Understanding Question Types

Text questions allow customers to write free-form responses in their own words.

Short Text (single line):

• For brief responses (names, titles, etc.)
• Max ~100 characters
• Single-line input field

Long Text (multi-line):

• For detailed feedback
• Unlimited characters
• Multi-line text area (expandable)

Perfect for:

• "What did we do well?"
• "What could we improve?"
• "Any additional comments?"
• "Tell us about your experience"
• "What's the main reason for your score?"

Best practices:

• Always include at least one text question for qualitative feedback
• Make it optional (people skip long text more often)
• Ask specific questions rather than generic "Comments?"
• Place after rating/score questions to get context

Generic (less useful):

• ❌ "Comments?"
• ❌ "Anything else?"

Specific (more useful):

• ✅ "What's the main reason for your score?"
• ✅ "What's one thing we could improve?"
• ✅ "What impressed you most about your visit?"

Multiple choice questions present a list of options where customers select one answer.

• Add options: Enter your choice options (minimum 2)
• Reorder: Drag options to rearrange
• Other option: Allow customers to write their own answer

Perfect for:

• "Which service did you use?" (Cleaning, Exam, Whitening)
• "How did you hear about us?" (Google, Friend, Social Media)
• "Which location did you visit?" (Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa)
• "What's your primary concern?" (Price, Quality, Speed)

Best practices:

• Limit to 5-7 options (more gets overwhelming)
• Order options logically (alphabetical, frequency, importance)
• Include "Other" if your list might not be exhaustive
• Make options mutually exclusive (no overlap)

Question: "Which service did you receive today?"

Options:

• Dental Cleaning
• Filling
• Root Canal
• Whitening
• Consultation
• Other (please specify)

Checkbox questions let customers select multiple answers from a list.

Same as multiple choice:

• Add options (minimum 2)
• Reorder by dragging
• Optional "Other" field

Perfect for:

• "Which features do you use regularly?" (select all that apply)
• "What improvements would you like to see?" (select all)
• "Which team members helped you today?" (select all)
• "Which of the following describe your experience?" (select all)

Best practices:

• Use when multiple selections make sense
• Include "(select all that apply)" in the question
• Don't make it required if some people might select none
• Limit to 5-8 options for readability

Question: "Which of the following did you appreciate about your visit? (select all that apply)"

Options: ☐ Friendly staff ☐ Clean environment ☐ Punctual appointment ☐ Clear explanations ☐ Comfortable experience ☐ Fair pricing

Rating questions display a 5-star scale for intuitive feedback.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (interactive, clickable stars)

Customers can select 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 stars.

Perfect for:

• "Rate your overall experience"
• "Rate the cleanliness of our facility"
• "Rate the friendliness of our staff"
• "Rate the quality of service"
• "How would you rate the value for money?"

Best practices:

• Use for subjective quality assessments
• More visual/intuitive than numeric scales
• Works great on mobile
• Can use multiple rating questions in one survey

Multi-rating survey (rate each aspect):

• Overall experience: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Staff friendliness: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Facility cleanliness: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Value for money: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Simple binary choice questions with just two options: Yes or No.

Two buttons:

• ✓ Yes
• ✗ No

Perfect for:

• "Was this your first visit?"
• "Would you recommend us to others?"
• "Did we meet your expectations?"
• "Is this issue resolved?"
• "Would you like a follow-up call?"

Best practices:

• Use only when answer is truly binary
• Great for qualification questions
• Perfect for triggering conditional logic
• Keep question clear and unambiguous

Q1: "Was this your first visit?"

• Yes → Show: "How did you hear about us?"
• No → Show: "How many times have you visited?"

Learn more in Conditional Logic.

Email questions collect email addresses with automatic validation.

Ensures proper email format:

• ✅ customer@example.com
• ❌ not-an-email
• ❌ missing@domain

Perfect for:

• Collecting contact information
• Following up on feedback
• Sending special offers
• Building email list

Best practices:

• Explain why you need it: "We'd love to follow up on your feedback"
• Make it optional unless necessary
• Include privacy note: "We'll never share your email"
• Pre-fill if you already have it (from contact record)

If you're sending to existing contacts, demeterrr can pre-fill their email automatically.

Phone questions collect phone numbers with format validation.

Accepts various formats:

• ✅ (555) 123-4567
• ✅ 555-123-4567
• ✅ 5551234567
• ✅ +1 555 123 4567

Perfect for:

• Collecting contact information
• Scheduling callbacks
• SMS follow-up consent
• Updating customer records

Best practices:

• Explain the purpose: "We'll call to schedule your next appointment"
• Make optional unless required for service
• Include privacy assurance
• Pre-fill from contact records

Number questions accept numeric input (whole numbers or decimals).

Set constraints:

• Minimum value: e.g., 0
• Maximum value: e.g., 100
• Decimal places: Allow decimals or whole numbers only

Perfect for:

• "How many times have you visited us?"
• "How many years have you been a customer?"
• "How much did you spend today?"
• "How many people were in your party?"
• "On a scale of 1-100, how likely..."

Best practices:

• Set realistic min/max values
• Use whole numbers when decimals don't make sense
• Consider using rating or scale questions for subjective scores
• Include units in question: "How many days...?" not just "Days?"

Question: "How many times have you visited us in the past year?"

Configuration:

• Minimum: 0
• Maximum: 365
• Decimal: No (whole numbers only)

Date questions provide a calendar picker for selecting dates.

Interactive calendar widget:

• Month/year navigation
• Click to select date
• Formatted as: MM/DD/YYYY or DD/MM/YYYY (based on locale)

Perfect for:

• "When did you first visit us?"
• "When is your birthday?"
• "When did this issue occur?"
• "What date would you prefer for your next appointment?"
• "When did you make your purchase?"

Best practices:

• Use calendar picker rather than asking for typed dates
• Set reasonable date ranges if needed
• Consider timezone if relevant
• Make optional unless critical

Question: "When was your first visit to our practice?"

Optional settings:

• Earliest date: January 1, 2020
• Latest date: Today
• Default: Blank (customer selects)

Need open-ended feedback? → Text (short or long)

Need to choose from options?

• Single selection → Multiple Choice
• Multiple selections → Checkboxes

Need a rating or score?

• Visual/intuitive → Rating (stars)
• Yes/no → Yes/No
• Specific number → Number

Need contact information?

• Email → Email (validated)
• Phone → Phone (validated)

Need a date? → Date (calendar picker)

1. NPS Question: 0-10 scale (built-in)
2. Text: "What's the main reason for your score?"
3. Multiple Choice: "Which service did you use today?"
4. Rating: "Rate the cleanliness of our facility" (stars)
5. Yes/No: "Was this your first visit?"
6. Text: "Any additional comments?"

This survey combines 5 different question types for comprehensive feedback.

• Use 2-5 questions total
• Each additional question reduces completion rate
• Focus on what you'll actually act on

• Combine quantitative (ratings, yes/no) with qualitative (text)
• Use multiple choice to segment, then ask for details
• Balance quick questions with deeper ones

• Only mark truly critical questions as required
• Required questions reduce completion rates
• Customers skip surveys with too many required fields

1. Start with the main score question (NPS/CSAT/CES)
2. Follow with "why" (text question)
3. Add segmentation questions (multiple choice)
4. End with optional contact info
5. Close with open-ended "anything else?"

Now that you understand question types:

1. Add questions to surveys - Build your survey
2. Set up conditional logic - Create smart question flows
3. Preview your survey - Test before sending
4. Reorder questions - Organize question flow

Can I change a question type after creating it? Yes, but only if the survey has no responses yet. After responses exist, changing types could corrupt data.

What's the difference between multiple choice and checkboxes? Multiple choice = select one answer. Checkboxes = select multiple answers.

Should I use rating stars or a number question for scores? Use rating stars for subjective quality ("rate your experience"). Use number for objective quantities ("how many times").

Can I make email/phone questions required? Yes, but be thoughtful. Required contact fields reduce survey completion rates significantly.

Ready to build powerful surveys? Start adding questions! 📝