Perception surveys gather opinions about a company, product, program, or issue. They can be verbal, written, or electronic and are used to discover consumer opinions. The results are important to companies and can influence consumer behavior. Other organizations, such as governmental and social organizations, also use perception surveys.
A perception survey is a study or research project completed with the goal of gathering impressions about a company, product, program, or issue. Such surveys can be offered to a wide range of audiences for a variety of purposes and are often run by companies with the intent of discovering consumer opinions. Surveys can be verbal, written or electronic and can vary in length. The main distinction of a perception survey is that it is intended to uncover opinions rather than hard data.
Unlike other types of studies that focus on actions and behaviors, such as shopping and purchasing habits, a perception survey seeks to find out what people think. This data will be predominantly qualitative, meaning that it is based on opinion rather than fact. Questions could be presented as yes/no or multiple choice, or participants could be given a scale of descriptors, such as “good, better, better” to choose from. Other questions can be open-ended, meaning the respondent can answer in their own words.
A common use for a perception survey is to gather consumer opinions about a company or product. To this end, a business can design and manage its own survey or contract with a survey company. Companies may want to find out if customers see their business as friendly, approachable, cutting-edge, green, responsible, leading, traditional, modern, easy to do business with, and more. They may also want to know whether consumers consider a product to be overpriced, cheap, well-made, valuable, easy to use, convenient, lifestyle-friendly, necessary, or luxurious. The range of opinions a company might seek is wide, and the list of options is often based on how a company wants to be seen.
The results of a perception survey are important to companies. These findings can tell a company what consumers like and dislike, whether or not they trust the company, and whether they would recommend it to a friend. Consumer opinions influence consumer behavior, so this type of data is critical to helping businesses grow. As with many surveys, perception surveys routinely include demographic questions, such as age, gender, and income level, so the data can be more easily sorted.
The corporate sector is just one user of perception surveys. Governmental, political, and social organizations often conduct such surveys to find out how the public feels about a proposed law or current issue. Employers’ companies may also conduct surveys of employee perceptions of benefits, working conditions or the company’s status. Similarly, clubs and organizations could ask if the membership believes the group is heading in the right direction.
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