As the web becomes more and more a part of both our personal and business lives, business people and marketing professionals have turned towards web surveys to do research, plan projects, get feedback and develop new products and services. The emergence of excellent web survey applications, complete with wizards to make creation fast and simple, templates to ensure attractive designs, and full suites of reports and statistical analysis, make this method of interacting with your customers very attractive and extremely cost effective. However, as with all computer applications, the old adage “garbage in, garbage out” applies to surveys as well - if you do not know how to design an effective survey, the results will leave much to be desired.

Introductions, first

Whether on the first page of the survey, or in the cover letter inviting people to respond, it is important that you introduce the theme and purpose of the survey. This establishes in advance what types of questions you will be asking and puts the audience in the right frame of mind for answering the survey. Additionally, it helps to tell them why they were chosen, to establish understanding and trust, and assure that their input will be confidential, and personal information will not be shared.

Organize Yourself

It is important that the questions you ask fit within the theme and purpose set down in the introduction. Create an outline, when you are first planning your survey, and then subgroup the questions into logical categories.

First think about what information you want to know, and develop your questions from that. Experiment with different groupings, until each question flows from the previous, in logical order.

Give careful thought to how much you need each question - the fewer the better, because people generally do not have the time or inclination to answer long questionnaires.

Respect your Respondents

Be careful not to use jargon and buzzwords, but also avoid being too simplistic by knowing your survey audience and finding the appropriate balance. Remember that the respondent is taking time out of busy day to help you. Tell them in the introduction approximately how long it might take to complete, and let them know, as they go, how far along they are.

Carefully Craft Questions

When surveys are delivered by phone, trained surveyors usually conduct them and the respondent can get clarification without being led towards a particular answer. With self-administered surveys on the web, every question must be completely clear and understandable. Keep each question as short as possible, without losing meaning, and avoid jargon unless you are sure your audience understands it.

Be careful to ask only one thing at a time. If you have to ask additional questions on the same topic, do it as separate questions to avoid getting muddled responses. Be aware of inserting your own biases and intentions into the question, and try to keep questions neutral so that a “right answer” is not evident. The idea is to get truthful answers which go straight to the heart of the subject, and the simplest variations in a question can make this happen, or not.

Know Your Type

We are all familiar with the most common types of survey question formats - text, check boxes, yes/no, range responses - but there is a real science to knowing which type to use with which question to get the best results. For example:

* When using multiple choice answers to jog the respondent’s memory, will it create bias towards the available choices? Is that okay?
* It might seem easiest to use a Yes/No or True/False question, but be sure that these two answers are the only ones that a respondent might possibly want to use or they will be forced to choose, diluting the truth of their answer.
* When using ranges, for example “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree,” how many choices are necessary? Five is typical - but is it possible that many users will be “lazy” and chose the middle, and neutral, position?
* Before giving using text fields, known also as “free form” fields, consider how you will summarize these responses.

As you develop the survey, think about the different types and picture the results that will come from using each type. With your audience in mind, determine which type would provide the most effective results for what you need to find out. You can further refine these decisions when you test the survey, as explained later.

Protect Against Non-Response

It is unavoidable that a percentage of those surveyed are non-responders. The best way to minimize this element in the survey results is to keep the survey short and to the point, follow a clear outline with stated goals, and accurately target who the survey recipients need to be.

Believe it or not, research states that a 10-15% response rate on any survey is considered a success.

Dangle a Carrot

Even with every precaution taken, creating surveys is never an exact science because there is little control over the human element. For whatever reason, you will often scratch your head wondering why people looked at the survey and dropped out, or just never even looked. A carefully executed survey can minimize this - and incentives can take it a step further. Do you have something you can give away, to encourage folks to take your survey? Providing a free item or bit of information, providing a free copy of the results, or some other lure can go a long way towards gathering results.

Fly a Pilot

When you, yourself, develop a survey, it is easy to overlook the elements that might stop your respondents from completing the survey and wording that might not be clear. Always be sure to test the survey on a few people prior to sending it out to your entire audience. This will also allow you to review the results and see if the questions asked and the way they were answered will result in effective results.

Cut it Off

Be sure to tell your respondents when the survey will be closed. Typically, most respondents will respond within 5 days of receipt and so unless you know for sure that a significant portion of your audience needs longer, a week is a fair amount of time. Do not send out the survey on Fridays or over weekends - we all know what we do with mail received on those days! Try Tuesday morning for optimal response, and expect to see approximately 50% of your responses in the first 24 hours.

It may seem like you need a dual degree in cognitive psychology and statistics to develop an effective survey. This not being true for most of us, these guidelines will provide a foundation to improve both the survey and the results of your efforts. There is no better way to find out what your customers want than to ask them, and if they are already online, web surveys are an ideal way to do it.

Risk is an essential part of running a business. It can make your dreams come true but it can also shatter it if you are not careful. A new study shows that successful entrepreneurs are more likely to take risks.

Some 60 per cent of those with assets of more than $1 million said a high appetite for risk had been a big influence in generating their wealth, compared with 36 per cent of those with less than $1 million of assets.

Given that risk is all around us, you should learn how to take calculate your chances of survival in this game. Here are some of the things you need to consider:

1. Look before you leap. Research about the risk you are about to take and consult with experts in the field to gather more information. The more you know the better your chances of survival.
2. Have a Backup Plan. Because there are different ways to solve a problem, you should have an alternative plan in case things will go out of hand.
3. Rank the risks. If you are taking several risks, you should prioritize which one to tackle first. A good measure is to consider the consequences of each scenario and the probability of it happening. However, this is a very tricky method because it’s difficult to avoid subjective opinions.

If you think selling over the phone is easier than face-to-face selling, maybe it’s time for you to think again. Phone selling is very challenging given the high level of mistrust of many consumers and the lack of physical contact to gauge the openness of your customers. If this type of selling is vital to your business, you should consider the following tips:

1. Establish relationship in less than 10 seconds. Since you can’t convey your message with a good body language, you will have to rely entirely on your friendly tone and charming personality to forge a relationship. Make your approach more casual so your customers won’t know you’re reading a script.
2. Keep it short and sweet. Don’t bore your prospects with details by focusing on the key benefits of your product, the main message you want to tell, and some personal positive experiences from other customers.
3. Plan your calls. Segment each call if it’s a prospect, cold call, close, follow up, or existing customers. Each segment needs different approach and phone selling tactic.
4. Follow up. Don’t expect to make a sale after just one selling session. It takes time and persistence to win a customer. Remember, you’re not the only one pursuing that customer so take time to call again on the date agreed by both parties.

When starting a business, will you imitate the leading brand or do things your own way? While the latter is the typical answer, Marty Nemko of Kplinger.com says it’s better to replicate than innovate:

Being a guinea pig is so risky: Your idea or its execution could easily be flawed, or it can be so new that the public isn’t ready for it. Tivo, an unquestionable improvement over the VCR, lost hundreds of millions of dollars in its first five years as it tried to educate the public. You probably don’t have hundreds of millions of dollars and five years to wait for profitability.

Although our main goal is to differentiate our brand from competition, some situations justify the need for imitation:

1. Benchmarking or adopting best practices from another industry
2. When a particular feature, process, or service is considered a standard in your chosen industry. If these are not available then your business will not be considered at par with the leading players.

However, there are certain limits to imitation such as:

1. Using a confusingly similar brand name, logo design or colors.
2. Copying the content from your competitors’ websites, brochures, sales letters, and other marketing materials.

Some entrepreneurs are afraid to take bigger challenges because they can’t handle the idea of failing. To make matters worse, some say “no” even without even trying. In case you are in this same situation, you might want to do some attitude adjustment. Here’s how:

1. Impossible is Nothing. This famous Adidas advertising slogan is the first step towards better attitude. When faced with a difficult task, you should not give up easily. Explore your options and ask other people for advice.
2. Think big. You should start a business with the dream of becoming a big company in the long run. Combining your think-big mindset and hard work, you can take on challenging projects without fear.
3. Prepare all the time. Instead of dreaming of overnight success, start sharpening your skills and learning new ones. When the big opportunity knocks on your door, you are more than prepared to seize it.
4. Focus on your strengths. Some entrepreneurs spend their time focusing on their weaknesses until they reached a point where they can no longer appreciate their strengths. Find your key skills and learn how to use it to your advantage.

Start your week with these 8 practical small business tips and news happening around the globe. More importantly, try to integrate these new insights to help your small business succeed.

Here we go:

1. IndyStar.com says true entrepreneurs seem to have a knack not only for spotting an emerging business opportunity, but also for spotting another opportunity within that first opportunity.
2. Do you know the basic psychology of marketing? Understand the difference between needs and wants? AllBusiness.com offers an overview of marketing and how it affects your business.
3. Do you really need to learn employment law? A new study in the UK shows that 78 per cent of entrepreneurs deal unaided with employee-related paperwork. This may be from another country but I have a strong feeling the U.S. has the same trend.
4. Time to brand yourself because CareerBuilder.com says like consumer products, you have a brand as well and that is your reputation.
5. If you want to hire good employees, don’t just rely on your academic books. Why don’t you try football? Rob of Businesspundit explains what you can learn from this contact game about hiring.
6. Regardless if you are in online or offline business, do you believe we are all in the business of ideas? Small business marketing consultant Amy Biddle suggests to all small business owners that our primary business is the business of being a visionary.
7. Because many Gen-Y people don’t want to climb the corporate ladder, will they succeed as entrepreneurs? Just combine the freshness of the younger generation with the work ethic of Gen-X or boomers and they’re good to go!
8. Jamie Herzlich of newsday.com says keep customers by keeping them happy. This might appear obvious but check again for you might be missing some important points in your business.

We’re giving to you the must-read tips for entrepreneurs, so you don’t have to sort through numerous online publications and focus more on gathering new insights to help you succeed. Read our compilation for today:

1. If you are a Six Feet Under entrepreneur or interested in running your own funeral home, you may want to invest in Maryland’s funeral industry because a new court decision has opened the door for more entrepreneurs to enter the funeral business under the legal and financial advantages afforded by incorporating.

2. Looking to expand your online business? Why not try the virtual world Second Life? Read this interesting news about how entrepreneurs reap profits from this site.

3. Protecting your business data like financial statements, marketing plans, or business plans is a very important task every entrepreneur should not forget. For $10 dollars every month, At&T is offering a Remote Vault service to allow small businesses with a broadband Internet connection to remotely access, copy and store data from PCs or laptops to an AT&T Internet Data Center.

4. Visit BootStrapMe to learn some great bootstrapping suggestions from a diverse group of business leaders. One interesting suggestion is to be honest with yourself by not chasing an idea forever if you can’t pull it off.

5. Fortunately, Rhonda Abrams of Gannett News Service believes cash isn’t the only way to reward employees. Understand how you can use well days, birthdays, extra time off, and employee of the week program as meaningful tactics.

Tired of spending countless hours surfing the Internet and looking for best marketing lessons suitable for your small business? Don’t worry! We’re compiling the most relevant marketing articles and news that will guide your small business towards success. Today, there are 7 marketing tips you may want to read:

1. Ageless Marketing offers a comprehensive guide on how an understanding of the seasons of life can make you a more effective marketer.

2. Branding Autopsy explains why the notion “to get a customer, a marketer must be willing to lose a customer” is one of the most important lessons he learned.

3. For online entrepreneurs interested of hiring SEO experts, Scott Buresh of The Post Chronicle offers a good advice - for your search engine optimization campaign to be truly successful, a search engine optimization company must understand your business, products and services enough that it can accurately promote them on the Internet.

4. Understand why Branding Blog doesn’t believe in low rent strategy.

5. Testimonials are great, if you know how to do it properly. Guerilla Consulting explains the trouble with testimonials and how you can avoid it.

6. A new marketing study by the University of Missouri-Columbia reveals it’s a customer’s loyalty toward the salesperson – rather than the products and services tied closely to the seller – that can inspire greater sales. However, this loyalty can make your business more vulnerable.

7. Running an online business? You should watch this insightful video loaded with important online statistics to help you understand the internet better.

There are many temptations hindering the success of small businesses across the globe. These are the things we should not do but for some reason, many entrepreneurs keep doing it. Here are some of the fatal temptations in running a small business.

1. Cutting corners. Some entrepreneurs offer substandard products or poor service just to minimize expenses. They are tempted to buy cheap raw materials or accept bargain deals without regard to quality.
2. Forgetting the basics. Every business has essential parts like special equipment, unique business skills, or secret formula. However, we sometimes take these things for granted because we focus on new but less significant matters.
3. Listening to everybody. Starting a business can be very confusing so we solicit advice from experts in different fields like finance, marketing and leadership. Although there is nothing wrong with that, we should learn to evaluate every advice and uncover any hidden agenda if there’s any.
4. Not assessing your business skills. There are some entrepreneurs who believe that common sense and luck are the main ingredients of success. It is important to know your limitations so you can identify what skills to work on and the people you need to hire.

Some entrepreneurs are guilty of extendingtheir established brands without a well-supported justification or totally based on gut feel. Maybe it’s the notion that it’s very easy to piggyback on the success of one brand than to start from scratch.

However, a wrong brand extension can do more harm than good in the overall performance of your business. In many situations, it can confuse or even alienate your existing customers. To make matters worse, it can drain your marketing budget. Before going for a brand extension, ask yourself these important questions:

1. What’s the added value of this line extension to my parent brand, both short-term and long-term?
2. In what way will it strengthen my parent brand?
3. How will my current customers react to this plan?
4. Am I addressing an unmet need different from what my parent brand is serving?
5. Is the parent strongly associated with a particular product category or do I have the flexibility to enter in an entirely different category?

If you have clearcut answers to these questions then you can go ahead with your brand extension. Otherwise, take time to reconsider your options and come up with a better plan.