For more than 20 years, SurveyMonkey has empowered employees at all types of organizations to make better decisions for their colleagues, customers, and prospects.
Our #CuriosityatWork contest, which asked customers to share their experiences with SurveyMonkey for a chance to win a prize, shed light on new and compelling ways people use surveys to get business done.
We heard stories from solopreneurs to employees at non-profits who offered us qualitative, quantitative, and yes, even stanza-tative feedback on using SurveyMonkey.
Some of the most inspiring stories came from our small business customers. Here are 3 that stand out and can inspire you to get more from surveys!
Curious about our other winners?
We picked 20 people who use surveys in innovative ways to improve the experience of their customers, colleagues, and prospects.
Event organizers use feedback to help plan and improve their competition
The Cardinal Classic Figure Skating Competition welcomes men and women of all ages and skill levels the chance to compete on the ice.
The organizers share lofty goals for the event: They want it to receive a higher than +70 Net Promoter Score® from both participating skaters and coaches.
Note: The Net Promoter Score is derived from the survey question: “How likely would you be to recommend (fill in the blank) to a friend or colleague?” Respondents are then asked to provide a rating on a 0-10 scale. For more on the Net Promoter Score, you can visit this page.
To meet this aim, the organizers use SurveyMonkey to collect feedback from coaches and skaters on several aspects of the competition, from the registration process to the practice ice, so that no detail gets ignored. They run the survey once a year to track their progress, and pinpoint the improvements they should focus on.
Isabel Isidro, the head of marketing for the competition, shared how surveys have helped their team create a preeminent ice-skating competition.
“The feedback is critical in shaping how we organize the next competition. It helps us determine what worked, what we need to change, and how we can improve."
Kudos to you, Isabel, for taking the initiative on improving an already successful event!
An entrepreneur successfully develops a line of swimwear with the help of survey data
When Taylor Long was a student in college, she saw an opportunity to build a swimwear line for curvy women—which she would later name Nomads Swimwear. Before she felt comfortable launching it, she surveyed her target market to understand:
- What they’re looking for in swimwear
- The marketing messages that resonate with them best
- How much they’re willing to pay for each item
The survey responses allowed her to not only successfully take her brand to market, but it also helped her collect a list of roughly 50 people who were interested in making a purchase. We’ll let Taylor explain the benefits from the survey on a more holistic level:
"Being able to gather invaluable information from my target market helped me iron out several facets of my business, and it allowed me to put my customers first!"
Way to go, Taylor! We hope you keep making customer-centric decisions!
Need help growing your early-stage business?
SurveyMonkey Audience lets you reach your target audience, and ask them the burning questions that matter to your business.
A journal receives profitable guidance before launching its ecommerce business
The London Review of Books (LRB) has been publishing literary essays bi-weekly for more than 40 years.
In an effort to evolve its business and increase its profitability, they wanted to open an ecommerce store. But before they felt comfortable doing so, they surveyed customers on the types of books they should offer and whether there are other products they should sell.
Once they collected feedback and were able to act on it, they realized big-time returns. Here’s what Cassie Gibson, a marketing executive at LRB, told us:
“We've taken over £100,000 in our first year by listening to our customers & making products they really want.”
Here’s to hoping that customer feedback continues to power LRB’s growth!
We’re proud of the value we’ve delivered for these organizations and the countless others who use SurveyMonkey. And we can’t wait to see what the next 20 years has in store for our thoughtful, inquisitive, and innovative customers!
