Although the growth of technology has led to cost-effective, timely, and quality market research through methodologies like online surveys, there remains situations where mail surveys remain relevant. Many organizations we work with do not have email contacts for all of their customers so outside of phone calls, they often choose a mail survey outright or a hybrid combination of a mail survey and email survey.
The response rates are strong. Whether it is a mailed letter survey or postcard, we are often surprised (but should not be) by the strong return. When a survey is sent to a recipient with a pre-paid postage return stamp, it is an easy return. The participant simply fills out the survey and drops it off in the mailbox.
Decades ago, when people received an email they were excited because it was new and different. Nowadays, you get into the office, open your inbox, and you are lucky if there are not 10+ emails read to read. It can be overwhelming.
So when something different than a bill arrives in your mailbox, it can often stand out. This helps our mail survey firm obtain stronger than expected response rates.
Not all surveys are great fit for the old-fashioned mailbox. However, we still see and manage our fair share of mail surveys. Here are 4 situations which warrant one.
Reason 1: Customer Policy
Our mail survey firm often works with banks or credit unions to send paper surveys. Some financial institutions have requirements where the organization is not allowed to share customer information or personally identifiable information (PII) such as an email. These situations limit the organizations' ability to choose from several methodologies. In these cases, they are often forced to use a mail survey.
Reason 2: Older Respondents
What if your customer base is elderly and is not tech-savvy? Many organizations choose to mail surveys to these types of respondents to allow for a stronger response rate. This audience will not likely reply to an email or text survey, but old-fashioned pen and paper is right up their alley. These are often good fits for investment or wealth management surveys which deal with wills or trusts which tend to cater to older populations.
Reason 3: Government or Industry Requirement
Sometimes the organizations we work with are required by law or required by the industry to send out surveys in a specific fashion. Healthcare comes to mind as a highly regulated industry when it comes to surveys. Other manufacturing companies choose mail surveys because they can easily insert a postcard into a box when the package is shipped directly to a customer to fit ISO regulations.
Reason 4: Rural or Low Income Populations
Last but not least, the final reason our clients choose mail surveys is specific to geography. If you want to survey a very rural or even low income population there is no guarantee they will have access to 3G, 4G, or WiFi. Therefore it is always safer to send out a mail survey to their household with a pre-paid postage return envelope or stamp.
Here is a case study on a rural mail survey we conducted at our mail survey company.
Contact Drive Research
Drive Research is a mail survey firm located in Upstate New York. Our survey services include methodologies like online surveys, email surveys, phone surveys, and mail surveys. Questions about how we can help your organization? Contact us.
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Text us at 315-303-2040