishes to obtain from its customers. It is necessary to define the problem as precisely as possible. Duration of the survey, scoring system, type of sampling, etc. No parameter should be left to chance!
It is also essential to think about the target of the questionnaire before preparing the questions. Therefore, it is possible to phrase and adjust these according to the targeted customers for better results. The trick here is to carry out several surveys with a few modifications to reach a wider audience.
Consider customer feedback
If the main objective of a satisfaction survey is to assess the experience of customers, about a product or service, it is also crucial to know their opinion. Why? To improve the company’s offer on points that it might not have thought of!
To achieve this, simply include non-directive or semi-directive questions in the satisfaction questionnaire. This gives free rein to the participants, but it is wise to find a happy medium to favor more efficiency.
Create a simple and understandable questionnaire
It is not pleasant to answer a questionnaire, where one doesnât understand all the questions. Reflecting constantly to understand the terms used by the authors of a satisfaction survey very often leads to abandoning the process. Clients who participate in this exercise are looking for clarity and precision.
At the risk of having a high abandonment rate, the company behind a satisfaction questionnaire must avoid questions that are too long. Each question must be unequivocal and relate to a single aspect. Terms that are too technical should be banned from the form. An effective tip is to test out the survey on company employees and their relatives before launching it.

Properly structure the satisfaction survey
A clean and efficient questionnaire is a well-ordered form. For example, it is awkward to place a question on an identical subject at the beginning and at the end of the satisfaction survey. This error gives the impression that the questions are sloppy or prepared at the last minute.
The idea here is to structure the questionnaire with main theme, revolving around specific questions. Regardless of the structure, it is essential to facilitate the understanding of customers!
Opt for a concise questionnaire
Creating a long questionnaire is the best way to increase the abandonment rate during a satisfaction survey. No one likes endless forms, even with the best will in the world.
On the other hand, precise, well-formulated and easy-to-understand questions make it possible to answer the survey in a minimum of time. The key to getting there? Stick to the essentials! You should never ask a secondary question if it does not fit with the objectives of the operation.
It is possible that, even with concise questions, the duration of the questionnaire will be too long. In this case, a second questionnaire should be created!
Create a satisfaction questionnaire in 6 steps
The surveys carried out among oneâs customers guarantee the company efficient interaction and constant improvement. To measure the effectiveness of oneâs services and validate the axes of development through a questionnaire, it must nevertheless follow a few steps.
The objectives: a crucial step
Setting clear objectives and integrating them into a single form is the first step to creating a good questionnaire. A satisfaction survey generally aims to:
o knows the customers and their feelings,
o measures the level of satisfaction of the company’s customers,
o understands customer perception,
o solicits users for ideas,
o etc…
It is also possible to conduct a satisfaction survey to send a message to employees and improve the management of a company’s teams. In any case, the objectives must be clear to obtain relevant answers and easily usable results.
The themes of the satisfaction questionnaire
Once the objectives have been set, it is key to reflect on the themes of the satisfaction questionnaire. These are areas related to the company’s business that should be surveyed.
Several axes can be explored during such a survey. Welcoming customers, repair and quality of after-sales service, delivery times, etc. It is a question of determining the poles on which the survey must be based to elaborate the questionnaire.
The evaluation criteria make it possible to further refine the form. Taking the reception of customers as an example, it can be the friendliness of the employees, their presentation, the waiting time, etc. The idea is to prepare a solid foundation for the investigation.
Writing the survey
This step begins with sorting. It is a question of differentiating the themes linked to subjective parameters from those which evoke very objective aspects. Here, it is possible to formulate approximately 25 questions as part of an annual satisfaction survey. However, we will limit ourselves to less than 10 questions for a one-off survey.
The scoring system used depends on the objectives of the survey. For each point, it is possible to provide a scale ranging from âCompletely satisfiedâ to âNot at all satisfiedâ. The form must also present a space for free expression to allow users to express themselves on certain aspects of the company.

Dissemination and promotion
Like all actions carried out by the company, the satisfaction survey must be preceded by a good communication strategy. The aim is to present the objectives of the survey and the resulting benefits so that a large number of users respond. There are several distribution channels: emailing campaign, form accessible on the internet or survey offered on the company’s intranet.
Some companies play the reward card to encourage their users to complete the satisfaction survey. For example, they organize competitions between departments with, as a result, bonuses for the best score which has been obtained.
Analysis of results
Reviewing the results of a satisfaction questionnaire is just as important as distributing it. It is very easy to fall into the trap of analyzing statistics to draw the conclusions of the survey. When interviewing customers, the emotional aspect also comes into play.
The challenge of this step is to make an overall analysis of the results to determine the general direction to be taken, the areas for improvement and the priority actions.
Communicating the obtained results
The last step in creating a satisfaction questionnaire is to disseminate the results of the survey. The company must also clearly present the corrective actions it intends to take.
In addition to thanking users for their involvement in the survey, this method also helps encourage their participation in the next survey.!
The benefits of satisfaction surveys
Asking its buyers is essential today for any company that wants to retain its customers and improve its turnover. Indeed, in the age of social networks, ratings and comments posted on the web, it is important to react quickly to improve general satisfaction.
Quickly identify whatâs wrong
The customer satisfaction questionnaire offers the advantage of immediately identifying what is working and what is not. The objective is not to let a situation deteriorate.
React quickly to an unhappy customer
A buyer who expresses his dissatisfaction must be contacted quickly. It is important not to let the situation deteriorate. Reacting quickly makes the buyer feel considered. This point is important because it can make you stand out from your competitors.
All customers are contacted with a satisfaction questionnaire
An online survey can be distributed in different ways. It is possible to send an email to oneâs buyers, to integrate a web link on social networks or to flash a QR Code.
Its different distribution methods make it possible to contact all customers, on all channels, at different times.
A personalized presentation of the customer satisfaction questionnaire
On a web format, it is possible to personalize your survey by integrating the logo of your company, its colors, and its graphic charter. Buyers immediately identify the sender, which favors greater participation.
Going Further with Your Customer Satisfaction Approach
Now that you have the 14 essential questions and best practices for building your satisfaction survey, it’s time to take action by adapting these examples to your specific context. The key to success lies in the regularity of your measurements and your ability to quickly transform feedback into concrete improvements for your customers.
Each company has different needs depending on its industry, maturity, and strategic objectives. If you’re a startup in the launch phase, focus on 6 to 8 questions targeting product experience and NPS to quickly validate your product-market fit. Established B2B companies will benefit from integrating questions about the complete sales cycle and the quality of interactions with different touchpoints, favoring a quarterly survey with a representative sample. For e-commerce, emphasis should be placed on the shopping experience, delivery, and after-sales service, with automated micro-surveys after each transaction to maintain a constant flow of actionable feedback.
â Quick Start Checklist
This week: Precisely define your 2-3 priority objectives for your first survey and select 8 to 10 questions from the proposed examples that directly address them.
Within 15 days: Test your survey with 5 to 10 colleagues or trusted customers to identify ambiguous questions or technical issues before official deployment.
Month 1: Launch your survey with an initial sample of 100 to 500 customers and analyze the results to identify 3 concrete improvement actions to implement immediately.
The most common mistake is collecting data without a predefined action plan, which transforms your survey into a style exercise with no real impact. Before even writing your first question, identify the action levers at your disposal and the decisions you’ll be able to make based on the results obtained.
â Pitfalls to Absolutely Avoid
The endless survey trap: More than 12 questions drastically increases the abandonment rate and generates less thoughtful responses for the final questions.
Neutral option bias: Avoid “no opinion” or “don’t know” responses that skew your statistics and prevent obtaining frank feedback from your customers.
Superficial analysis: Settling for looking at averages without segmenting by customer type or diving into qualitative comments makes you miss the most valuable insights.
đĄ The Secret of High-Performing Surveys
Surveys that generate the most value aren’t necessarily the most technically sophisticated, but those followed by visible actions for customers. Systematically communicate about the changes you’ve implemented following received feedback, explicitly thanking your customers for their contribution. This transparency significantly increases participation rates in subsequent surveys and strengthens trust in your brand, thus creating a virtuous circle of continuous improvement.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many questions should a customer satisfaction survey contain?
An effective customer satisfaction survey should contain between 8 and 12 questions maximum to maintain an optimal response rate. Studies show that beyond 10 questions, the abandonment rate increases significantly, potentially reaching 70% for surveys that are too long. The ideal is to focus on essential questions that directly address your business objectives, combining 3 to 4 questions about product usage, 2 to 3 demographic questions, 2 key indicators like NPS or CSAT, and 2 to 3 open-ended questions for qualitative insights. If you need to collect more information, it’s preferable to create two separate surveys rather than a single survey that’s too dense.
What’s the difference between NPS, CSAT, and CES?
The Net Promoter Score measures the likelihood that a customer will recommend your brand to others on a scale of 0 to 10, classifying respondents as detractors, passives, and promoters. The Customer Satisfaction Score evaluates the satisfaction level immediately after a specific interaction with the company, also on a scale of 1 to 10, and focuses on a precise experience rather than the overall perception. The Customer Effort Score measures the effort the customer had to make to accomplish an action, such as solving a problem or making a purchase, on a scale of 1 to 5 where a low score indicates a smooth experience. These three indicators can be combined: NPS reveals overall loyalty, CSAT identifies specific friction points, and CES optimizes the customer journey by reducing friction.
When should you send a customer satisfaction survey?
Optimal timing depends on your objective and the type of interaction you want to evaluate. To measure satisfaction after a purchase, send the survey within 24 to 48 hours following product receipt, when the experience is still fresh in the customer’s mind. To evaluate customer service, distribute the survey immediately after closing the ticket or conversation, ideally within the hour following to capture emotions and perceptions while they’re still current. For an overall assessment of the customer relationship, favor a quarterly or semi-annual sending that allows you to measure satisfaction evolution without over-soliciting your audience. Avoid sending surveys during high-activity periods like sales or holidays, when customers are less available to respond thoughtfully.
How do you effectively analyze responses to a satisfaction survey?
Effective analysis of a satisfaction survey relies on a mixed approach combining quantitative and qualitative data. Start by calculating your key indicators like NPS, CSAT, and CES to get an overall view of satisfaction levels and identify general trends. Then segment your results by demographic criteria, customer types, or purchased products to spot specific subgroups with different satisfaction levels. For open-ended questions, use artificial intelligence or semantic analysis tools that automatically categorize comments and identify recurring themes, which is particularly useful when you receive more than 100 responses. Then create an action plan prioritizing quick wins that can be implemented rapidly to improve satisfaction, while planning more significant structural changes for the medium term.
More about surveys:
Essential Measures of Customer Happiness, click here
How Surveys Enhance 360 Degree Feedback, click here
The Role Of Surveys In Creating Benchmarks, click here
Ultimate Online Quiz Software for Marketers, click here
10 Tricks For Using Surveys In Business Projects, click here
The Problem With Ambiguous Survey Questions, click here
Find Out How You Can Address Your Employeesâ Concerns, click here
Read the article:
Polish â pytania ankiety satysfakcji, click here
Portuguese â perguntas questionĂĄrio de satisfação, click here
French â questions questionnaire de satisfaction client, click here
German â 14 Fragen fĂŒr Ihre Kundenzufriedenheitsumfrage, click here




