Post-event surveys are a powerful tool for understanding the success of your event from the attendees’ perspective. By asking the right questions, you can collect actionable data to enhance future events and better meet your members’ and attendees’ needs. Here, we’ll explore what your survey should cover, the most important type of question, a comprehensive list of questions and the best way to deliver your surveys for maximum engagement. Of course, you should not use all of these questions, as you want to make your survey digestible and easy to complete.
Key Areas Your Survey Should Cover
To capture comprehensive feedback, your survey should ideally have questions in all of the following areas:
- Overall Event Experience – This will give you a quick snapshot of how successful your event was from a general perspective.
- Event Content and Sessions – This section should cover the relevance, quality, and diversity of the sessions offered.
- Speakers and Presenters – Speakers can significantly impact the success of an event. Gather feedback on their effectiveness, knowledge, and presentation style.
- Venue and Logistics – Assess their satisfaction with these aspects to ensure future events run smoothly.
- Networking Opportunities – Ensure you are providing valuable opportunities for them to connect, which is a top reason why people attend events.
- Event Communication – Evaluate how well you communicated with your attendees.
- Future Events – This can help you plan more relevant and engaging events moving forward.
The List of Post-Event Survey Questions You Need to Ask
The list we provide will contain a mix of both multiple choice and open-ended questions. Feel free to select the questions you feel are most relevant and useful to you.
Overall Event Experience
- How would you rate your overall experience at the event?
- Excellent
- Good
- Fair
- Poor
- What did you enjoy most about the event?
- Were there any aspects of the event that you found disappointing or unsatisfactory?
- How likely are you to attend future events organized by us?
- Very Likely
- Likely
- Neutral
- Unlikely
- Very Unlikely
Event Content and Sessions
- How relevant was the event content to your interests and needs?
- Very Relevant
- Somewhat Relevant
- Not Relevant
- How would you rate the quality of the sessions/workshops?
- Excellent
- Good
- Fair
- Poor
- Which sessions did you find most valuable and why?
- Were there any topics or sessions that you felt were missing or needed more coverage?
Speakers and Presenters
- How would you rate the overall quality of the speakers/presenters?
- Excellent
- Good
- Fair
- Poor
- Which speaker(s) did you find most engaging and why?
- Were there any speakers you felt did not meet your expectations? If so, please explain.
- Did you feel that you were provided good materials/presentations from the speakers?
Venue and Logistics
- How satisfied were you with the event venue?
- Very Satisfied
- Satisfied
- Neutral
- Dissatisfied
- Very Dissatisfied
- How would you rate the convenience and accessibility of the event location?
- Excellent
- Good
- Fair
- Poor
- Were the event facilities (e.g., meeting rooms, restrooms) adequate and well-maintained?
- How would you rate the organization and management of event logistics (e.g., registration, seating, signage)?
- How satisfied were you with the catering/food and beverage options provided at the event?
- Very Satisfied
- Satisfied
- Neutral
- Dissatisfied
- Very Dissatisfied
- How was your experience with the event staff and volunteers?
- Excellent
- Good
- Fair
- Poor
Networking Opportunities
- How would you rate the networking opportunities provided at the event?
- Excellent
- Good
- Fair
- Poor
- Did you make any meaningful new networking contacts?
- How can we improve networking opportunities at future events?
Event Communication
- How would you rate the pre-event communication (e.g., emails, event website)?
- Excellent
- Good
- Fair
- Poor
- How would you rate the communication (e.g., notifications, emails, feed posts, etc.) during the event?
- Excellent
- Good
- Fair
- Poor
- How effective were the on-site communications (e.g., schedules, announcements)?
- Was the post-event communication (e.g., follow-up emails, notifications, thank-you notes) satisfactory?
Event App
- Did you find the event app useful and easy to navigate?
- Yes
- No
- Were you able to easily access materials for the event on the app?
- Yes
- No
- Do you have any recommendations for the event app functionality?
- What other functionality would you like in the Event App?
Future Events
- What types of events or topics would you like to see in the future?
- Do you have any suggestions for improving future events?
- Would you be interested in attending similar events in the future?
- Yes
- No
- Maybe
- Are there any other comments or feedback you would like to share?
- Are there any speakers or presenters you would like to see at future events?
Event Value and ROI
- How would you rate the overall value of the event for the cost?
- Excellent
- Good
- Fair
- Poor
Additional Feedback
- Are there any other comments or feedback you would like to share?
- How did you hear about this event?
- What motivated you to attend this event?
The Most Important Type of Question in Post-Event Surveys
Open-ended questions are objectively the most important in any list of post-event survey questions.
While multiple choice questions can be useful, they’re not as revealing. They allow the participant to give you useful details, and even cover topics you didn’t think to ask about.
That said, the attendee is not going to dedicate hours to writing super detailed responses, and that’s why multiple choice questions have their merits too. They help you get quick, gut-check responses that can also be useful in assessing performance.
The Best Way to Deliver Post-Event Questions: An Event App
There are a host of reasons why surveys should be delivered via an event app rather than a 3rd party survey tool. Review them below, and if you haven’t created your fast, easy event mobile app, schedule a demo with MobileUp, a master app creator for event organizers and associations.
- Immediate Access: Surveys can be completed directly from mobile devices.
- In-App Reminders: Ensures attendees don’t forget to complete the survey.
- Ease of Use: User-friendly interfaces simplify navigation and responses.
- Prompt Responses: Surveys can be completed immediately after sessions.
- Instant Notifications: Push notifications remind attendees to complete the survey.
- Engagement: Attendees already using the app are more likely to participate.
- Reduced Friction: No need to switch platforms or search for emails.
- Comprehensive Reporting: Detailed reports with response rates, average ratings, and comments.
- Paperless Solution: Reduces environmental impact.
- Digital Records: Easy management and reference of data.
- Consistency: Using the same app for event info and feedback.
- Data Security: Robust security features ensure confidentiality.
- Controlled Access: Only registered attendees can provide feedback.
Tips for Designing Effective Surveys
- Keep it Short-ish and Simple: Respect your members’ time by keeping the survey concise. Aim for a survey that takes no more than 5-10 minutes to complete.
- Use a Mix of Question Types: Combine multiple-choice questions for quantitative data with open-ended questions for qualitative insights.
- Provide Clear Instructions: Ensure that your questions are clear and easy to understand. Provide examples if necessary.
- Make it Mobile-Friendly: Many people will complete the survey on their phones, so make sure your survey is optimized for mobile devices. If the event app is already installed on their phone and the survey is delivered through the app, this tip/step is already taken care of.
- Offer an Incentive: Encourage participation by offering a small incentive, such as a discount on future events or entry into a prize draw.
- Follow Up on Feedback: Show your members that you value their input by summarizing the survey results and explaining how you plan to address their feedback. This is more rarely done, as organizers typically just pocket this feedback for themselves. It may be interesting to attendees to see how their opinions stack up against their fellow attendees.
Post-event surveys are a crucial tool for understanding your members’ experiences and continuously improving your events. By asking the right questions, you can gather actionable feedback that helps you plan more successful and engaging events in the future. Remember, the goal is not just to collect data, but to use it to create better experiences for your members.
